“I’ve been alive since the days of the gods. You’re ready when I fucking say you are. You want the future I’ve promised? Then you follow my lead. Until then, learn to control your powers.”
He looked at me and nodded. I understood his impatience, but we had time.
Nothing was going to change the future I’d set into motion. I’d seen it, and so far everything had passed that led to my chosen outcome.
I walked out of the room without another word. All the energy I’d expended with Esme was back, and I was restless.
My room in this compound was simple. I preferred to keep it that way. A rolled bed on the floor, and the rest was for training. Nothing was personal here. I knew the others wouldn’t double-cross me, but I didn’t want anything that could be used against me in any way.
I stripped out of my clothes, standing in the middle of the room in just my boxers. Calming my mind, focusing on every beat in my chest, expanding with every sound in the room, then the rest of the house.
At first, I moved slow, flexing every muscle, feeling the air beneath my fingers.
Over the centuries, I’d attempted to calm my taste for revenge with the masters of Asia, learning the Shaolin Kung Fu from the monks themselves, among other martial arts. Patience was the key to all of them.
For hours, I moved across my training floor, fighting invisible men. I grabbed my sword from the wall and worked on my form.
I was sweaty, and my muscles were aching from the training, but I finally felt like I could let my mind rest when I fell asleep.
Shifting my weight back, I raised my sword over my head and threw it like a javelin at the punching bag in the corner. It hit the bag dead center, and I smiled. My aim had always been a gift. I never missed.
I showered in the bathroom attached to the room and then passed out on the bedroll.
