Titan (3 page)

“I can see that was still far too easy for you.  Why don’t you tell me, what weight would you like to begin with?”

Mark thought back to his recent workouts.  Being unable to find weights big enough, his father had him lift whatever was around, with the most common tools being felled trees in their back yard.  He did not know what they weighed, as they had no way of measuring them.  “1,000?” Mark responded, more as a question than as a choice.

“1,000?!  You are a confident little guy aren’t you!  1,000 pounds is the largest set of weights we bring to these tests, and we never use them, even on real Titans!  But I suppose you are a real Titan, and I am here to hel
p should it get out of hand, so sure, let’s go ahead and jump right to the big guns!” she bellowed.  There was not a trace of anger in her voice, but rather a pleasure at the prospect.  They marched back toward the doors, stopping just shy at the biggest weights the room had to offer.  Each side of the weights had simple white writing with “1K” facing outward. 

Mark reached down with his right hand to pick up the weight.  “Hold on killer, why don’t you start with two hands on this one, just in case,” she declared skeptically.

Mark slid his left hand in beside his right, and began to lift.  The bar creaked as the weight transferred from the floor to the large hands pulling upward.  The weight was greater than Mark had anticipated, so he bent his knees and lowered his weight to support the strain.  He felt his muscles working as the mass of weight lifted up off the floor.  He lifted the bar to his chest, and then extended his arms upward over his head before lowering them back down to his chest.  Then, just to see if he could, Mark let go with his left hand, and proceeded to lift the weight over his head once more, this time with his right arm alone.  Lowering the bar gently back to the floor, Mark looked up to the Academy representative with satisfaction.

She shook her head at Mark with admiration and respect.  “Welcome to the Academy.  You are going to fit in just fine.”

Chapter 5 – Present Day

A chill ran through Mark as he began to wake up.  Though his eyes remained closed, he could tell that he had left the lights on in his room before going to bed.  He scrunched his eyelids shut, trying to block out as much of the light as possible.  He reached out to find his sheets, wanting to pull them up for warmth, but his hand only met air.  He must have kicked them off the bed during the night.

He was unusually groggy this morning, and could not help but wonder if he was coming down with a cold.  His stomach turned with a slight nausea.  Mark decided to wait until Elise got home to get up this morning.  He could not recall what day it was, but as his father has not woken him yet, it must be Sunday.  He raised his arm over his eyes to block the light, and waited for the slamming of the door that would signify his sister’s return from her morning run.  He could faintly remember the oddest dream, where he was strapped to a steel table, waiting for an operation he did not want.  Mark shifted his head, and noticed that his bed felt unusually hard.  Almost as if…

The chill returned, but no longer a result of the cold.  Mark stopped and listened, fearing to open his eyes.  There was no movement from the room around him, but he thought he could hear a faint, hurried breathing coming from somewhere nearby.

Sliding his arm slowly off his face, Mark looked around.  To his horror he found himself in the same room he remembered from his nightmare.  But it was not a dream, it had been real.  He looked to his left to see three men sitting in chairs, watching him with a mix of expressions.  The hurried breathing came from the lead doctor, the last face Mark had seen as he went under.  The doctor twisted his hands on his lap, unable to keep still.  His nerves had clearly worsened from what Mark had seen before the operation.  In the middle sat Captain Williams, a crooked smile of curiosity and pleasure on his face.  To his right sat a man Mark had never seen before, but who’s expression was the most alarming of the three due to its apparent lack of interest.  This third man looked calm, almost serene, and stared unblinkingly at Mark’s face.  Mark was certain there was a danger in that stare, and half expected to split in two under the powerful gaze.

Mark looked back, hating these men for what they had done to him.  He remembered where he was now, at the mercy of these men, these cruel men who had bound and operated on him.  He remembered fighting against them in the halls, trying desperately to free himself from two fully trained Titans, and the sight he had witnessed that
made his capture a necessity.

He remembered!

The significance of this fact flooded upon him.  The operation had failed!  Mark breathed deep with relief, wondering what had gone wrong, and what they would do with him now.  Even if the result was death, he would accept that fate over the cruelty which they had intended for him.

“The memory remains,” the calm man declared, never wavering from the hold his eyes held on Mark.

Mark tensed up at the words.  He knew they would find out, but the realization of who this third man was hit Mark with a dark intensity.  This man was a Prometheus, and the unblinking gaze meant that he was in Mark’s head, pulling out his thoughts for his enemies to hear.  While this man remained with them, even Mark’s thoughts were not his own.

“How do you feel?” Captain Williams asked evenly.  Curiosity hung in each word, but Mark knew it was not for his well-being.

“Vengeful,” Mark replied angrily.  His situation could not get any worse than what it was, and the truth was available to them without his response.  He would at least get the satisfaction of speaking his mind, if they would be reading it anyway.

“Understandable.  Can you tell me what
you witnessed earlier today?” he asked evenly.

“You know exactly what I witnessed, and it looks like you failed to pull it out of me,” he replied proudly, mocking them for their attempt.

Captain Williams looked to the Prometheus, who supplied a single nod.  “We’ll see,” he replied, leaning back against his chair patiently.  The captain’s sustained confidence restored the worry in Mark, and his proud smile faded.

“Do you recognize this man?” he asked, pointing to the nervous doctor, who began wringing his hands together ever faster. 

Unable to come up with a snide remark, Mark chose not to answer.  Of course he recognized that man.  Recognized him, and hated him.

“Do you recognize me?” t
he captain continued in an even tone.

Again Mark remained silent.  Of course he recognized him.  How could he forget the man who orchestrated this whole
charade?  His hatred for the doctor in no way matched his hatred for Captain… Captain…

“He forgets your name,” the Prometheus responded, to the captain’s delight.

No, I do not, I just… I just cannot recall it right now…his name is…is… 

“He is losing the memory of his sister,” Mark heard the Prometheus say.  The captain shot a look to a man sitting next to him wearing white.  How long had that man been sitting there?  Mark could see beads of sweat
starting to trickle down his face.  Mark wondered what was wrong with this man – was something wrong?

“He is not supposed to forget his sister,” the man in the middle said.
Who is not supposed to forget their sister?
  Mark knew they could not be talking about him, as he had no sister.  Or did he?

“What is your name? What are you doing here?” the man asked.

“My name is Mark.  I’m sorry, am I not supposed to be in here?” Mark asked, looking around him. 

“You are fine.  Do you know where you are?”

“Of course, I am at the Academy.  I am here to be trained as a hero.”

Mark could not decipher his thoughts.  What was this room?  How did he get here?  He looked to the three strange men, and was relieved.  They looked as confused as he
was, so whatever was happening, at least he was not alone.  But he recognized the man sitting in the middle.  He had seen him somewhere before.

Marks thoughts shot to the scene he had seen earlier that day.  Of course!  He had witnessed something, something the Academy had not wanted him to see.  That is where he had seen this man before!

The realization of what was happening hit Mark. 
I must remember what I had seen!
  He struggled to keep the events of that day straight.  If he should forget all else, he must remember that day!  Mark closed his eyes, trying to focus.  He struggled to stay calm, to keep his thoughts focused on his first day at the Academy. 

The day started with the flight landing in front of the school…

Chapter 6
– That morning

Mark was jolted awake by the plane touching down on a hard runway.  He had intended to watch the arrival out the side window, in order to observe the Academy upon their approach.  He wanted to see it from above, to get a feel for the size of the campus, to relish the start of a new future, a future destined for greatness.

His disappointment was short lived, as a quick glance out his window revealed the marvelous stone front of the main building.  Pillars lined the front, tall columns of smooth white marble, holding up a stretch of roof with magnificent decorations.  Mark stared in awe at the intricate depictions of chariot races, followed by great heroes vanquishing monstrous foes
.  One hero caught his eye, as it reminded him of himself, with the exception of the hideous severed head that he clasped proudly in his left hand, and the majestic sword in his right.

Mark turned back to look at the fellow inhabitants of his plane.  They were all leaning eagerly towards the windows, craning for a view, for a glimpse at the legendary Academy where they will spend the next seven years training.  The heroes out on
that roof were the heroes of the past.  Inside this plane were the heroes of the future.

Deboarding the plane was a frantic process, with the new students hurrying to get off as quickly as they could, which of course made the process take twice as long.
Upon exiting the plane, students were divided into three groups, one for each ability, in order to begin their tours of the school.  Mark could see that a few of the Titans had buddied up, but he was not worried.  He knew that at the end of the tour they would be directed to their barracks, where all the first year Titans would room together.  He would have plenty of time to get to know the other students later.

Mark was enthralled by all that their tour guide had to say.  He described the history of the school, and although the history was brief, it was full of amazing victories.  He learned about the sudden, mysterious rise of the Villains, when they first began to terrorize humanity.  When all seemed lost, the Heroes, led by the legendary Captain Williams, offered humanity a chance.  They created the Academy and began training powerful youths, giving them a purpose, a chance to protect humanity.

As the tour moved through the part of the school that was home to the administration offices, Mark noticed a man pushing a cart full of supplies quickly through a door.  The cart was covered by a sheet, keeping its contents hidden.  Mark thought nothing of this at first, but as the cart rattled through the doorway, he noticed a small metallic piece slip off the cart.  The man clearly did not notice, as he continued through the doorway and out of sight.  The tour had stopped momentarily for their guide to describe the architectural significance of the hallway, so Mark ran down the hall to return the item to the man.

Reaching the item, Mark was at a loss as to what he was picking up.  It looked a little like a tool that a dentist would use to scrape a customer’s teeth, except that it was much longer and sharper. 
Whatever it was, he was sure the man would not want to lose it, so he went through the doorway after him.  Mark had expected to see a room inside, but instead there was a hallway moving back past the offices.  At the very end of the hall he could see the man pushing the card through another doorway.  Mark called out, but a loud drilling noise coming out of the room swallowed his voice, rendering it effectively useless.  Mark could see a card access scanner by the doorway, and knew that if he let the door close behind this man, he would not be able to get in to hand over the dropped device.  Mark ran down the hallway, catching the door just as it was about to close.  He pulled the door back open and rushed inside.  What he witnessed inside stopped him in his tracks.

He suddenly knew what the drilling sound was, as well as the purpose of the tool that he held in his hand.  All at once he discovered their secret.  He saw something despicable.  He saw something terrible.  He saw something that can only be described as pure evil.

But he could no longer remember what that something was.

That memory was gone.

Chapter 7
– Present Day

He looked around at the office in which he sat.  It was a pretty office.  A man in a grey uniform sat behind a desk, working on some paperwork, while another man stared at him, sitting across the room in a stiff green outfit. 

“His thoughts have stabilized,” the man in the green outfit said.  He wanted to respond, but was not sure what the green man meant.  A response became
unnecessary, as the grey man responded for him.