ThE OnlE TEam You'll EvEr NEEd

"Wake up."

The voice came from a familiar figure to Stanky, who began to slowly rub his eyes. Groaning softly, he rolled to his side, yawning.

Dauntless stood to the side his back was facing, a calm expression across his face. "You're late for our daily training," he said sternly, crossing his arms as Stanky rolled out of bed.

The young man sat up, brushing the covers off of him. The scars from the last run-in with the Peacekeepers were slow to fade on Stanky's body. Tears welled soon after as the painful memory of Narry's sacrifice came to mind.

"Give me a few to wake up," Stanky replied, the crack in his voice audible to Dauntless, who walked to the kitchen outside of the doorway. Composing himself, Stanky went to his dresser, taking one of the several clean uniforms he had in his top drawer.

Coming into the kitchen, Stanky watched as Dauntless channelled his energy in the open garden. Stanky wished that he could have powers like Dauntless - being able to project energy, use his mind to move objects, and all of the other spectacular abilities he had. No wonder Narry and Dauntless founded the resistance by themselves.

Stanky was stronger this time when the memory of his late father came to mind, holding back any emotion as he went to the kitchen table. A plate of eggs and bacon waited for him to eat. Food had become bland to Stanky, however, and he ate solemnly. Dauntless had come inside, leaning against the wall closest to the garden. He wore his common white martial arts uniform, the symbol of the resistance patched on the sash that came across his chest.

"What's on your mind?" asked Dauntless, coming closer to his young student. Stanky remained quiet for a while, swallowing a mouthful of eggs before answering.

"I wish I could have protected Dad from the Peacekeepers. I feel so helpless in all of this.." He trailed off as Dauntless placed his hand on Stanky's shoulder, offering comfort the best he could.

"Your father would be proud of you no matter what," Dauntless replied soothingly, retracting his hand a few seconds later. "You know that."

"I'd love to say I did." Finishing his meal, he put it in the sink and ran some water on it. Turning back to Dauntless, he faked a smile and said, "Let's get training."

Dauntless could understand Stanky didn't feel much up to talking, and walked both himself and the boy outside. "We'll work on hand-to-hand combat today." Dauntless smiled and got into a defensive stance. "Come and attack me, but have your guard up in case I counterattack."

Stanky nodded once, putting his fists in front of his face. Analyzing his pattern of attack and how it would follow through, he decided on taking a leap forwards, ducking under his opponent's reach and quickly jabbing twice into Dauntless' abdomen.

Dauntless brought his knee into Stanky's temple almost as quickly as Stanky had attacked. The blow was heavy, sending Stanky staggering to the side a few steps before readying up again.

"You left yourself wide open with that," Dauntless chided as he got back into his stance. The margin of error was astronomically small when it came to the next attack, Stanky began to realize as he studied Dauntless' position more. Stanky finally decided to jump to his adversary's left, letting Dauntless swing quickly before striking. The fist whizzed by Stanky's ear, dodging just in time before shoving a quick elbow under Dauntless' ribcage.

Having the wind knocked out of him, Dauntless allowed a split second more of an attack to Stanky before getting ready again. However, Stanky followed up a bit too late, and Dauntless caught his punch in the palm of his hand. In a counterattack, Dauntless shot a quick uppercut into Stanky's chin, sending the young boy flying backwards onto the grass.

He could taste the blood in his mouth, the dark corners surrounding his vision fading. Dauntless' expression seemed unapologetic, however he offered his hand to help him to his feet. "Would you want to take a break?" he asked Stanky.

Stanky wiped his bottom lip with the back of his hand, getting rid of some of the blood. He was angry now. "Keep on coming. Let's have you attacking," he replied gruffly.

Dauntless was surprised and somewhat pleased to see the initiative in Stanky's tone now. He got into an offensive stance, looking for an opening as Stanky readied himself. Dauntless saw vulnerability and quickly jumped at it, sending a flying kick at Stanky's upper body. The young boy, however, saw it coming, jumping to the side as Dauntless flew past him. The latter quickly compensated for his mistake, jumping back around and lunging towards the boy.

Stanky allowed Dauntless to come onto him, rolling onto his back and using his feet to push his opponent behind him. Dauntless' momentum carried him further than anticipated, sliding on his stomach a few feet until he regained control. Before he could get back onto his feet, Stanky was on him, bringing his hand across Dauntless' face in a punishing chop. Dauntless fell onto his back, and Stanky stepped back.

Stanky began to become aware of what he had done, turning red."I'm sorry.." Stanky began as Dauntless stood up. Dauntless waved away the apology, using one hand to rub his jaw.

"No need to be. I need you to attack like that at all times." He stood up straight and rolled his shoulders back.

"But I don't want to hurt you," Stanky protested quietly, unable to make eye contact.

"Don't think of me as Dauntless, then. I'm just another opponent who you need to take down."

"If you say so," Stanky replied reluctantly, getting back into a fighting stance. "Ready when you are."

"Good." The two began to spar, the sun beginning to peak over the mountainous horizon.