Champions

Everybody in the locker room found them weird. Even a little creepy. They would not interact with the other swimmers, always keeping their sight low, almost as if they were alone in the room. They would arrive, remove their track suits, and their red speedos with the Academy logo would already be on. They would put all their gear in a locker and go straight for the showers.

Other things that were hard to miss with the Academy swimmers was the very thin collar around their neck—a bio tracker, probably. There were also their perfectly shaved skulls, the number tattooed on their chests, and, of course, the scars. Every athlete of the Academy had one. Every trainer of the Academy had one.

Nobody knew why, but there were rumours. Rumours that all of the athletes from the Academy were lobotomized to enhance their performance. That they were mindless drones trained to obey and perform. That once they were done with their career, they were sold as servants, as sex slaves.

Tom and Casey knew all about the rumours. They also knew they wanted to be the best swimmers, knowing that after the academy, they could compete at the national and international levels, and even make the Olympics. So, both were determined to enlist.

The Academy has a lengthy process of admission. Tom and Casey were pushed to the limit to make sure they had the potential to become proud members of the institution.

They made the cut.
The rumours were true.
They accepted their fate willingly.

Now, 011 and 006 have won, again, every single race of the tournament. They will go back into the locker room, and put back their tracksuit on top of their wet speedos. They would follow their trainer to a van to return directly to the Academy.

Before entering the vehicle, they will get naked. Their hands will be put in their mitts and tightened behind their backs. They will crawl into their transport crate and fall asleep quickly, with a deep comforting feeling that they have made their trainer and the Academy proud.

011 will wake up a few hours later and start training for the next championship. 006 determined subpar in recent games, will wake up a few hours later at the auction house. Both will feel grateful that the Academy has a plan for their champions.

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Thank You to Alpha Gdog for his help with the editing of the story.