Was it the radiation?
Theodore lifted the coffee mug to his mouth but was surprised to find out that he had somehow finished the entire cup.
Good. One less embarrassing moment with Winston.
He reached for another report. He’d read it shortly before Winston showed up at his door. He wanted to read it again. It was from his man. It confirmed his fears, as well as the deceased president’s suspicion.
Yes Dave. You were right. Theodore admitted to the memory of his friend.
There are rats down here.
Chapter 3
Ethan
November 5, 10:50 A.M., The Ren
Ethan swung, and missed. He quickly followed up with a front kick, but Keith had danced out of range. He finished his kick and stayed on his toes. He couldn’t give the Asian man an opening or he would be dead. Just then Keith stepped forward and his hand shot out. With a yelp Ethan jerked backwards, letting himself drop to the floor. He let momentum take him, turned his head to one side and rolled over his other shoulder, to end up back on his feet in a low crouch.
Before he knew it, Keith was on him. The oriental man got a hold of his collar, and Ethan was sure that this was it for him. Luckily, he had a partner.
Emily rushed Keith from behind with a vicious roar. The short woman put her head down and tackled Keith. It would have made any rugby player proud. Except Keith didn’t appreciate rugby. Apparently.
Keith did a forward flip over Ethan’s crouching form, never losing his grip on the young man’s collar. Keith landed on his feet. Ethan got slammed down onto his back, while Emily lay sprawled on the floor eight feet away, having tackled nothing but air.
Ethan was a goner. Before he knew it, Keith had planted a foot in his armpit and twisted his wrist, his arm fully extended in an excruciatingly painful position.
“I can break your wrist,” Keith said, sending a new jolt of pain through the young man with a tiny movement. “Or your arm.” He pulled Ethan’s arm, so it was more perpendicular to the floor. “Or dislocate your shoulder.” He dug his heel into Ethan’s armpit a little deeper. “Or I can do worse.”
Ethan was aware of Keith’s toes wriggling against his collarbone and throat. Keith released Ethan and turned to Emily.
“All because your partner thinks she is in the big ‘wrastlin’ show.”
Emily picked herself up from the floor. That portion of the floor was covered in cushioned mats, so she had only hurt her pride.
“I thought I had you, mate.” She said with a shrug, adding indignantly, “Besides, I don’t think the zombies are going to be doing flips and all that fancy stuff.”
Keith nodded. “True.” He clasped wrists with Ethan and helped the young man to his feet. “But who is to say that we will only be fighting zombies?”
Emily frowned.
“What about if Emily had rushed you without yelling?” Jack piped up from the bench at the edge of the gym.
Bill nodded beside him. The soldier still couldn’t participate in the lessons but took advantage of every opportunity to observe. Melissa, Nat, and Maria rounded out the attendance of this morning’s class.
“That’s a good point.” Keith admitted. “But why put yourself into a compromising position?” He turned back to Emily, who had walked over. “Next time consider how you can unbalance me without leaving your own feet.”
He turned to Ethan next. “As for you, young Padawan. You might have waited with that kick instead of right after trying the punch, but your roll was good. Just make sure you are ready to move in case your assailant closes in on you. You had the low position, and probably could have locked my wrist and rolled as I grabbed you.”
He put his hand around Ethan’s shoulder and turned back to his audience. “The Force is strong with this one.” Keith smirked at his own quip.
Jack didn’t miss a beat: “The geek is strong in you, master.” Nat guffawed at that.
Keith tried to keep a stern face. “Hmm. I think I’ve found my next two volunteers.”
His words had the desired effect, as both Jack and Nat exchanged worried glances. Sparring sessions with Keith usually ended up with his opponents on their ass, being assaulted by the Asian man’s seemingly endless list of cheesy one-liners.
Ethan exchanged a small smile with Jack as they passed each other. He was proud of Keith’s praise. Ethan had been learning fast. He figured that he was only second to Melissa in the Aikido pecking order. But then again, that woman was like...
Spiderman?
Was she like Spiderman? Or maybe Catwoman was a better description. Ethan figured that he would ask Jack about that. Jack was just geeky enough to know exactly what superhero they could compare Melissa to. Ethan grinned at the thought as he sat down on the bench.
Jack and Nat prepared to spar with Keith. Ethan figured that those two stood no chance of even landing a blow. Keith was just that good. The guy had to hold back, that was for sure.
But he didn’t hold back that much. It gave their sparring sessions a real sense of danger. Keith could easily take any of his students, though. Ethan had no doubt about that.
Of course, John hadn’t joined the classes yet because of his ankle. Ethan wondered who would win a fight between Keith and John. It would be close.
That John is a fucking warrior. Built like... Conan or something. Damn, another thing to ask Jack about.
Ethan looked around him on the bench. Everybody had a smile on their face. Even the humbled Emily. The aikido classes had been exactly what people needed. They had been popular, too, as every resident of the Ren had come down for at least one lesson so far. Keith held them twice a day, so that everybody would have an opportunity to attend.
The lessons themselves all started out roughly the same way, with over half an
