“N o, no. That will get you killed in any fight with two opponents. Never leave your side exposed like that.”
We were in a private courtyard on Academy grounds. Class had been dismissed early that day after Rava assessed our progress in the morning session.
Only a few students had to stay behind for extra instruction, while the rest of us were sent out to practice on our own.
Clove was determined to become a better fighter.
Even though she’d broken the block that was keeping her energy suppressed, she had a lot of work to do in building her offensive abilities and increasing her mana pool.
I would have been fine with her focusing on a stronger defense, but she was insistent on her goals.
Currently, her blue garb was smeared with grass stains. One of her arms displayed an artful spread of mud. There were weeds in her hair.
She’d fallen at least a dozen times. Once had had her rolling down the side of the small hill and into the bushes.
As the sun burned off the last bit of haze in the sky, we faced each other on the turf.
I said, “Remember, your new breakthrough is only going to help you grow stronger. Physically and energetically.”
She rested her hands on her knees, breathing hard.
“I know, I know. You’d still kick my butt, though. I can’t believe how much stronger you are than me. It’s really not fair!”
I have nearly two centuries over you. That might have something to do with it.
“Never mind that,” I replied. “Pick up the practice sword again. I want to teach you one more thing.”
She grimaced but obeyed. The wooden weapon shook in her hand, a sign of her fatigued arms. “You do know why I need this training, right?”
I paused. “Tell me.”
“I’m afraid to take risks because I know I’m weak. If I give a fight all of my mana and I still fail, then I only have this stupid clumsy body of mine to use.
“My strength and speed are my last resort, and they’re both pathetic.”
She held the sword up, determined. “I can’t be a one-trick fighter. I need to push myself. Constantly. Even if it scares me.”
“I understand,” I told her. Because of that, I attacked.
She was awful at this.
Even by a beginner’s standard. But I respected her desire to push through her weaknesses and make herself better.
We sparred for ten more minutes, up until the point that she dropped her weapon in exhaustion.
She fell to her knees.
“Wait,” she wheezed. “What were you supposed to teach me?”
I gestured to her fallen weapon. “That you can go on for much longer than you think you can. And honestly, if we were in a Tower level, I would bet all of my mana that you would find the strength to pick that thing up and continue yet again.”
Her laugh was more of a disbelieving wheeze. “I don’t think I have the strength to wipe my piss at the moment.”
“Can you heal your own muscles?”
“Not yet. When my body’s too exhausted, I can’t heal like normal. I need to absorb some heat and let my mana restore itself. The sun helps, at least.”
“Get up. No, don’t give me that look. We’re done with that sort of fighting.”
I held out a hand, and she took it, pulling herself to her feet.
“What is it?”
“I’m going to attempt to strike you,” I explained. “You are going to try and defend yourself. I’m not going to actually hit you, but I want to see what you’ll do.”
She gave me a dubious look.
I grinned. “Don’t tell me you’re scared.”
She rolled her eyes and then assumed a defensive posture.
I gave her a moment to prepare and then struck. Gently.
To Clove’s credit, she moved quickly despite her fatigue. Her open palm shot out and caught my fist.
Stopping me.
Her eyes lit up. “I did it!”
“No, you just got knocked out.”
“What? No! I stopped you!”
She was still holding my fist, so I showed her what I meant. I pushed my fist forward.
Even without much force, her elbow bent back, and I pressed the back of her hand against her jaw.
“If I was moving at full strength and speed, I’d have hit you here.”
The glow of pride in her eyes dimmed. “Oh… duh.”
I retracted my arm. “You must train like you’ll always be the weaker person. At this point in your training, it’s the most likely scenario.
“Now, instead of trying to stop me using your force, you must stop me by using mine. ”
Her brow furrowed. “That makes zero sense.”
“Hit me. Play along. Please.”
“Fine.” She squared her shoulders, readied her fist, and struck.
I caught her wrist with my opposing hand. Then, with my other, I pushed her elbow and used her own momentum to twist her arm.
Like a sort of violent choreography, her body was forced to turn, leaving her trapped. If I pressed her elbow any further, her arm would snap.
I said, “Now, I would release a spell into you if I had mana to spare. Do you know what I’d do next if I were you?”
“What?” she asked
Leaning forward, I whispered into her ear. “If my mana was used up, and all I had left was the will to live? I’d run. ”
I let go.
Even though my hold hadn’t hurt her, even though the sun was warm on our skin, she rubbed her arms like she was cold.
Without turning around, she said, “I want to try.”
“Good. Do you remember the hand positioning?”
She turned, her face a mask of concentration. “I was paying attention.”
“Let’s do a slow practice.” I extended my arm, almost as if punching in slow motion.
She gritted her teeth, grabbed my wrist, and caught my elbow, pushing it.
I turned my body dutifully, showing her the natural effects when you capture someone’s arm like this. “And there you have it,” I applauded. “Excellent work.”
I had her practice the movements about a dozen more times, each with a faux slowness.
Much of physical combat came down to muscle memory and practice. The more she performed this move, the more natural of a response it will be.
“Again,” she said by the twelfth time. “But I want you to go full speed now.”
When she let me go and I turned around, there was a fresh, bright glow to her cheeks. She was feeling better. More optimistic.
“Ready?” I asked.
“Ready.”
I struck. My fist barely grazed her shoulder, but she wasn’t fast enough to catch me.
Damn. Remember what you are, Luc. You are not the same kind of mortal like her. Slower.
I apologized and was about to promise to slow myself down when Clove shook her head.
“No! Do that again! If I can perform this move with your punches, I can do it with anyone. I won’t even ask how you manage to be so darn quick.”
She smiled. “Again. Please.”
She didn’t know what she was asking. Her reflexes were too slow. She wouldn’t be able to land a hand on me if she tried.
“Let me go at half-speed,” I requested. “Take small steps at a time.”
A little put-out, but in a good mood, Clove relented. Grinning, she bounced side to side on her toes, fists ready. “Alright, Luc. Give it to me!”
It took six more attempts for her to snatch my wrist properly, and two more after to get the elbow and twist. All at half-speed.
“Fantastic!” I exclaimed when she’d finally completed the full maneuver and I obliged, allowing her to twist me successfully.
She let go and then pounced a hug on me.
“That felt amazing! I can’t believe I did that! Oh, I’m so going to use this one. I’m going to teach it to Mabel too. She’s got to know how to kick some butt.”
I patted her on the head while she clung to me.
She was probably absorbing my heat at the moment, and I was happy to give her everything she needed to recover from training.
“You were excellent,” I told her plainly. “Are you ready to take a break?”
She glanced up, a little shy. “You told me that the best thing I could do is run. After I get my opponent in that position and use up all my energy, that is. Right?”
“Correct.”
She bit her bottom lip, thoughtful and curious. “What would you do? Besides blast them with an overpowered fire spell,” she teased.
I stepped away. “I’ll show you.”
She bounced back, too, excited. “Okay… ha!” Her fist came flying at me.