Nefretiri
I land on my butt for the fifth time with a thud. An unwanted grunt comes out of my mouth at my body's shock, but I quickly force myself to recover as I scramble to my feet. Ivan wasn't joking when he said he wouldn't go easy on me. But, of course, I hadn't expected that to apply on the first go.
This wasn't even training. Ivan wanted to see what I could do if someone put me in a real fight. So why had I done this to myself? Why didn't I wait until Tuesday when I finished the tests? The answer? I felt a ticking clock suddenly attached to me, and I wasn't willing to ignore it.
Unlike all the other things we were dealing with, this was not some shadow lurking in the distance, taunting me.
