Noon

Rainbow trudged up the hill, the villa in sight. The stick dug into her shoulder, and her hooves pounded in pain. Up ahead, she saw Dorus and the zebra, Zahir. With a final surge of energy, she progressed into a slow gallop, moving as fast as she could on three hooves. With a final surge of energy, she arrived just in front of the two of them, then promptly collapsed.

"Huh. You did five on your first try. Color me impressed, birdie," he said.

She looked up, before slumping back down with her cheek plate resting on the ground. She gasped out, "F-fuck.... *pant*, *pant*….you, *pant*"

"Pleasant," he said, grinning widely in imitation of her this morning. "Alright then. You have an hour's break for lunch. Then we start on weapons training." He then stepped to the side, saying, "Your feast awaits, birdie", as he gestured to a bench. Said bench was in the shade and had a platter with food on it. "Oh, and keep your armor on. It's part of the training. Zahir will tell you when your hour is up and will show you to the training yard. Enjoy!"

Rainbow didn't even bother to hurl an insult his way as he walked in the door. She unslung the massive pack, spread her wings, and launched over. The unused limbs carried her quickly to her destination and landed right by the food. It was a piece of bread, a small bowl full of olive oil, a few grapes, and some thinly sliced pork, with a cup of water off to the side. Rainbow downed the water in a second, and the rest of the food in only a little more time. Remembering she had an hour before she had to go around back, she slumped against the wall, took off her helmet, and shut her eyes for a quick nap.

After what felt like five minutes, she felt something kick her hoof. Opening her eyes, she saw Zahir, who flicked his head over to the side of the building. Rainbow remembered what Dorus had told her was coming and groaned at the prospect. Still, it wasn't like she had a choice in the matter. So, she slipped on her helmet, spread her wings, and darted around the corner, Zahir following behind her.

Dorus was waiting for her, along with several other items. Another, much smaller crate, a few hay bales, a wooden pole about eight feet high, and a large wood and leather dummy. Even before she came to a stop, she could tell he was smiling; the helmet hiding very little of his face, and not enough to hide it.

"Well, hey there birdie. Ready for weapons training?", he said.

"Well, I just ran with eighty pounds of rocks on my back for five hours, but, sure. I guess I could kick your ass from here to Griffonia."

He just smiled. She was starting to hate that smile. "Sorry, birdie," he said. "But for now, no ass-kicking. Instead, you'll be hitting that post. With this." He lifted up from behind the crate a wooden sword, similar in design to his own. He tossed it to her, then gestured to the post.

"You've got to be kidding me, right?", she said. "You want me to hit that thing with a toy sword?"

Dorus said, "It's not a toy. It's a training sword. Twice the normal weight of your actual equipment", he pointed to the box, indicating that was where it was. "Helps you to build up muscles and to give ease of movement when you finally start to use your actual gear. Now, go over to the post, and follow my commands."

"I don't have muscles, remember," she said, lifting up her iron foreleg.

"Ok, I'll give you that," he said. "But, it only goes up to your elbow, so it helps with the shoulders. And it's the way I've been instructed to train you. Now, fall to command."

Rainbow muttered under her breath using words she likely wouldn't use around her son but trotted over to the post anyway. As she got close, she saw it wasn't just a long piece of wood, but was in fact divided into sections, separated by short lengths of died linin wrapped around them.

"At the ready!" Rainbow just stood there, looking back at him with a look that said 'Explain, motherfucker.' "Right," Dorus said as he pulled out the vine staff. He then used it to adjust her limbs, forcing her into a position he wanted her to be in. Said position was her tensed up, sword held back with the tip extending just past her chest. "Now, do as I say when I say it, and then return to this position. As of now, speed isn't your concern. Focus on accuracy; it's better to hit your target than to swing fast and miss. Now, at the ready!"

Rainbow stiffened up in her position, holding the sword. "Thrust high!" She shot her hoof out, hitting the narrow board before retreating. "Thrust low!" Again, she struck the board, however, came close to missing the thrust. "Downward slash, middle!" Being a bit easier, she did it a bit faster. "Side slash, middle!" Again, easy, so it went faster. "Good. Now, repeat all of it!"

Rainbow groaned but complied. This was gonna be a long day.

This was the general training structure for the next six months. Get up just before sunrise, head out front, and find out what Dorus had planned. Often, it wasn't as crazy as what she had to do on that first day. This could range from a simple jog around the villa to a flight around the whole island. These activities generally lasted until about noon or a little less. After this was a quick lunch, often in a similar style to what she had on day one.

After that was weapons training. For the first three months, it was almost identical to the first day. Attacking a wooden pole with a heavy wooden sword. Other drills were done as well. The use of throwing weapons. Ambush tactics. Stealth practice. Even theoretical uses for her flight in combat.

After the three month mark, she was finally introduced to her proper equipment; the stuff she was expected to use in battle. A pair of the short swords she had been using a wooden version of, which had a harness that went over her armor, holding the scabbards just below her wings. A pair of crossbow pistols, strapped to holsters on her flanks along with their spare ammunition. A stiletto dagger, which could slide out of a compartment on her prosthetic (that part was especially cool). And finally, her talons and hooves themselves, which could be used as a last resort weapon.

At this point, the training changed as well. Now, she started sparring with Dorus, firing on moving targets with the crossbows, and attacking dummies from the air instead of ground level. She had also been sparring with Zahir, who was using weapons that the Zebras commonly used: Clubs, short spears, and curved, sickle-like blades.

Finally, after six months, she was more than proficient in her new weapons. Her style hadn't changed too much in usage; she still relied on surprise, momentum, speed, and agility to overwhelm an opponent. But, she now had proper armor, weapons and was able to move almost as fast in them as out of them. Now, Caesar Drusilla had gotten her what she needed to complete her end of the bargain.

A boat to the mainland, a cloak, and a map to the camp of the bastards who held her.

Next Chapter: 41~Retribution Estimated time remaining: 6 Hours, 31 Minutes