The Forgotten Rogue

Chapter 17

Aire calmly stood, leaning against the wall in the dull training courtyard. She was required to be at close call for in case any of the Domers were injured during some of the tedious exercises.

Also, she had to keep regular and detailed notes on their fitness and performances. Calvert's orders...

Day after day, if she wasn't treating a patient, she found herself watching the unique group of prisoners going about their training.

Her eyes were fixed on the group of Domers jogging around the perimeter of the training area. Or more specifically, the two trainees who were racing each other at the front of the pack. They were nearly half a lap in front of the other prisoners.

Marven had ordered them all to do ten laps, but the first to finish could skip the first two rounds of the gruelling obstacle coarse which came directly after the jogging. No rest, no mercy...

She recognised both of the racing Domers, having treated both of them for injuries on multiple occasions. They had proven to be the fittest and most formidable in the Dome.

The one, going by the name Nedes, had a body well toned with strong muscles, though not bulky. He was athletic and fit but unfortunately had a bad habit of being aggressive...he made it very clear that he was the bully amongst the group of Eliminators...

Nedes was running neck and neck with Emeric, who was much leaner than the muscled boy, but not scrawny at all...He too had a body rippling with strong muscles.

However, instead of being prone to aggression, he had a strong competitive streak in him, and took to each challenge that he was presented with and...unfortunately had also become the target of the large bully.

Emeric's wounds had healed as a week passed, and now, in the training square, he was starting to show his true colors.

Aire shook her head with bemusement, as the two Domers were running full pelt with two laps to go. Pushing each other to greater speeds...neither ready to be the first to call quits...It would be nearly impossible to keep up that pace compared to the distance that they still had to cover.

They passed her at breakneck speed, both had a determined grimace on their faces. Aire bit her lip in frustration as Nedes started drawing ahead, first with only a few feet, and gradually the distance grew to a few meters. She had hoped that Emeric would win. Nedes's ego was already large enough...He didn't need the extra pride of winning.

When only one lap remained, Nedes was breathing heavily and his pace was involuntarily starting to slow down. That was when Aire saw the burst of sudden speed from Emeric. He shot by Nedes like an arrow and maintained the breathtaking speed for the remainder of the lap...leaving Nedes far behind in his cloud of dust.

Emeric finished the lap when Nedes and the other trainees reached the halfway point. He was breathing deeply, walking up and down with his hands resting on his head as he tried to calm his heaving. Although the sprint had taken a lot out of him, he had an excited grin on his face.

Nedes had been terrorizing him since the first day after he had run nearly twenty miles and surprised everyone one with his natural athleticism. The larger boy had seen Emeric as a threat to his rising fame and had tried to make Emeric's life a living hell with each opportunity he got.

He nearly succeeded...

Emeric relished each victory he had over Nedes. No matter how small or senseless. The rivalry between them only grew larger with each day when they faced each other off in the training square. He turned when he felt someone's distinctive gaze on him. That sixth sense of his.