After my last evaluation, the League changed the way they looked at me.
No more "training for a child."
No more soft lessons.
No more limited drills.
Ra's al Ghul made it very clear:
"Train him as you would train a grown assassin."
So they did.
They pushed me.
Harder than any five-year-old should endure
Harder than most adults could handle.
And at first…
I let them believe they were pushing me to my limit.
But they weren't.
Not even close.
The Regret Begins
Three days into the new training schedule, the first "incident" happened.
During a weapon drill, an instructor swung a wooden sword at my side—fast enough to bruise ribs, maybe crack them.
I caught the sword.
With two fingers.
He froze.
I looked him in the eye.
"You telegraphed it."
He blinked.
"What?!"
Your shoulder tensed before you swung."
The entire group stared.
The instructors exchanged looks.
But Ra's, who was watching from his balcony, only smirked.
"Continue."
They Try to Break Me
The League escalated.
They added:
blindfold sparring,
pressure-point drills,
five-on-one combat simulations,
sensory deprivation tests,
endurance conditioning meant for elite operatives.
They were trying to find my breaking point.
But every time they increased intensity…
I adapted.
I learned.
I outpaced them.
They didn't know the truth—
that my instincts weren't normal…
that every movement they made felt slower, clearer…
that my senses were sharpening day by day thanks to a power they couldn't see or understand.
To them, I was simply a "prodigy."
To me, it was preparation.
The Test That Crossed The Line
On the seventh day, Ra's decided the instructors were being too gentle.
He summoned six elite assassins into the training dome—
the kind who could kill grown warriors in seconds.
Talia objected.
"Father, he's five."
Ra's didn't blink.
"He is Damian."
They dropped me into the middle of the arena.
The six assassins spread out, silent as shadows.
Talia clenched her fists.
Ra's folded his arms.
The lead assassin spoke:
"No holding back?"
Ra's answered coldly:
"Do what is necessary to test him."
My heartbeat stayed steady.
My breathing calm.
They thought they were hunting a child.
They were wrong.
The Fight Begins
The assassins vanished into the shadows instantly.
One rushed me from behind.
I barely dodged the first strike—
just barely.
My body couldn't keep up with six adult assassins at once.
A kick to my ribs.
A strike to my shoulder.
A sweep at my legs.
I blocked three strikes, but two connected hard.
Pain flared.
Tch… I can't win like this.
Inhaled—
deep, controlled—
using the breathing techniques I'd been practicing in secret.
The air burned in my chest…
Then something inside me clicked.
A shift.
A change.
A doorway opening.
And suddenly—
The Transparent World Awakens
The entire arena slowed.
The assassins moved the same speed—
but now I could see everything.
Their muscles tightening.
The flow of air around their limbs.
Their blood pumping.
Their lungs expanding.
Their weight shifting before they struck.