Construction Site (Sam)

[Damien Kross, Jester]

Despite the obviousness of the falling economy, it came as a grand surprise to know so many rich people still existed... And some of them took joy in handing my handfuls of cash for my own twisted purposes... Namely, Ricardo and Linda.

I stood before a grand beginning... The birth of new life.

Dating back to my years at PHS 552, my school in New York, I always had one place to call my own... my little sanctuary... The Jester's Court. It was a large structure, a mansion of sorts, containing the fruits of my genius. Trap doors, puzzles, tests of mental and physical capabilities...

Older versions contained a dungeon, which was once even used during the battle between Equilibrium and The Four Horsemen... Poor Athalia, a girl violated by my lust, was held prisoner- a damsel in distress for Equilibrium to retrieve.

The day even came when I faced Tiel, Equilibrium's greatest warrior, in combat. The grand hall of the Old Court was left in ruin- a grim memento to our conflict. However, in the aftermath of the war, the Court was destroyed...

But now, with new investments being made, my Court would live again. It was secluded- hidden from the populace. It was the perfect little hidden base...

My first job would be most entertaining though.

As I stood watching the construction, a car would soon arrive, holding inside it Sam Ballerino, the girl I had promised training. My mentor, Ricardo DeLeon, was kind enough to drive and get her, placing me on the phone with her as proof that Ricardo wasn't some psycho pedophile.

As soon as Sam would arrive, the fun would begin, with my mentor and the construction workers as my audience.

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam had been sitting quietly at home, munching Wheat Thins and doing some stretching in front of the TV. She'd come back from her Aikido session a little bit ago, and didn't have anything else to do for the day, so she was just relaxing.

Suddenly there was a knock at her door. She opened it cautiously to reveal a well-dressed man who introduced himself as Ricardo. She looked at him suspiciously, giving him nothing but a short "Can I help you?" until he handed her an open phone. When she took it, she heard Damien on the other side, reminding her of the offer he'd made her, and if she was still interested, Ricardo would take her where she needed to go. She threw a couple of essentials - phone, keys, money, etc. - into a bag and followed Ricardo out the door and to his car, where he drove her to a rather secluded area, a... construction site?

She got out of the car to see Damien, standing out of the way of the workers, but watching the progress with an air of authority. She walked over to him.

"This your project?" She asked, motioning to the busy workers.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"Sure is." I said, looking on at the contruction, not turning to meet Sam quite yet. "The Jester's Court... The second one actually. I had one in New York... But unfortunate circumtances led to its destruction. So, from the ashes, it will rise anew." I smiled and turned to her, extending my hand for a proper greeting.

Ricardo, having parked the car, went to the construction area and began giving commands, the most important of which being to continue working while Sam and I went through the motions.

I had quite a bit in store for the young girl. There was much to be done... Judging by wat I had seen the day I met her, I would be pushing her to the limit. Maybe even beyond it...

[Sam Ballerino]

"The Jester's Court... sounds intimidating." And big. Very big. "So you're planning on living here?" It was a large space they were building in, and it looked like a second floor was planned, possibly a third. Sam wondered where he'd gotten the money for a project like this. He gave her his hand and she took it, smiling at him in greeting.

"Hey..." She started, biting her lip. "I wanted to thank you for taking time to help me out. I can't imagine it's exactly part of your job description, and it does mean a lot. So... thanks." She didn't really know what else to add to that. But she really did appreciate it.

The reputation of the school had led her to expect a bunch of kids who were short-tempered and unhelpful, at the very least - to be honest, part of her had expected him to forget about his offer completely. After all, why should he bother to spend his time training some chick he'd never met in his life before, when Sam was sure he had much better things he could be doing? But she was here now, and that's what was important; she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"Think nothing of it." I said as we shook hands, my mouth curved into a warm grin. "It's my job as a Pillar to protect the student body... And frankly, I'm not protecting you if I'm not making sure you can defend yourself."

I turned to the Court.

"And yes, I'll be living here. Sure, getting to school every morning will be a bitch, but once this place is done, it'll be worth it." I smiled. "This is where all of our training sessions will be. They will happen at random times to simulate the spontaneous nature of battle. If Ricardo appears to you, you go with him."

I paused to admire the construction.

"The Court should be finished in a week. I have several teams working around the clock to make sure that every second of every day is progress." I smiled. "It will be quite the site. You'll be welcome to it whenever you please."

[Sam Ballerino]

'All of our sessions?' Sessions? Sam hadn't really put much thought into it, but now that she did, she realized that she had assumed that this would be a one-time thing. A good ass kicking, a couple quick tips and she’d be on her way, expected to be able to hold her own. Understanding now that this was slightly more long-term gave her even more appreciation for the time he was giving her.

She chewed on her lips, nodding her acquiescence as Damien gave her his instructions. The nerves were beginning to set in now. This was intense… But no matter how satisfied her father would be to find out that she was being trained by a Pillar, missing her sessions at the Aikido studio because of it would be unacceptable to him. Although, she reasoned, if Damien had enough influence and know-how to get hold of her address without her knowledge, then it was very likely that he’d be able to catch her at a free moment.

He continued discussing his plans for the Court, and Sam’s jaw dropped. A week!? Even working round the clock, Sam didn’t see how that was going to be possible. But whether it was or not, Sam was sure it would be quite a sight to behold once it was finished.

“I look forward to seeing it,” she said with a grin, crossing her arms to admire the work being done right along with him.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"It will be amazing. That, I can assure you of." I smiled, but then, I turned to her, my face becomming sinister. "However, we are here to train you. I certainly hope you put up more of a fight this time."

With that, a cheap shot- a quick uppercut to her stomach- no giveaway, no warning, purely an unerhanded blow. Sam would learn that battle was not scheduled and was not planned... Things like that could happen at any time, and WOULD as long as she chose to train with me.

This wasn't some peaceful tip and advice exchange- this was a battle with no end. Sam would learn how to fight the hard way.

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam was completely unprepared for his fist crashing into her stomach. The wind was blown so far out of her that she doubled over, falling to her knees. But now her instincts were kicking in, and she knew the last thing she wanted to be doing right now was not fighting back.

Thanks for the warning...

She coughed once, and held still for a few moments, trying to make him believe she was down already. Then all at once she forced the air back into her lungs in a gigantic intake of breath, pushed herself back onto her feet in a half-crouch and swung her left leg out, aiming for the back of his knees. If it worked, he would be knocked at least off balance, if not completely on his back, and she'd rush forward, grabbing his left foot and somersaulting forward with it, trying to roll him over and trap his right leg under both of hers as she would force the foot she had a grip on back towards him, still holding onto his calf.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

And so, it began.

Dropping to my knees into a crouch, I would place my arm out vertically, bent at the elbow, using my forearm as a shield against her kick. As it hit my arm, I felt a shot of pain, but nothing that I couldn't shrug off.

With her kick having failed, and her being in a crouching position, it would be simple to take advantage. Being crouched with only one leg keeping balance, Sam would have little to no footing when I lunge forward, my hand aiming to clutch her throat in a straight-forward choke.

Barbaric, maybe. But this sort of technique being so cliche amongst murdrers would hopefully make her realize that this wasn't just training in fighting- it was training in life.

[Sam Ballerino]

Well, that was unexpected. He blocked her kick with his arm - good arm, she thought - and lunged at her. She put a hand out behind herself keep her balance, but the force of his body weight thrown straight toward her throat buckled her elbow and she fell backwards, his hand tightening on her neck. She glared at him even as she began losing air. Dirty bastard move. She only had a few seconds before she'd have to give in and admit defeat. Again.

Screw that... She felt her frustration rising. Sam was slowly beginning to realize if she wanted any chance of not being pummeled into the ground, she only had one way out - to play as dirty as her opponent. In this case, as dirty as Damien. This wasn't an in-class sparring match - there were no rules here, and the sooner she learned that, the better chance she had of surviving. She guessed that was what Damien was trying to teach her. She didn't want to do it. She really didn't want to do it. But she didn't want to end up in the hospital, either... or worse.

She was beginning to see colors now, and she was getting dizzy; she had to do something, and fast. She put one hand on his on her throat, trying to wedge her fingers underneath his. Her other hand reached for his throat. She wanted to go for a groin shot as well, but the fact that he was straddling her made her legs completely useless for the moment, so she put all her energy into trying to get him to let go of her, and to even the playing field a little bit by getting a hand on his throat as well.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

Ugh... She is put in a defensive position, and does hardly nothing... I choke her, she tries to choke back... When I obviously have leverage and strength advantage...

"Christ, stop." I said, letting go of her to stand. Time for a little lecture. "When someone applies a choke like that, they have leverage, meaning fighting down is easier than fighting up- hence why is war, the high ground is favorable. On top of that, I'm physically stronger than you. When put into a position like that, don't fight fire with fire... Find your own way..."

I extended a hand to help her up, knowing she'd be short of breath. "You alright?"

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam coughed, air flooding back into her lungs as Damien unexpectedly let go of her and stood up. She lay where she was, closing her eyes to get rid of the spots clouding her vision. She listened to him lecture as she calmed her breathing and tried to slow her racing heart.

She nodded once or twice as he explained his advantage with the choke hold. Find your own way... it was sound advice. She tended to forget sometimes that there actually people in the world who were stronger than her - she liked to think of herself as invincible.

She opened her eyes to see him holding a hand out to help her up. Aftervhe sudden start of their bout just now, she half expected a trick. What was it he'd said about the spontaneity of battle? She cautiously took his hand, and if he didn't try to continue the fight, she'd stand up, dusting herself off and wincing at her sore stomach.

"So... what should I have done?" she said, humbly. This was training, right? She had to learn somehow, so she figured she should be allowed to ask questions. Just like in her dance classes, Sam wanted corrections. She didn't like making mistakes, but when she did she wants to know how to fix them; it prevented them from happening again.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"My face was wide open." I said simply, letting her take the rest of it as she wanted. The advice was obvious enough. A punch would have worked a lot better than trying to out-strangle the strangler. Ugh... This girl had a long way to go. "Get up. Attack me." I assumed my Hapkido stance.

You'll probably be doing this forever, you know? One of those unending tasks. It'll haunt you forever.

Don't you even dare joke like that you sonofabitch.

Forever. You can be her Master forever! Wouldn't that be fun?!

AGH, IT BURNS! IT BURNS!

Hahaha... If only that really DID hurt you... That coulda been my ticket out.

[Sam Ballerino]

It took her a second, but she got it. His face? What does that have to do with - oh. A punch. Duh. She could have punched him. God, this was embarrassing. She clenched her jaw, starting to get frustrated with herself, but she tamped it down as best she could. This was a learning experience. Get over it.

He got back into a stance and told her to attack him. She froze. Attack? She studied Aikido. You just didn't attack in Aikido, you waited to be attacked. But she wasn't about to make excuses for herself. Oh, no sir.

She centered her body, analyzing his position and looking for openings. After a moment, she rushed at him. She reached for his left wrist, at the same time going to hook her heel around his forward leg and snapping it back toward her, trying to throw off his balance. If it worked, she'd tug him towards her, then swing his arm down and around and push him face first to the ground, pinning his arm behind his back in a position that could be rather painful if she applied pressure.