Chapter 20

In her daze, Tonya hadn't noticed the whirlpool jets being turned off; when she felt Nancy's hand on her shoulder, she tensed up, her awareness suddenly returning. She looked up at her captor, who motioned her to get out of the tub.

Tonya tried to stand up, but her legs were shaky; Nancy held her steady, then handed her a towel. Tonya took it, and started to dry herself off. Still shaky, she moved slowly. She moved the towel up and down her small body, letting it absorb all the dampness.

When she was done drying herself off, Tonya handed the towel back to Nancy. Nancy took it, setting it down, and turned toward the door, gently guiding her captive rival out of the room. They walked down the hall to a room marked "Endurance Training". Nancy opened the door, and the two walked in.

In the center of the room was a device that looked like a set of stocks with an erector set of numerous extensions added on. Nancy guided Tonya over to the device, and looked at her.

"Wait here, and don't move."

Nancy turned and walked out of the room. Tonya just stood and stared at the device; it was obvious that soon, she'd be imprisoned in it, bound and helpless.

But what would happen to her while she was in it?

She looked around the room; it was fairly small, but various nasty-looking equipment was everywhere. She was exhausted, nearly delirious, from her previous ordeal, but as she viewed the plethora of evil instruments, her fear brought her a new awareness. She gulped.

Nancy and the Doctor were standing in another room, watching Tonya's every move on a TV monitor; she looked at him, quizzically.

"Aren't we going in there?"

"No," he replied, "She needs a little time to think about what's going to happen when we start the endurance test."

"Why?"

"The anticipation has to be frightening for her; otherwise, she won't have as much of a sense of accomplishment when the test is done.", he explained.

Nancy understood. She watched as Tonya went from half-asleep to nervous; the ex-skater's movements were now more abrupt, almost jerky. Nancy noticed that Tonya's augmented chest was now moving rapidly from heavy breathing, and almost thought she heard Tonya's heart beating wildly. She realized that her own pulse had quickened, and looked at the Doctor, puzzled.

"Getting excited, are you?", he asked, grinning.

"Yeah... ," Nancy answered, almost embarrassed that he'd noticed her situation, "Why am I feeling that way?"

"Why?", he responded, "It's kind of like seeing a movie of a roller coaster; when it goes down a hill fast, you feel like you're IN it, even though you know it's a movie, right?"

"Yeah..."

"It's a conditioned response," he continued, "Subconsciously, your mind places you IN that situation, and you respond as though it was actually happening."

On the monitor, Tonya's expression was growing increasingly pained, and she was almost twitching now. 'What's taking her so long to get back?', she thought to herself.

When the door finally opened, Tonya jumped back, startled; she gasped for breath as she saw Nancy and the Doctor walk in the room.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Tonya," he said, apologetically, "This is the 24-hour Endurance Test; you're going to be hooked up to the 'test bench' for a full day."

"WHY???" Tonya was almost hysterical!

"Remember, this is INTENSE therapy, Tonya; think of this as the WORST that you'll have to go through, and when you get done, it'll be all downhill from there!"

"O... OK... ," Tonya replied, hesitantly, "B... but... but can I get some sleep first? I... I'm REALLY tired..."

"Tonya, in order for this to work correctly, you HAVE to be exhausted before the test starts", the Doctor explained.

"But... but what IS it???"

"The best way to explain it," he continued, "Is that it's like a 'purification ritual', the way that 'holy men' in tribal cultures undergo. They deprive themselves of sleep, food, even water, for days, and at the end, they go through the intense ritual for hours and even days, sometimes even WEEKS."

"But... but I'm not... 'holy'... or anything..." Tonya replied.

'You can say THAT again!', Nancy thought to herself.

"During the ritual, they'll go into a trance state," he went on, "They'll see spiritual 'visions' that act as guides for the rest of their lives. When the ordeal is over, it's almost like they're a totally new person, very much at peace with themselves, and that's the kind of result that the endurance test is supposed to have."