Planting Seeds III: Mithryn Boot Camp

[Aedifalse]

Previous episode here.

514-WINTER-04

"It seems that you did not have enough rest, Aghanim," The rough-looking middle-aged man cackled. Even through the loose tunic that he wore in spite of the building cold anyone could see the bulk of combat-honed muscles distributed throughout his body. The multitude of scars that ran across his neck and arms did not go unnoticed as well.

"It took longer than I expected to recover, Mister Hilckle," Aedi admitted, stretching his still-aching muscles and yawned. The morning was so early that it was still dark even though the sun tended to rise earlier than usual in this season.

"No matter," The retired bounty hunter stated, his eyes twinkling comically. "As they say, exercise begets exercise! When the blood gets pumping you'll recover even faster."

Bullshit.

But no matter indeed, he was the one that agreed to this out of a curiosity for new experiences. This would be a new experience, though he sincerely hoped that he would not regret it. The growing spark of sadism in the ex-mercenary's eyes seemed to hint otherwise.

"The air is so inviting today. I say, why not start with some warm-up around our charming village?" Dargus Hilckle began deceptively, and he began jogging.

Aedi staved off a yawn as he followed suit. Soon, they settled into a silent rhythm as their strides matched each other's. Wordlessly, Hilckle led the Isur to the gates of the outpost, and they ran alongside the inner walls. Unknowingly, Hilckle's pace began to quicken incrementally, and the Isur's body subconsciously followed. It was only a matter of time before he began to gasp for air.

"Slow down Mister Hilckle!" The lagging Isur panted as he struggled to keep up.

"The enemy will not slow down, and neither should you!" Hilckle replied cheerily, his voice perfectly measured and seeming unaffected by the change in pace.

However, the pace did slightly decrease so that the beginner runner could catch up, and the two began tracing the interior outline of the Mithryn Outpost. Unfortunately, what Aedi thought was a warm-up run did not end just after one round. Keeping at the same pace, they crossed the morning guardsman three times before Aedi piped up.

"Are we... finishing?" He gasped, his lungs burning for air and his legs crying for rest.

"Are you warmed up already? My legs just started waking up only!" Hilckle replied in the same cheery tone, though with a dangerous slant that dared Aedi to stop.

Despite the fatigue, he gulped and forced himself forward, for the sake of Isurian pride. He would not allow their holy name to be besmirched by a washed-away warrior! By now, he was not hiding his attempt at panting, and he took in huge breaths as he struggled to stay aside the running human.

A few more times they passed by the guardsman before the instructor mercifully stopped, and Aedi began to collapse onto the ground in fatigue. However, his body was immediately held upright by Hilckle's strong arms, and he took the unspoken hint to continued standing.

"It is bad form and unsightly to do so. Recuperate while standing upright. Be a man!" Hilckle grinned, throwing a filled waterskin at the recruit. Despite the similarity in ages, one had double the mental maturity of the other. It was one of the quirks of racial differences.

[Aedifalse]

After a brief rest, Hilcke led Aedi to a section of the village that was in the midst of construction. Due to the earliness of the day, there was not a soul about, and there were huge blocks of quarry scattered around an unfinished framework of what seemed to be a cottage.

"You have one bell to stack these blocks neatly before the first laborer arrives," Hilckle began as he demonstrated his words. He picked up a block of stone in slow motion, exaggerating every posture and action for educational purposes, and placed it on the ground beside a wheelbarrow. "Come to me when you're done. I'll be just outside the walls."

The man strode away quickly without giving the time for Aedi to protest. Sighing, he followed the same posture as he squatted forward, keeping his back straight like what he saw. Sliding his fingers underneath the block of stone, he gritted his teeth as he pushed himself up with his legs while keeping the stone close to his chest. He stumbled a little as he made his way to the wheelbarrow, but his fighting spirit helped to keep his path straight and true. Exhaling, he bended downwards in the same manner, placing the block neatly atop the block that Hilckle started.

For the entirety of sixty chimes, Aedi worked tirelessly, determined to complete his task before the first laborer arrived. He tried his best to mimic the instructor's posture as he raised and stacked the blocks, starting new placements whenever the current one became too high. The all-too-familiar protest of burning muscles began to appear in his back and arms, but like before, he refused to give up nor slow down.

Just as the first work crew arrived he finished stacking the blocks, and quickly made himself scarce, walking out of the gate and spotting the instructor outside. He was topless, his shirt tied around his waist, and from his glistening sweat it was evident that he was performing a work out of his own.

"Excellent, Aghanim! Come over here," Hilckle remarked. His rough palms pushed down on the recruit's shoulders, forcing his legs to buckle as he sank into a half-squat position. The strenuous activities conducted earlier did not help to relieve the strain one bit.

"This is the starting position," The old warrior declared, sinking into the same position himself. "Follow me."

Silently withdrawing both fists to his waist, he took a deep breath and hissed as he punched out one arm. Aedi followed suit, doing the same as he pushed out his arm. Unlike the man that he followed, the path of his punch was not straight and his fist wobbled as he extended. The training earlier was beginning to take its physical toll on his untrained body.

Still, he reminded himself of the mental fortitude that he needed to cultivate, and he remembered the days of forging when he had to swing a sledgehammer repeatedly against a bar of steel without rest.

This is nothing! He encouraged himself.

Leading his pupil slowly, Hilckle went through a brief series of motions that revolved around the half-squat position. Grunting with exertion, the Isur grudgingly mirrored the postures, punching the air at various angles as he shifted his footsteps waveringly.

After what seemed to be eternity, the old fighter exhaled, and relaxed his posture. Aedi quickly followed gratefully.

"Not bad for a first day," He remarked. "But expect more tomorrow."

Aedi groaned.

[Aedifalse]

514-WINTER-05

Next morning found the unlikely duo pacing themselves around the interior of the walls. This time, the same morning guard grinned and waved at them every time they passed him by, and the minor encouragement did wonders for Aedi's morale.

The rigorous exercises the day before had challenged every fiber of the novice's being, and the fatigue continued to weigh him down. Yet, there was a new sense of discovery as he discovered muscles he didn't knew he had when he felt them aching.

The Isur did not know that one could be fatigued into numbness, but that was what his legs felt like as he kept pace with Dargus Hilckle. It was a strange mix between floating and feeling the thump every time his boots struck the ground.

"Running is not plodding lazily on the ground," The ex-mercenary commented in disapproval. "You must move swiftly, like a coursing river. Follow the flow of movement."

The Isur adjusted his steps and found his body moving more aerodynamically. However, a new problem emerged, and the main struggle was with his lungs, feeling the difficulty to breathe as his lungs burned.

"Regulate your air!" Hilckle called out as he kept rhythm. "Force yourself to take long deep breaths before you submit to short pants!"

With this advice, Aedi found more air that helped to tide him over for the rest of the laps that they sped through, though the inevitable pain still gnawed at his chest after they finished their rounds.

Like before, he was directed to the construction grounds where again the blocks were scattered about. Aedi sighed again as he sank into squat, lifting his first block and placing it neatly against the wheelbarrow, which was at a different position this time. Having repeated this same activity many times the day before, he was able to be more efficient in his lifting.

However, in his impatience he did not bend his legs low enough, and as he lifted the block he felt a sharp strain in his back. That was the warning sign that pushed the Isur into submission and he slowed down his speed, carefully following the demonstrated posture in lifting the blocks to avoid making the same mistake again. The strain in his back lessened slightly after that, but it did not quite go away.

Having finished stacking the huge blocks of quarry, he hurried outside of the gates, and there the two of them revised the series of postures from the day before.

Punch right straight ahead, punch left in a parallel line, both fists open up and with palms facing downwards, twisting wrists to face the palms towards the sky.

Take a deep breath and retract forearms upwards towards the face while keeping the elbow positioned as before, then flexed both arms while exhaling, simultaneously punching the right fist towards where the left fist had been earlier, while using the left fist to punch at an angle to the right just above the shoulder.

Repeat the same gesture in opening the palms and rotating the wrist, and recover the arms towards the head just like before, then punching out in the same contrasting arrangement but in a mirrored position.

"What you are learning now, is what some call the kata," Hilckle spoke reverently after a number of repetitions of strokes. "Patterns taken from techniques in fighting to drill into your body so that it can react quickly without needing to think."

"I hope that your body and mind will be clear again tomorrow."

[Aedifalse]

514-WINTER-06

Another day, another struggle. The morning guardsman now waved cheerily to the tall-and-short pair as they made their rounds across the walls. The pace of the jogging was now routine and the majority of it was done in silence, the only sounds disrupting the quiet air were the synchronized thuds of boots upon the earth.

The accumulated exhaustion in Aedi's limbs continued to hamstring his movements, but by now it seemed that his tired muscles were literally oppressed by the continual exercise. Their subdued protests had begun to fade into a dull ache in the background. The repeated challenges to his lungs had forced it to gradually expand, and the burning in his chest was now welcomed even as he gasped for air. At least it took the focus away from his weary legs, which helped him to avoid buckling as he kept pace with the bounty hunter.

After the run, he shared a pained glance with the gatesman while the soldier empathized with a grin. Many of the town's militia had trained under Dargus Hilckle at one point and there was a sense of shared compassion amongst the 'survivors'.

At the construction grounds, the experienced veteran came along, and he introduced a new set of routines. Previously, the quarry was only stacked to a maximum of Aedi's waist before starting a new column. This time, he was to stack it until it was above his head.

"Watch carefully," Hilckle warned as he squatted and brought the block up as before. However, there was a change as he continued bringing the block upwards in one swift motion, grunting, "You need plenty of force-"

Shelving the block atop a previously stacked column, he dusted his hands before completing his sentence, "-like that of a great typhoon, similar to the rumble of the Djed Storms a few years back."

The Isur eyed the high stacks apprehensively as he carefully mimicked the motion, gripping the stone carefully. With a yell, he straightened his legs with a burst of motion, and brought his hands up. However due to his inexperience, his arms did not match the motion correctly, and failed to rise, and the block tumbled down in defeat.

A very primal sense of anger lit up within the Isur, and he refused to accept his failure. He squatted down again, his posterior jutted out in an unsightly manner as he prepared to lift the block again. With a muttered prayer to Izurdin, he inhaled, then roared as he pushed his legs upwards. This time he was prepared, and the force carried along with his arms to raise the block up towards his head. With a final yell of triumph, he slotted it onto the stack above.

After arranging the stacks of quarry to achievable heights, there were much lesser columns by virtue of the doubled height, and he headed off outside to find his mentor.

"Partner katas involve reflexes and timing," Hilckle explained as he settled into the now familiar half-squat stance, facing opposite his student, "And further conditions your reflexes and mind for the real thing."

They began slowly at first as the master guided his student. A right punch was deflected gently by a left stroke, and the retaliating right uppercut was forced down by the left forearm. The following shove from the same arm was capitalized upon by an upper left hook, which was stopped in its tracks by a right jab to the bicep. Both arms from both participants were wrung in place as sweat flew off, and another set of patterns were repeated.

It was like the process of doing the patterns solo, but this time one did not have the luxury of figuring out things at one's own time. Aedi's struggled both mentally and physically to not only assimilate the knowledge, but also to fight against the weariness of his body from both today and the previous days. His movements were sluggish, but he forced his limbs to go through with the motions of responding to the initiating patterns.

"You are doing well," The grizzled old man observed. "But you will need more than that to get through tomorrow. Take an early day and rest well."

[Aedifalse]

514-WINTER-07

The steady thuds of boots on earth was a slight fraction lighter than before, and a careful listener would be able to recognize the swifter movements of the heavier runner. Despite the difference in height between Isur and human, the shorter one was much heavier, both due to his naturally denser bones and muscles, but also because of his divine-blessed arm. However, the lighter and taller human had a greater mastery over his muscles, and that translated into a more efficient running movement.

The novice now displayed a much more efficient running posture, but still left much to be desired as he crashed onwards at his instructor's rear. He was beginning to understand the regulation of air as he ran, and his stamina usage was gradually becoming better. Yet, improvements simply did not occur overnight as the body still needed time to assimilate changes, and so the weak condition of his body continued to hamper his running.

However, even has he completed the rounds he felt stronger than the previous days and no longer felt the need to collapse into a messy heap. Without a word, he parted ways with Dargus Hilckle and continued in a light jog towards the construction site. A cursory glance told the Isur that there were many more blocks of stone than before, which meant he had lesser time to rest in between each dead-lift and power-clean.

Despite the familiarity Aedi now had with the forms having repeated them so many times in a short span of time, the memory of the previous failed fumble was scarred into his mind, and the minor ache from his back reminded him with every squat he took. With that in mind, he was still careful in his lifting, paying utmost attention to his posture as he lifted and stacked the blocks. Sometimes when he failed to properly match the momentum of his upper and lower torso when he tried to lift the quarry high, he quickly stepped back and released the block, allowing it to crash onto the ground and avoiding injury.

Through the careful administration of strength to the raw materials, the trainee managed to stack the pieces high effectively, though he noted with distaste that he had to complete the last column under the curious gaze of a foreman who happened to arrive earlier than usual.

Upon the completion of his body-building task, he headed out to where both body and mind would be taxed to their utmost limit.

"We will speed up the katas, both solos and partner, to hone your hand-eye coordination," The ex-mercenary stated simply, and the duo eased into the standard stance.

Aedi had took the time the night before to revise the different patterns, and the diligence showed as he was able to keep up with the increased speed. One pattern flowed into another as his arms and legs shifted according to techniques designed many years ago, and despite his mental agility the physical strain surfaced as as result of maintaining the stance for longer than his body was comfortable with.

When the series of solo patterns were completed, without even stopping for a rest the retired bounty hunter gestured for his recruit to take up position opposite him, and they began the partnered patterns in earnest. As there was no rest, Aedi's lack of endurance began to hinder his speed even as the two accelerated, and one of his strokes failed to raise in time, causing the master's palm to halt just before his neck.

"You must use all your strength!" Hilckle was fired up. "Like a raging fire, you must strike with conviction!"

The Isur summoned the familiar memory of the forge-fire, and used the comfortable nostalgia to fuel his movements. Like the roar of a furnace, he asserted his will over his failing muscles to keep up with the speed, handling blow after blow as he exchanged simulated attacks at a gradually accelerating speed with Hilckle.

The effort did not go unobserved by the grizzled human, and he acknowledged it with a silent pat on the back.

"Do not let your efforts go to waste, and give me your best tomorrow."

[Aedifalse]

514-WINTER-08

It was the final day of the promised boot camp, and every muscle and every fiber of Aedi's being cried out in both relief and exasperation. Despite having minimal rest for the past few days, the final day was not a walk in the park. Rather, it seemed like it was a culmination of all that had been done before.

The rounds they made were no longer jogs but had sped up to the point that could be classified as a run, maybe a sprint. In short intervals Aedi had to accelerate quickly, then slow down to a run, before sprinting again. It was a twist to the usual formula that his body did not expect, and not knowing how to adapt his stamina management failed big time.

Breathing like he was a drowning man, the Isur kept up with the interval training as best as he could, but his sluggish steps were simply not enough. Still, Hilckle did not let up as he continued leading the run relentlessly, and the struggling trainee could only follow suit.

The challenging run segued into a greater obstacle, and Aedi's heart sunk when he realized that blocks this time now included massive tree trunks strewn about. While stone was heavier than lumber, the massive sizes of the trunks more than made up the difference, and the long lengths made it difficult to balance as well.

Muttering a prayer to Izurdin for strength, the determined Isur soldiered on with the lifting, allowing his limbs to rest for a slightly longer period in between each haul of the wood. Though his muscles and tendons were already aching from prior engagements, the constant rigors of stress applied to them allowed his body to somewhat adapt better to lifting, and he found himself with a renewed vigor with each weight he lifted.

Attributing the new-found strength to his divine father above, the novice excitedly hastened the pace of squatting, lifting and hurling moderately, still taking great care to maintain the sanctity of his form or risk an avoidable injury. By now he was welcoming the screams of his muscles as a sign of progress, and with grasp and pull of the construction materials, he grinned in spite of the ache jabbing throughout his body.

The process was finally completed, and the foreman who arrived nodded in appreciation to the Isur. He opened his mouth to speak, but Aedi raised a hand apologetically and rushed outside of the gates to meet his mentor for a final session. So far everything was on schedule.

[Aedifalse]

Wordlessly the duo settled into a hastened pace of patterns. The quickened speed gave the impression that both the solo and partner patterns were simply a warm-up and revision, and the Isur's hunch was proven when Hilckle did not dismiss him upon completion.

"The only way to test your progress, Aghanim," The instructor began, "is to test it in a duel of strength and will. Ready up!"

Aedi did not know anything about combat, but from all the drilling before he settled into what he believed to be a reasonable stance, his fists raised and his feet shoulder-width apart. Hilckle bowed stiffly and Aedi curiously followed suit, and the man burst into a motion of activity, charging towards the Isur.

Panicking, he flinched for a split second, then frantically raised his right arm to block the incoming blow. Strangely, his left arm simultaneously shot forward in a lower punch towards the instructor's gut, and it bounced off harmless as that blow was deflected.

"The power of conditioning and reflex," Hilckle explained the seemingly automatic response, "Your left arm packs quite a punch. It is fortunate I took the pains to strap cushions onto my arms thoroughly. Prepare yourself."

With a yell, he rushed forward, and this time he struck at two places simultaneously. Aedi's eyes widened, and instead of taking it head-on he reflexively shifted to the right, opening the side of his body to attack. With the reduced exposure, he simultaneously blocked that strike and attacked with his other palm towards Hilckle's side rib in accordance with the side-step-movement of the partnered patterns. It was all rehearsed and done before and drilled into his muscle memory, and now it was simply executed in a different context.

Hilckle simply nodded and he continued a variety of sudden attacks, prompting Aedi into responding. Sometimes he failed to respond in time, and sometimes he produced the wrong response, but most of the time, his body seemed to understand what was expected of it.

Interestingly, the mercenary's attacks were all performed in a calculatedly systematic manner, and by the end of his furry of attacks he had managed to force the student to unknowingly reproduce all the different patterns that they had rehearsed endlessly before.

As a final strike, he performed a leg sweep. Aedi's eyes widened from this surprise attack, and next thing he knew he was on the ground looking up at the amused instructor's grin.

"Nothing is ever textbook, Aghanim, and learning to adapt to unfamiliar tactics can mean life and death," Hilckle helped the Isur up, brushing the grass and dirt from his shoulders. "You must always be open-minded, and whether in offense or defense you must be mysterious, even more so than the dark face of our moon."

And with that, their training ended, and Aedi was left to contemplate on the lessons that were left to him, and even more questions than before.

"Some say answers should be what you seek. But I say, one should always seek questions, because with that the journey never ends."

Fin.

[Devi]

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