Do Not Touch Me!

Chapter 8: Training according to Special Ability

Chapter 8: Training according to Special Ability

The night felt long, perhaps because I was restless. Despite how cozy the bed was, I could not sleep anymore. Nakatulog naman ako ng ilang oras, but I woke up when it was midnight, and ever since that, hindi na ako makatulog. Hindi ko alam kung bakit, pero siguro dahil ito sa rami ng aking iniisip sa mga sandaling ito. The fact as well that I am alone, in solitude, and confined in darkness within my room did not help at all to ease the scenarios and possibilities playing in my head.

Bumuntong-hininga ako at tumitig lamang sa kisame. Madilim dahil patay ang mga ilaw, at nakahiga pa rin ako sa kama. Ilang beses na akong nanatiling nakapikit, hoping I will fall asleep again, but failed miserably. Buhay na buhay at gising na gising ang aking diwa. Wala akong ibang magawa kundi tumitig lang sa kisame habang hinihintay na antukin muli. I hate my mind sometimes, and I hate how I have no control over the things within me. I do not even have a control over my own power. It's always switched on. I cannot touch any living thing without killing it. The thought of it saddened me.

Bumangon ako sa kama at napagdesisyunan kong tumungo muna sa veranda ng aking kuwarto. Binuksan ko ang pinto at agad na humampas sa akin ang sariwa at malamig na hangin ng probinsya. The air was calming and soothing, and the chirping of crickets and the ruzzling of leaves were both therapeutic and music to my ears.

Sumandal ako sa marmol na rehas at saka tumingala upang pagmasdan ang mga bituwin sa himpapawid. Ang buwan naman ay bilog at buo, and the sky was somehow dark blue in its hue. The moonlight illuminated the yard of the mansion in a dimly manner, that is when I realized as well that below my room is a garden filled with white roses. Saktong iyon din ay may paru-parong lumilipad na siyang tumungo sa akin.

I was mesmerized by its red wings. Red was my favorite color. The butterfly approached me, and I reached out my hand with my index finger pointed out, dumapo ang paru-paro sa aking hintuturo, at matapos ang ilang sandali ay biglang naging kayumanggi at itim ang mga pakpak nito, at biglang natanggal ang ilang pakpak nito't nahulog ang paru-parong walang buhay na papunta sa hardin ng mga puting rosas.

My jaw dropped, and the realization hit me. I touched the butterfly... I killed it, unconsciously. I have to constantly raise my guard up, paano kung tao na ang sumunod? I was sad because I was not allowed to touch any living matter without killing it.

Is this a gift or a curse? Perhaps both. This lethal touch has saved my life and given me purpose, somehow, it gave meaning to my existence as well. But it is also a curse, because I have no control over it, and I am no longer allowed to touch any living thing without taking away its life. Nakakalungkot ang aking kapalaran, but I have no choice but to embrace it. There is no use fretting over it and crying over a spilled milk.

Naramdaman kong dinadalaw na naman ako ng antok, kaya bumalik na ako sa loob ng aking kuwarto at humiga sa kama. Muli akong nakatulog, pero hindi ito mahimbing dahil mabigat ang aking pakiramdam. When I woke up, it was half an hour before seven, the sun was already in the sky as well, and the room was already well-lit.

Agad akong naligo at nagbihis. Sinuot ko rin ang transparent gloves ko, at ang aking itim na onesie. I remember Black Widow of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I am an avid fan of her. And somehow, my suit seems to be similar to hers. Ngumiti ako nang maalala ko naman si Black Widow, she is normal compared to the rest of her squad, but she still manages to kick some ass with her natural strength and power.

Lumabas na ako at tumungo sa Dining Hall, sa koridor ay nadatnan ko rin si Thalia na nagwawalis. I am pretty much amazed by the fact that Thalia is keeping this mansion in its glory all by herself. She is doing all the work, all by herself. Hindi ako makapaniwala na kaya niyang gawin ito lalo't ang lawak ng espasyo ng mansion pati ang bakuran nito. Hindi na sila kumuha ng iba pa rin na mga kasambahay dahil mahirap magtiwala ng iba.

Nang nasa Dining Hall na ako ay nakita ko ang magkambal na sina Sayuri at Shinigami, si Portgas, Sunhell, at si Athanasius na kausap ang hologram ni Viveron. I was the one left, at saktong 7AM naman noong nandoon na ako. They greeted me and I greeted back. Umupo na ako sa dulo ng mesa, sa opposite side kung nasaan sila, at nagsimula kaming kumain lahat.

"Anyway, Mary, since we still have no mission given to us, we usually do training at this point to condition our body while waiting to be deployed or called by RAGE. The training regimen, by the way, depends on our special ability." Pagpapaliwanag ni Athanasius sa akin habang nagpapalaman siya ng tinapay.

Tumango naman ako, "that seems fair," I stated.

"Viveron, do you mind creating a training regimen for Mary which is based on her special ability of lethal touch?" Sayuri asked Viveron. She seems to be with us physically, except for the part that her skin was glowing. She was just a hologram in the physical world. She is still in this virtual place.

"Need not to ask, I have already done it beforehand. Since I am also able to access your accessories that monitors your body's state, vitals, and everything else, I know points for improvement and such. As for Mary's case, she lacks combat ability and experience, and awareness," bigla kong naalala ang assassin noon, how helpless I was, it was my power that saved me, and last night too, I touched the butterfly because I was mesmerized by its beauty, and because of that mistake, I ended up killing it. Viveron was right and on point.

"Mary will train using dummy figures since she is not allowed to have any physical contact with any of you," saad ni Viveron at tumango naman ang lahat. No one dared to protest.

"Where will we train?" I asked.

"There is a Training Arena underneath the mansion," Athanasius stated, "it is a place exclusive for us, agents of RAGE, Seven Deadly Sins. The accessories that were given to us serves as a key as well that enables us to walk into that place."

Tumango ako. We ate in silence after, and when we were all done, nagpatunaw muna kami ng pagkain bago napagtantong tumungo na sa Training Arena na nasa basement ng mansion. Naunang naglakad at lumabas sa silid si Athanasius, ako naman ay nagpahuli. Pinagmasdan ko ang likod nila habang nakasunod sa kanilang lahat.

We walked into a passageway that descended, then a door lies at the end of it. Bumukas ito nang awtomatiko, and we crossed it, revealing a very massive space. This must be the traning arena. Hindi ako makapaniwala na may ganitong lugar sa ilalim ng mansion nila Athanasius.

Nang tila napansin ng sistema ng lugar na may mga tao rin ay biglang isa-isang bumukas ang mga ilaw, at may mga pader ang biglang lumitaw mula sa marmol na sahig. This seem to divide the entire arena into seven rooms, as if sensing there were seven of us here. I maintained a safe distance away from my squad as well. The walls were quite transparent too, and once the walls were done ascending, signage started to glow from it, revealing our codenames, as if indicating that specific room was meant for us.

Agad namang tumungo ang lahat sa designated na area nila. Tila nakalimutan na rin nila ako bigyan ng instruction, but it was fine. I went to the room that had a signage of Lust in it. Upon entering, bumungad sa akin ang mga dummy robots. Kasabay nito ay biglang lumitaw ang hologram ni Viveron.

"Mary," she greeted.

"Viveron," I smiled. "What's my training?" I asked.

"For starter, we shall work on your agility and your ability to quickly respond. You must avoid getting touched by the dummy robot, at all cost. If you are touched by the robot, you shall be electrocuted. That shall be the punishment. The difficulty for this round shall be Level 1, and it shall gradually increase every ten minutes. Your training shall last for one hour, since you still are new here."

I nodded. I guess learning how to quickly dodge things shall be my training, since I am already powerful in itself. So, what I am learning and training for is how to protect other people from me. That makes sense.

"Once we are done with this training, you shall proceed to the next which involves gaining combat experience. You shall also learn how to use weapons, but of course, we must take things one at a time, step by step." Viveron added.

Matapos iyon ay tumungo sa gilid si Viveron. She raised her hand and pointed the dummy robot, that was the time where light started to flicker on from the eyes of the robot, as if it has come to life at Viveron's command. "Good luck, Mary." She smiled, and with that, the robot lunged after me.

I managed to avoid getting hit somehow, I could not touch it or do anything against it but to dodge. There were close shots, the robot continued to try and hit me but I successfully dodged. As time passes by, however, I felt my own body becoming slow as exhaustion worn my body out. Mas naging mabagal ang aking galaw, at hindi nakatulong ang mas pagbilis ng robot kada-sampung minuto.

I groaned when the robot has finally hit me, and that sent electricity down on my body. I felt it down to my core and I was paralyzed for a few seconds. Napaluhod pa ako. I blinked several times.

" You did well. You managed to avoid the dummy for forty minutes." Viveron praised me, "but you need to stand up, the training is not yet over. You still have twenty minutes."

I nodded and continued with the training. Muling sumugod ang robot at saka ako pinagsusuntok. Ginawa ko naman ang lahat ng aking makakaya upang hindi matamaan. Ayaw ko nang matamaan pa at makuryente. Twenty minutes were done, and I sighed as beads of sweat fell down from my forehead. Habol ko rin ang aking paghinga. Somehow, I managed to get by. I only got electrocuted three times. Ayaw ko nang maranasan pa iyon ulit.

"Your first round of training is complete." Viveron notifed. Saktong iyon ay bumukas ang pinto ng silid, an indication perhaps that we were already finished. "Rest is also part of the training, so we shall end here." She said, and with that, her hologram disappeared.

Lumabas na ako sa silid at doon ko napansin na sa dulo ay may mga telebisyon na nagpapakita ng mga pangyayari sa loob ng iba't ibang mga kuwarto. Tama nga naman, ang training namin ay nakabase at nakadepende sa aming special ability. This is where the squad is trained to defend and attack, and all sorts like that.

Athanasius used his ability to heal several wounded animals. Shinigami and Sayuri used their speed to quickly dodge several dummies as well, while attacking them at specific places. Sunhell managed to resist the fire and stood his ground, and Portgas kept on destroying hard objects with his bare fist. Doon ko rin napansin na sa gilid nilang lahat ay nandoon si Viveron. That made me surprised, but I guess this is also Viveron's ability. Perhaps she can duplicate herself. She is just a stream of consciousness that has been incorporated with the virtual reality, after all.

Umupo na lang ako sa tabi at pinanood silang lahat sa kanilang pag-eensayo. Somehow, my eyes were locked on Athanasius's screen.