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  Norma was almost always wearing yoga pants or leggings while in the complex, which perfectly showed off her firm, round backside.

  “Definitely got some of those black girl genes with that booty,” Shifty added.

  This got a confused reaction from both Daniel and Charlie.

  “Black girl genes?” Charlie asked, sounding disgusted by the mere idea that Shifty’s opinion of Norma’s genealogy might differ from his own.

  “She’s half black, isn’t she?” Shifty asked.

  “No!” Charlie responded in outrage.

  All three men looked over at Norma, now questioning their opinions on her possible ancestry.

  “I always assumed she was Latina,” Daniel chimed in.

  This, once again, drew a disgusted expression from Charlie.

  “What?” He asked, appalled.

  “Yeah,” Daniel said, becoming defensive. “Like Colombian or something – Central America.”

  “First off,” Charlie began, “Colombia is in South America. Second, she is clearly from the Philippines…or New Zeeland or something.”

  “The Philippines or New Zeeland?” Shifty chimed in. “How do you go from Philippines to New Zeeland?”

  “They’re both in the same area of the Pacific,” Charlie said, trying to make his statement sound reasonable. “Fine! New Zeeland then,” He said, settling on a stance.

  Before the argument could carry any further Norma came back to the table and sat down. She was greeted by a trio of awkward stares.

  “Can I help you with something?” Norma asked.

  “Where are you from?” Charlie asked reflexively. “Your heritage, I mean. New Zeeland?”

  Norma laughed and raised an eyebrow at Charlie’s suggestion. “No.”

  Then Shifty chimed in. “I knew it,” he said victoriously. “I said you were half black.”

  “That’s ridiculous!” Charlie cut in before Norma could respond. “Chantel – Black Mamba – that’s a black girl,” he said, referring to another one of the female agents. “Titan is black. Norma here is clearly Latin.”

  Daniel shot Charlie a very confused look as Charlie had suddenly decided the opinion he had ridiculed just thirty seconds ago was accurate.

  “No and no,” Norma responded.

  “Well then what are you?” Charlie asked with irritated frustration.

  Norma chuckled. She always thought it was hilarious when Charlie got all riled up for no good reason.

  “My parents are Iranian,” she finally answered.

  “Huh,” Charlie responded, not expecting that answer.

  “I know,” she said, as if she had gotten that response many times before. “Evil Iran.”

  “Don’t they hate America over there?” Daniel asked.

  “Many, yes.” Norma replied. “My father included.”

  “Then why would he move your family here if he hated it so much?” Daniel inquired further, hoping she wouldn’t mind.

  “Because he realized that even Detroit is a better place to raise a family than Tehran,” she retorted.

  “So you’re from Detroit?” Charlie asked, his upper lip raised in an expression that portrayed both sympathy and disgust.

  “Dearborn, actually,” Norma clarified. “But close enough.”

  “So how did you get the name Norma?” Shifty asked her. “Not exactly a traditional Iranian name.”

  “My mother,” she replied. “Unlike my father, she loved the United States. She was probably the main reason they moved here in the first place. She always loved Norman Rockwell paintings. She considered them ‘uniquely American,’ and she loved what they represented. So when her first child was a girl, she named me Norma – the female equivalent of Norman.”

  “That’s a really cool story,” Daniel told her. “What did your father think?”

  “Oh he hated it,” she replied. “But he hated all things American. He was a stubborn ass, and I hated him for it. We would get letters from family members back in Iran, talking about how a cousin of ours was executed for some stupid reason, but he would still insist that we would have been better off living there than this ‘awful nation.’ And so, as soon as I turned eighteen I enlisted in the United States Army – both to honor my mother and give the ultimate middle-finger to my father at the same time. My mother was proud. She hated my father as much as I did, but given that she still felt obligated to uphold Iranian tradition she stayed with him. She wanted better for her daughter.”

  Then Norma looked up from her drink which she had been staring into during most of her story, and looked at Daniel. He saw that her eyes were partially glossed over from the telling.

  “Well I’m sure glad you found it,” Daniel said with a smile, raising his glass for a toast.

  “Here, here,” Charlie cheered, as the four clinked their glasses together.

  Daniel was fairly certain he had found a new crush.

  The Friday morning of the sixth week was full of surprises, the first being the return of Titan. Daniel and Charlie were in the midst of brushing their teeth that morning when the six-six, 260-pound black man approached them from behind. Daniel and Charlie both noticed him coming in the mirror.

  “What’s up Tee?” Charlie said, turning around to greet his fellow agent. “Haven’t seen you around in awhile.”

  “I decided to take a little vacation after my last assignment,” Titan responded.

  “And you,” he added, looking at Daniel. “I heard you finished all ten stages your first time through.”

  Daniel nodded cautiously, not sure how the man nearly twice his size would react to the news.

  “Welcome to the club,” Titan said with a grin on his face, extending his hand out to Daniel.

  Daniel shook Titan’s hand, awestruck by the situation. Here was the most respected man at Elite, and he was welcoming Daniel into a club which previously held a membership of only himself. Daniel wasn’t sure which felt better – actually completing the course or the congratulations from Titan. Either way, his ego had never been so inflated.

  The second surprise came as Daniel walked out onto the floor of the fitness facility. Waiting for him in the usual meeting spot was Robby, but alongside him stood Horchoff, Blank, Richfield, and Jitters, which could have only meant one thing.

  “Time to take a second run at the obstacle course,” Richfield said when Daniel was close enough. “This time unprepared. You finish it this time, and you won’t have to so much as look at it again for months.”

  Daniel just smiled, glancing over to Jitters. He knew Manny had been bugging Richfield ever since Daniel went through the course the first time to make him do it again. He figured it was probably about time he went through it again anyway. It would prove once and for all that he could call upon his abilities whenever he needed to, and that they wouldn’t let him down.

  Daniel made his way through the obstacle course with far greater ease the second time around. So much so, that it even surprised Daniel a bit. He noticed before climbing the rope wall that Titan had gotten wind that he was going through the course again and decided to catch a glimpse of the only other man to achieve what had previously only ever been done by him.

  Charlie and Norma were not in attendance this morning, but Shifty was once again right there. Daniel had come to realize that Shifty was sort of the “town gossip” at Elite, and as the keeper of that position he always needed to stay on top of the latest breaking news within the complex.

  Daniel charged his way through the course, one obstacle after another. Up to the top of the rope wall, across the Tarzan swing, down the log roll (though he once again needed to leap to the platform at the end), up the ledge climb, across the tight-rope, through the uneven bars, and clearing the gap jumps.

  Now that he knew exactly what each stage entailed, he was able to prepare his mind and his body for what was to come. Even the pack incline was considerably easier to complete knowing exactly what was going to be required of his body to complete to stage.

>   He felt as though knowing what his body needed in order to endure each stage before starting them gave him a mental edge. The hand pedals also gave him no issues.

  Finally he came to the pipe climb – the tenth and final stage that separated the men from the beasts. Daniel looked over at Titan before beginning his climb. He was proud to be a beast.

  This time Daniel attempted to climb the entire way up without “losing himself” like he had the first time. He approached the ladder with much more energy than he had the first time around, and whether that was due to mental or physical preparation he wasn’t sure. Most likely a little of both had an impact.

  He had heard that another one of the agents had made it to the final stage just the day before, and had tried to complete all ten for the first time. He had made it up twenty rungs before having to give up. Jitters had tried just a day after Daniel’s success, but his arms had given out after thirty-two rungs, forcing him to let go just eighteen short of his goal.

  On his way to the top there were times Daniel wanted to abandon his conscious mind to the depths of his brain again. He was feeling a great deal of pain in his muscles near the halfway point, and hiding within his neurons would help to distract from that pain.

  But he was determined to complete the stage consciously this time. Mental toughness, he told himself. Just like Horchoff had talked about.

  He was able to focus in on the “high,” or the “pump” the surge of hormones was making him feel. Yes, it was incredibly painful, but it was also remarkably pleasurable at the same time. He held onto that feeling, and it was enough to motivate him to climb all the way to the fiftieth rung. He had successfully completed the entire course for the second time. He was now two-for-two.

  As he climbed onto the platform at the top of the tower, he looked down to see Jitters throwing an absolute fit.

  The best sight of all was of Titan, standing next to Jitters, cracking up as he watched him stomp around like a bratty child. He couldn’t understand why Daniel completing the course was making him so upset.

  Daniel climbed down the ladder, but received a far-less enthusiastic greeting from his onlookers than the first time.

  “Nice work!” Richfield yelled to him from across the room as he made his way out. Shifty simply waved to Daniel as he followed Richfield out.

  Robby, Horchoff, Blank and Titan approached Daniel as he reached the bottom of the ladder. Blank was the first to reach him.

  “I know I keep saying this same thing to ya kid,” he said, “but now you’re official.” Blank patted him on the back and turned to walk away.

  Robby, Horchoff, and Titan got to him at about the same time. Robby began to rub him down, while Titan simply stood with a big, prideful smile on his face. Daniel had barely said two words to the man before this morning, and yet he seemed so proud of him for some reason. Maybe he was just happy to have someone else on his level. Maybe he was just a fan of the underdog. Regardless, Daniel was happy to have him on his side.

  “How did it go?” Horchoff inquired, trying not to make too obvious the real question he was asking.

  “Kept it simple,” Daniel replied, knowing that Horchoff would know what that really meant. “Although that made it more painful this time around.”

  Titan laughed at Daniel’s comment before slapping him on the back of the shoulder, causing Daniel to wince.

  “It’ll do that to you,” Titan said. “Come on. Let’s go get you in an ice bath.”

  And with that, Titan led Daniel back down to the locker room.

  Daniel really had no need for ice, given that he could control the swelling within himself on his own, but he had no desire to tell Titan that he was “too advanced” for his ice bath. So Daniel gritted his teeth and powered his way through hit. When Titan finally told him he was okay to climb out, he had to admit, though uncomfortably cold, he walked out feeling very refreshed and much of the soreness was gone. Titan then walked with Daniel down to the cafeteria for lunch, as though he were now his biggest fan. Daniel was flattered.

  That night the beer tasted better than usual. Daniel was quite pleased with his three weeks of physical conditioning, as he was now in tip-top shape with two successful obstacle course runs to prove it. He was excited to begin his combat training on Monday.

  The night also served as somewhat of a going-away party, as both Charlie and Shifty had received assignments that were to begin the next day, leaving just Daniel and Norma as the only members of group who would be around the complex – something Daniel was in no way disappointed about.

  “Did Titan head home already?” Daniel asked, looking around the lounge.

  “Yeah, he doesn’t drink,” Charlie answered. “That’s part of the reason Jitters hates you so much, you know?”

  “What do you mean?” Daniel asked, failing to see the connection.

  “There’s always been an unspoken division within the complex,” Shifty began answering on behalf of Charlie. “Those who take the time to enjoy the finer things in life…” he said, gesturing toward his rum and coke.

  “Us,” Charlie interjected.

  “And those who don’t,” Shifty finished with a sarcastic grin.

  “Guys like Jitters and Titan,” Charlie added.

  “Titan is one of those guys who makes it a point to take great care of his body,” Norma said, giving a less vague explanation than the other two.

  “And guys like Jitters would love to suck his cock,” Charlie completed the thought in a way that was so uniquely Charlie.

  “That’s why we love having you here now,” Shifty added. “You’re one of us, and you’re as good as him. You have proven to the world that you can have your cake and eat it too!”

  “Not that we ever really cared before,” Charlie said pointedly.

  “And on top of it you’ve become very buddy-buddy with Titan – something that isn’t very easy to do,” Norma added.

  “And that’s why guys like Jitters will always hate you,” Charlie concluded, capping off the conversation.

  Daniel smiled at them as he took a swig of his brew. He didn’t have the heart to point out to them that he was in fact not like them – not at all. He wasn’t like Titan either. No, Daniel stood alone. He experienced things that none of them ever could. But he was happy to feel like he could fit in with the group on some level. Even if that level was the fact that they were all borderline alcoholics.

  The following Monday Richfield asked to speak with Daniel before starting his combat training, so Daniel woke up, got dressed, went down to the locker room to take care of his daily routine, then went upstairs to meet Richfield for breakfast, as requested.

  Richfield’s demeanor never seemed to change, and this morning was no exception. He greeted Daniel politely, and moved very calm and cool-like around the cafeteria as he gathered his breakfast. No one seemed to pay any special attention to the boss-man being in the cafeteria that morning, and he didn’t act as though he expected anyone to.

  As they sat down at a table, Daniel noticed that this was the first time he had ever met with Richfield without Mister Blank present, and wondered where he might be.

  “I wanted to talk to you about what I’m expecting from you during your combat training, because it isn’t the same as what I expect from everyone else,” Richfield said.

  Daniel nodded in understanding, waiting for Richfield to elaborate.

  “The type of self-defense you’ll be learning is a variation of Krav Maga,” Richfield explained.

  Daniel had heard of Krav Maga before. It was supposed to be pretty intense, and also very violent.

  “Krav Maga originated with the Israeli military, where they wanted to train their men to be prepared for hand to hand combat, without needing years of training to master skills like with most forms of martial arts, and things of that nature.” Richfield continued. “Perfect, right?”

  Daniel nodded again, this time with a smile. It was indeed the perfect thing for Daniel to learn on the fast-track
to becoming an Elite agent.

  “Now Krav Maga is about inflicting damage on your attacker. A lot of these special ops guys here learned it in their military training. I chose this form of self-defense training for Elite because when you’re out there in the field all I care about is that you’re able to keep yourself, and your client safe. I don’t care about fighting fair or looking pretty when you do it. If someone attacks you, you take them out,” Richfield instructed.

  Daniel sat quietly, feeling almost guilty that the concept of “taking someone out” created a sense of pleasure within him.

  Richfield continued, “With you – I think you need to worry even less about technique and focus more on your strength. You have the ability to deliver harder blows than anyone else. You should have no problem knocking a guy out in one shot. I want you to put the majority of your focus on two main things – how to protect yourself, and how to find the opportunity for that one knockout shot. Got me? Make it easy on yourself. Use your hulk-like strength to your advantage.”

  Daniel smirked as he scooped up some more eggs onto his fork. “I can do that,” he said before shoving the forkful of scrambled eggs into his mouth.

  “Good,” replied Richfield. Then they went on to talk about other subjects like how Daniel was feeling both physically and mentally, and how far his confidence level had grown in regards to using his ability.

  Once breakfast was done, the two parted ways as Daniel headed toward the sparring area which was located in the space between the fitness area and the obstacle course, and Richfield went up to his office.

  Elise, Daniel’s combat instructor, was standing just inside the door as he walked into the sparring area. Daniel had seen her working with the other agents many times before, so he knew exactly who she was when he saw her.

  Elise, in the most polite terms possible, was a beast of a woman.

  “She makes Xena look like a Barbie Doll,” is the way Charlie had put it.

  Elise stood six-feet tall, with square shoulders, and had muscle mass that rivaled some of the thinner male agents at Elite. Daniel expected that she probably weighed more than Charlie, and was more muscular than Daniel himself had been when he first walked through the door. At least it appeared that way.