We were given the remainder of the day to prepare for the upcoming training session following the meeting with Nicolai93. I used this time to practice my dagger strikes and agility, as I usually do on a daily basis, though the recent events I have endured have interfered with that training regimen. Every day as an assassin that I did not have any business to attend to, I would train for at least three hours per day. This would generally consist of working on my form with my various dagger strikes. Since I had to use these weapons both for offensive and defensive purposes, I had to make sure my form was flawless. I would also work on my agility by vaulting off of buildings and jumping between rooftops. Back in my younger years, Ganondorf8 would often throw rocks in my direction to test my dodging abilities, which probably helped more so than my solo training. Still, I was determined to become the strongest and fastest assassin that I could possibly be, as my father would have the same motive in mind. The mountains near the General Wii Discussion Board made for an excellent place to test stamina, as climbing up those cliffs was no easy task. Stealth and lethality were also key components that I valued as part of my set of skills. Needless to say that I was confident in my abilities, but I wanted to make sure I was at my physical peak and was fully prepared for whatever challenge awaited me tomorrow. Following my hours of training, I returned to my room when I crossed paths with LordCrumpTheGreat in the hallway. Delighted to see me, she stopped for a chat.
“Hey!!!” She said, her face beaming, “Are you ready or what?” “I think so…” I said somewhat confidently, though I really was unsure of what to expect. “I’m really nervous,” she remarked, “I hope it’s not as hard as he said it would be…but at least we get a nice meal the night before.” “Meal?” I asked, realizing how hungry I actually was. “Yeah,” she smiled, “Did you go to your room yet? Nicolai93 left a ton of food for each of us.” “Nice!” I exclaimed as I opened the door to my bedroom. Sure enough, there was a huge table against the right wall lined with a banquet of delicious-looking food. “Very nice!” I said as I marveled at the impressive spread. Meat, bread, cheese, pasta, soup, and even desserts covered every square inch of the table, but I quickly noticed a large note on the center, atop of a freshly-baked apple pie. “What’s this?” I asked LordCrumpTheGreat, to which she simply shrugged her shoulders. “Did you get one in your room, too?” “Hold on, I’ll check…” she said as she ran into her quarters and quickly returned holding a piece of paper. “Yeah, I must have been so hungry that I didn’t even notice.” Comparing the notes side-by-side, the same message was written on both.
To All Cardinals,
This is all of the food you will receive until we leave to the Power On Power-Up Tournament.
- Nicolai93
“Oh no!” LordCrumpTheGreat screamed, “I already ate half the turkey! I hope I don’t run out…” “Don’t worry,” I replied calmly, “I’m sure Nicolai93 would not want us to starve. There is sure to be plenty of food if you just rationalize.” “I guess…” She said softly, still uneasy about her current predicament. I thought that this would mark the end of the conversation, but she continued to linger as I prepared a plate of food for myself. Wanting her to leave, I remarked, “Maybe you should go get some sleep. Tomorrow is sure to be a long day.” “Oh!” She said in a surprised tone, “Yeah, you’re probably right. Umm…goodnight!” Perhaps realizing that she was intruding, she quickly exited the room and closed the door, leaving me to eat in peace. After my meal, I almost instantly collapsed on my bed and drifted off to sleep.
I awoke the following morning to an ear-piercing alarm that caused to sit up quickly in bed. In front of me, I met eyes with another user who had a sword directly pointed at my face. As he raised his hands to swing down, I quickly fumbled underneath the sheets and pulled out a dagger, with which I used to block the incoming attack. He quickly followed up with another strike down, but this time I rolled out of bed and on the floor to dodge the sword as it sliced my pillow in half. Assuming a fighting pose, I blocked his third attempt and used my other dagger to stab him directly in the chest. Much to my surprise, however, my dagger met with a strong chest plate beneath his shirt and my attack had no effect. As the user prepared to strike again, I reacted quickly and attacked, slicing his arm that was holding the sword. However, much to my surprise, this resulted in several sparks and revealed a series of severed electrical wires. “Well done” my foe replied in a robotic-like voice, “Please follow me to the training facilities.” Picking up his severed arm, my opponent quickly rushed out of the room, causing me to dash to keep up with him. His speed increased dramatically as he moved down the hallway, navigating rapidly through a confusing maze of hallways. Zipping in an out of doorways and narrow passages, I had to run at almost my full speed to keep up with him until he quickly stopped in front of a door. “Well done” he said again in the same voice, “Enter if you are ready to begin.” I pushed open the door to see Nicolai93 standing there alone with his arms folded.
“Ah, ShadowMario41,” He said, “You’re the first to arrive… which makes sense because yours was a test of speed.” “Hello sir!” I said, though I was still somewhat confused as to what had just happened. Sensing that, Nicolai93 offered me an explanation, “I just tested each of you in terms of your strengths. Yours was clearly based on reaction time and agility. I hope the training drone didn’t rough you up too much.” “I see,” I remarked, “I’ve never seen one of those before.” “They’re quite sophisticated!” Nicolai93 exclaimed proudly, “Let’s wait for the others. They should be here any moment.” As if on cue, the door opened to reveal PikminMaster7, whose training drone had a several holes in the center of its torso. “Greetings!” Nicolai93 said, “You’ve passed your test of strength.” “These things get tougher every time,” PikminMaster7 said, “I had to give it my all to even put a dent in this thing.” “If that was your all,” Nicolai93 said, “then you might be in over your head.”
Before PikminMaster7 could deliver a rebuttal, PrinceLudwig appeared in the doorway, his training drone’s head hanging on by a wire. “Hello PrinceLudwig, you passed your test of magical strength.” “Let the games begin.” The mage simply replied with a smirk on his face. GamePlayer30 followed closely behind, who passed his test of defensive combat and LordCrumpTheGreat was last, passing her test of accuracy. After Nicolai93 welcomed everyone, he raised his hands, signaling silence before he began, “I hope you are all prepared for what you are about to face. Each of you has a ten-day training program specifically designed to suit your individual abilities. LordCrumpTheGreat and ShadowMario41, don’t worry; even though you’ve only been here for a short time, I have observed your combat skills and can already dissect your strengths and weaknesses.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out five envelopes with names written on them and handed them off to PrinceLudwig. “Pass these around and take the one with your name on it. Inside you will find a card with a number and a key. As you can see behind me, there are five silver doors each marked with a number. The number in your envelope corresponds to your training room and the key will be used to unlock that door. You are the only one allowed in and out of your respective rooms. I will be supervising all of your sessions and pulling the strings, so you better not take any unwarranted breaks.” I received my envelope from PikminMaster7 as he said this and promptly opened it to see a card with a large number 3 on it. “Good luck!” Nicolai93 said, “You’ll need it!”
He exited the room through the door through which we originally entered and we all moved to our respective rooms and turned the key to open the door. Stepping inside, I closed the door behind me and large overhead lights immediately turned on. The walls, floor, and ceiling of the room were entirely black with intersecting green lines forming a grid-like pattern. The room was average-sized, but there were no windows or other light sources to speak of. Just one overhead vent and the door leading outside was the only variation in the floor and wall pattern. I kept my guard up, expecting an enemy to be waiting in the room, but it was entirely empty. A few moments later, though, I heard a voice over some sort of speaker system. It was unmistakably the voice of Nicolai93. “You have fifteen minutes to stretch before the training starts.” Taking his advice fully, I stretched my arms and legs, ready to begin this intense routine.
When the time allotted for stretching had expired, the voice spoke on the speaker again. “Today I will test your strongest attribute. For you, ShadowMario41, it is your speed and agility. Until you hear otherwise, you must dodge everything that is fired at you. Failing to do so will have some painful consequences.” When he finished his sentence, drone guns appeared out of the wall and started firing small round pellets in my direction. The guns followed my movements, so they would always fire towards me, not randomly around the room. For the first few minutes, they were slow and I could avoid them with ease, but the pace of these projectiles quickly increased and, after five minutes, I had to be on my toes to dodge the next one. Thirty minutes in, I was really struggling to avoid the projectiles, and was sweating as I tried to keep pace. Left, right, up, down; I had to move in all directions flawlessly to avoid them. When the firing rate was kicked up another notch, I was forced to block one that was headed straight towards my face. The impact of the pellet against my blade was so strong that I knocked me to the ground, where I had to roll to avoid the near-constant stream of pellets aimed in my direction. I quickly sprang to my feet, but not in time to dodge a projectile that struck me in the shoulder. I winced in pain as my whole arm was throbbing from that one hit, but I could not falter. I was struck twice in succession, both on my left leg, before I could get back into rhythm. I had only been hit one additional time in the right leg and, after an hour, the projectiles ceased.
“Five minute break.” The voice said, though I was already extremely fatigued from just that first exercise. The break seemed to last much less than five minutes, though, and the voice came over the speaker again. “The blast of electrical energy will bounce around the room. Dodge it or you’ll get zapped.” Slowly rising to my feet again, I saw a ball of light emerge from the vent in the ceiling, as it started to bounce around the room wildly. Although it was not aimed directly at me, it moved even faster than the pellets fired from the guns, so I really had to zip around the room to avoid being zapped. I could feel myself getting somewhat lightheaded during the course of this exercise. As I was working at my full potential, maintaining this level of speed for such an extended period of time was extremely draining. Thirty minutes into the workout, a second energy ball dropped in from above, and now the two were bouncing around at the same wild speed. At my full speed, it was nearly impossible to dodge these energy spheres, but I somehow managed to do it. After an hour, I expected another break, but I was greeted with a third ball of energy entering the room, this one slightly slower yet larger than the other two. I was dashing off of walls, running rapidly across the floor, and making split-second decisions to successfully avoid the blasts. As soon as I felt as if I was about to pass out, the balls immediately stopped in mid-air. “Five minute break.” I heard once again as I stood my ground, trying to catch my breath.
As soon as the break ended and without warning, the balls of energy continued their paths, one nearly striking me in the face as I rolled to dodge just in the nick of time. For the first time in any training exercise that I had done, I felt as if I was going to die. I could feel the fatigue setting in and my vision was beginning to blur. I mistakenly moved the wrong way to dodge a blast and I could tell it was going to hit me right in the chest. I braced myself for impact, but instead of pain I felt re-energized, as if new life was coursing through my veins. The other projectiles increased in speed in response to the contact, but I was able to dash around the room and barely avoid them. Two grueling and draining hours later, there were now four balls bouncing around the room, but they dissipated and Nicolai93’s voice spoke again, “One hour for lunch then return here. I hope you remember how to get back to your room.” “Damn!” I said coming to a harsh realization. I focused so much on conserving my energy to follow that robot that I did not pay any attention to where I was actually going. I opened the door that lead outside, but the other members were still training. Either their regimens were still going on or our lunches were scheduled differently. Paying it no mind, I walked slowly into the hallway, grimacing in pain with each step.
After approximately twenty minutes of searching, I finally made it back to my room, where I had a light lunch and freshened up before returning to the training area. Already fatigued, I had to persevere for another four hours of the same exercises before the long day was finally over. When I emerged from the room, I had to struggle to keep my balance; my knees were shaking and I felt like I was going to topple over at any second. As instructed by Nicolai93, I returned to my room, ate a hearty and well-deserved meal, and then collapsed on my bed, falling asleep almost instantly.
I awoke the next day to the same deafening alarm and a training drone attacking me. I defeated it in the same manner and was promptly directed to the training facilities. I was extremely sore from the previous day, but knew that I had to keep working if I wanted to take full advantage of Nicolai93’s training program. As all of the cardinals gathered in front of the boss, it was clear to me that I was not the only one having problems. PrinceLudwig was seemingly out of breath, LordCrumpTheGreat looked like she was going to be sick, and the other two just looked generally fatigued. There was also a peculiar plastic container filled with arm and ankle bands and a stack of brown books behind Nicolai93, which he addressed before allowing us to begin our training.
“Greetings!” He said cheerfully, which somewhat mocked our weariness, “It’s great to see that you all survived the first day. This day will play out much differently… but first I have something very important to give all of you.” On the ground next to him was a stack of books, which he picked up and handed out to all of us. “This empty book will serve as your training log,” he said very seriously, “and I want you all to write about your experience every night after your training, like a diary of sorts.” “But my writing skills are alre –” PikminMaster7 chimed in before being interrupted by Nicolai93, “Silence, you fool! This is not about your writing skills. By reflecting upon your training each day, you can reflect upon your experiences and learn from them. Knowing your strengths and weaknesses is an integral part in becoming a well-rounded fighter, and that is exactly what you will do for me. If you fail to record an entry, you will be met with severe punishment.” Nicolai93 clenched his fists upon completing this sentence, causing everyone to look around nervously. “Is that clear?” “Yes sir!” We all said in unison, agreeing to write about our training experience on a nightly basis. Satisfied with our compliance, he directed his attention towards the arm bands, which I presumed were also going to be given to us.
He grabbed the bands out of the plastic bin and passed them around to everyone. “Each of you will wear one of these on each arm and one on each ankle.” I held the band in my hand when it was passed to me. It was solid black and seemingly made of metal, but was surprisingly unrestrictive when I fastened it around my arm. The other cardinals and I proceeded to put on these bands, which did not seem to serve much purpose. We were all exchanging glances, inquiring with our body language as to the nature of these bands, but to no avail. Eventually Nicolai93 spoke out, holding a remote control in his right hand, “Make sure they’re on nice and tight. When I press this button, you all might be in for a bit of a surprise. Before then, please enter your respective rooms. Good luck!”
I stepped inside and closed the door, still curious as to what these bands would accomplish. Not soon after, though, Nicolai93’s voice could be heard from the speaker, “I am about to activate the bands on your arms and legs. Let’s just say that today’s workout might seem a little…heavy…” Upon finishing his sentence, it felt as if cinderblocks had been attached to my hands and feet. The weight that I felt left me with no choice but to fall to the ground .Laying flat on my stomach, I could barely even lift my arms and legs. Nicolai93’s voice came over the speaker once again, “Don’t worry… your only task today and tomorrow is to get used to wearing these. On the fourth day of training, you will complete the drills you all did yesterday while wearing these bands. How you choose to spend these two days is entirely up to you.” “Ah!” I winced in pain as I struggled to lift my left arm and get in a crawling position, but it was no use. The weight was simply too much as I crashed down to the floor yet again.
After some mental debate as to how I should try to get up once more, I tried the same tactic of getting into a crawl, this time with much more determination. Using nearly all of the strength within me, I was able to get on my hands and knees, soon thereafter rising to a kneeling position. I knew that standing up would be the biggest obstacle to overcome, so I decided to take it one step at a time. I tried to shift my left foot in a swift motion such that the sole of my foot was flat on the floor, but I lost my balance and had to bring my hand back to the floor to stabilize myself. An hour passed of this struggle, but I eventually rose to my feet; the effort of standing still was enough to make me sweat. I strained to take a step forward, but I was slowly making progress. Each step was very difficult, but my resolve was unwavering. I had to put all of my energy into each step forward, which was extremely draining.
A few hours had passed before I was able to walk at a very slow pace, though I felt as if I was going to collapse at any moment. At this point, I decided it would be best to return to my room, as it would probably take a considerable amount of time to get there. I emerged from my training room, stepping heavily on the floor as I trudged back to my room. “Damn it all!” I heard GamePlayer30 scream loudly from elsewhere within Nicolai93’s lair. He was undoubtedly also having trouble with the intense training regime. By the end of the day, I was able to walk at a somewhat normal pace, but the strain on my muscles was tremendous. Unsure of how I would eventually be able to complete the exercises I worked on the first day with this added weight, I returned to my room and fell asleep later that night.
*******************
The light from underneath the door leading to the hallway met with my eyes and I promptly awoke. There was no deafening alarm or ambush and my feeling of anxiety was quelled once I realized what day it was. It was August 30th, 2007; the training had passed as I sat up in my bed on the day of rest, the day before we would journey to the tournament. Even though it we were supposed to just rest, I thought I would at least stretch out my muscles and test my strength. However, upon trying to move my arms, a sharp pain coursed through my body, as if my spinal cord were being rattled. “Ah!” I screamed as I was literally rendered immobile due to the extreme pain. I suppose that Nicolai93 factored in this period of recovery, as he knew that we would all be feeling this way. At this point, it was not the black bands slowing me down so much as it was the constant grind of training at such intensity for ten straight days. I felt tired and strangely out of breath, but I could not fall back asleep. My mind raced as I sat there, thankful that the training had ended but bored at the same time. A few minutes had passed before the door to my bedroom opened to reveal Nicolai93, who was standing there with his arms folded.
“Ah!” He exclaimed, “You’re awake and healthy!” “I don’t know about that…” I remarked, still struggling to stay in a seated position. Sensing this, Nicolai93 said, “Oh don’t worry. You can lie down if you wish…today is your rest day…and a well-deserved one after all that training.” Upon hearing this, I crashed my head down upon the soft pillow, as he looked around the room, focusing in particular on the table that once had a banquet on it but now was home to leftovers and food scraps. “Wow… you went through all that food.” He said, “Don’t worry…everyone else did, too. Would you like me to put what’s left on a plate for you?” Surprised by his uncharacteristic kindness, I replied, “Uhh…sure…thanks.” “Of course!” He said back, “At this point, I’m glad that all of you are alive.” As he scraped together the last of the remaining food, he said, “In fact, I’m surprised that you could even sit up. Some of the others couldn’t even manage that…” “Is everyone okay?” I asked, curious as to the status of the other cardinals. Nicolai93 paused before replying, “GamePlayer30 is sick to his stomach. His training regime was nowhere near as hard as what I put you four through. It’s kind of pathetic, really…”
“If I may,” I began to ask, “Why is GamePlayer30 a cardinal in the first place? He doesn’t seem to match our level of…” Nicolai93 glared at me as I muttered my final word, “…strength.” His facial expression gradually softened as he brought the plate of food to my bedside. “I am impressed with your phenomenal progress, so I’ll tell you…” he said, standing there with his arms crossed again, “…but not now. Now you must rest your mind and body.” I felt somewhat disappointed that Nicolai93 would not share his tale at the moment, but knew that I would be treated to an interesting story in the future. Meanwhile, Nicolai93 picked up my diary, which was lying on the desk and started flipping through it, making sure there was an entry for each day. “Excellent!” He said proudly, “Although a bit short, I guess you don’t say very much regardless. You did listen after all.” He tossed the book in my direction and, landing on my stomach, the cover of the book opened. “If you’re looking for something to do…” he said, “…reading up on your training might not be such a bad idea. You may be amazed at what exactly you did these past few days…But before I leave let me remind you there is a meeting tomorrow morning before we head out to the tournament. You better be up and ready.” He spun around and made his way for the door, but I wanted to ask him one further question before he left. “Boss,” I said, causing him to glance over his shoulder, “In your opinion, how did I do?” As a child, it was always uplifting to hear from my father that I had done well in a training exercise or another drill, and I was hoping to possibly relive that feeling after suffering for ten days. Without turning around, he simply replied, “My opinion matters not. The results will speak for themselves. How well do you think you did?” As soon as he stopped talking, the door slammed shut behind them and I was left in solitude. Picking up the book, it had landed on my entry for the third day, so I started reading from there.
Day 3:
Faced another training drone in the morning, this time with weights on my wrists and ankles. Found it difficult to move, but still beat it. Went to the meeting room all day to get used to the weights. It was a challenge, but I think I can finally move normally without a problem. Felt like my arms and legs were going to burst, so I took short breaks frequently. I might not be back up to full speed just yet, but I should be ok. I hope I can take on day 1’s training with all this weight. It’s work to just write this!
Looking back, day three of the training was probably one of the simplest days of the whole routine, and I was still completely worn out. Chuckling a bit at my reaction, I decided to read on.
Day 4:
No training drone and no briefing from Nicolai93 in the morning. Our training rooms were simply open, so I went in. Faced off against day 1’s training again, but with these weights. Every step felt grueling…I thought I was going to faint in more than one occasion. Really pushed myself to the limit. Noticed that things weren’t quite as fast as day 1, but I had to move as fast as possible with these stupid arm bands. Damn these things… if I could take them off this would be so much easier. Every movement, every decision, and every action was painful. I am absolutely exhausted.
Day 5:
Nicolai93 told us before the training that we would be tested in our secondary attributes. Turns out mine were stealth and lethality. Had to dodge crisscrossing spotlights for two hours. Very difficult with these bands still on, though I was starting to get used to them. After, had to fend off countless attack drones. They would heal if they were not killed, so I had to beat them with one deadly strike. Got to try out my Shadow Slash again, which was fun and faster than ever. Tough challenge – I got bruises on my arms and legs and a cut on my left hand. Will still try to train in day 6 despite the pain.
Day 6:
Horrible timing for this drill, considering how banged up I was from day 5. Had to work on using my daggers for defense, not just dodging everything. Repeated drills from day 1, but I was required to block…not dodge a single one. Was mostly successful, except for one that missed and caught me below my left eye. Lucky that it didn’t hit me in the eye, but it’s swollen pretty bad. Afterwards, I was forced to be punched in the abdomen several times to build up physical tolerance. Most painful exercise thus far…felt sick for a few hours afterwards. Thankfully this madness is almost over.
Day 7:
Nicolai93 told us that this and tomorrow would be the last easy days before the final two, not that the rest were even remotely easy. Had to strike extremely small targets on a wall with my daggers over and over. He said it would work on accuracy to make sure my strikes were precise. Probably the easiest drill of them all, but made my arms really tired. Lifted weights after the old fashioned way to develop some muscle mass. Finally fully used to the weighted bands, but the lifting was still really hard. Did some sprints after that to measure how fast and how long I could run at top speed. Not as tired as yesterday…but still ready for a nice meal and bed.
Day 8:
Was taught one-on-one with Nicolai93 how to improve my magical abilities. Before, my magic was limited to simple summoning of my weapons and the Flux spell. Nicolai93 taught me Nosferatu, which drains an opponent’s life and heals you. Very useful, though still not fully confident in my ability to use it. Also taught me how to power my weapons with the element of shadow, so I could make deadly magical dagger strikes. Was extremely hard to learn and mentally draining. Struggled to learn this, probably because I never did this before. I think I have it down, but I’ll practice a few more times before going to sleep. Two days left…that are supposed to be hellish. We’ll find out.
Day 9:
Amazed that I am still alive. Nicolai93 turned up the weight on the arm and ankle bands again, though not as dramatically as before. Made us do the same drills as day 5 and day 7 without having time to get used to the weight setting. Almost blacked out several times while running from the spotlights. Felt like my arm was going to snap when I was lifting weights. Finally collapsed at the end of my sprints…woke up a few minutes later to the cracking sound of a whip. Nicolai93 whipped me across the back, punishing me for taking an unauthorized break. The marks are still there…it hurts tremendously. Writing this is a struggle. Not sure how I’m going to survive the…
Day 10:
It’s finally over! After I finish this I’m going to sleep forever. Today was a combination of all the days. First completed day 1 drills, then Nicolai93 increased the weight slightly again. Felt only like a five pound increase, but was still noticeable at this point. Without any time to recover, we had to do the day 5 drills, then the day 1 drills again. Got caught by the searchlights twice, but thankfully not a third time or else Nicolai93 would have had my head. Got hit by pellets several times, noticeable bruises on my right knee and forearm. Finally, had to spar with Nicolai93, using both physical and magical attacks. Only pulled off Nosferatu a few times…was punished for the failed attempts. Channeled magic into my weapons very well, though. Nearly avoided death multiple times…a cut on my right ear shows how close I came. Still have a bandage wrapped around it. I feel dead.
Putting my hand to my right ear, I felt the bandage that served as a reminder of Nicolai93’s incredible strength. During that whole fight, I felt as if he was not even fighting at half of his full potential, though everyone was probably so tired that he would have killed us otherwise. I yawned loudly, coming to the realization that reading the journal entries made me tired once more. Closing my heavy eyelids, I drifted back to sleep, thankful that my training was over. I was eager both for tomorrow and to find out if the intense training really paid off. After a meeting in the morning with Nicolai93, I would be headed to my first Power On Power-Up Tournament with a mission in mind: Kill Falcon6, take his key, and eventually claim the 1337 for the Nicolai93 Organization.
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