Twenty-Three
 
“Hit me!” Alice’s voice cracked the silence of the early morning and Kon flew into his attack without hesitation. He kicked dirt at her eyes and then charged, intent on wrapping her up in a tackle and crashing to the ground. His toes gouged the soft earth and sent a spray toward her face, but she merely ducked down and then spun away as Kon sailed through the air she had occupied.
Dirt filled his mouth as he slammed into the ground and he groaned in pain and exasperation, but didn’t hesitate to get back on his feet and try again. He chased, throwing a series of jabs and kicks at her, all of which went nowhere. There was a crispness to his blows now that he hadn’t had before, a strength in his limbs he couldn’t recall. It didn’t matter.
“Girl, what are you waiting for? Hit me. With your fist not a sword,” Alice called over her shoulder as she suddenly dropped low and swept Kon’s feet out from under him. His back slapped the ground and the air whooshed out as he spat a curse and rolled to his feet.
“Hit you?” Diur touched the back of one of her ears as if not trusting her translator.
“Yes. It’s training. Try to hit me,” Alice sounded exasperated, turning her head to look at her. Kon used the momentary distraction to try to punch her in the sternum, a straight jab. Alice’s hand flashed in between them, smacking him at the wrist and diverting the blow.
“Better.” Kon gritted his teeth and growled in frustration. No matter how fast he got or how deep into the bag of tricks he dove, he couldn’t touch her. Diur nodded and carefully placed her sword and scabbard against a tree trunk. Then she blurred and Kon lost track of the fight.
Diur became nothing more than a blue blur in front of him as Alice accelerated and he realized all his efforts earlier really were just a child play fighting against their parent. Anger burned in his gut and he sat back to try to watch as the duo dueled each other. Alice had to actively use her hand to divert blows, but Diur couldn’t manage to land a hit otherwise.
Alice turned her back to Kon and the opportunity was there. He lunged, not to land a blow, but to try to slow her down. His shoulder flew towards a knee and Kon gasped in pain as it was like hitting a tree trunk. Pain reverberated through him and he spat another curse as he fell into a pile at her feet. Alice cursed as her feet tangled with his body and then she threw herself backward and flipped over him.
Diur leapt after her and for a moment it looked like she had a chance. Kon watched and hoped as Diur somehow managed to speed up. Then Alice accelerated to the point Kon couldn’t make her out at all.
Diur landed next to him on her rear and she held her stomach as Alice stood over them with a smile on her face and a bit of sweat on her brow. A red flush had crept across her pale cheeks and there was a light in her eyes that wasn’t normally there.
“That wasn’t half bad, I actually had to try for a moment.” Alice said. Diur growled in anger as she stood up.
“There is no possible way to hit you. Your at least a full realm higher than me, and I don’t think he is even begun to cultivate,” Diur pointed a finger at Kon.
“He has, but barely. And you’re right, there’s no way you can possibly hit me.”
“Then the exercise is pointless,” Diur spoke slow and low, a edge of suspicion in her voice.This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Not at all. It’s to teach you to fight against someone you have no chance against. To throw yourself forward when all hope is lost and to continue fighting even when you know you can’t win.”
Diur got quiet at that and her eyes glazed over. Kon grimaced as he remembered her grandfather’s broken body, the iron will that kept him upright and ready to continue fighting.
“Grandfather would have liked you,” Diur finally said. Then she punched Alice in the jaw as hard as she could. The ground tore at her feet as she twisted, the torque of the blow sending chunks of earth away from her. Alice ate the punch and just smiled wider, her head not moving at all.
“Kon, when you watched Diur and me fight, could you track us at all?” Alice asked after a minute. Kon shook his head in negative as Diur shook her hand out.
“That’s because your brain can’t process what’s happening. I would like to have your first network be all about physical enhancement, but we need a few processing runes just so you can function at a higher level.” Alice finished the quick speech by drawing a rune in the dirt.
“This is, To Understand. It’s a powerful rune and you’ll need to be very, very careful when you place it. If you make it broad like the others, your brain is going to melt, okay?” Alice stared into his eyes as she said it.
“To understand. Seems simple,” Kon said.
“That’s the first part. You need to understand what it is you’re seeing. So the words you need to think about have to be related to understanding what your eyes are processing.”
“Alright, I think I can do that.”
“You can do it. But you’re going to think about it for a day to really nail it down. Then we need to find a good rift for you to farm while Diur clears it.”
“Clear the entire rift?” Diur asked, fear and surprise intermingled evenly in her voice.
“Just retrieve the anchor. He did it, you can too,” Alice pointed at Kon and he felt like he should be insulted by that comparison but just shrugged.
“To understand what my eyes see?” Kon thought it over and didn’t like it. It wasn’t clear enough for him. The longer the base statement was, the more apparent it’d be able to be twisted. Diur and Alice were talking more to each other, but Kon drifted off to the side to let his mind churn over the words until he found the ones that resonated more with him.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Alice said suddenly and Kon looked up to see her staring at him with a viscous look in her eyes.
“To ponder?” Kon tried and Alice chuckled darkly.
“Ponder while you sweat.”
Kon and Diur spent the next few hours working out under Alice’s tutelage. The young cultivator took to it, seeming to find solace in the physical activity. Kon stirpped his leathers and tattered jumpsuit till his chest was bare as sweat drenched him. Alice made him try three more times to punch her, each time pushing him further and further until he couldn’t keep going.
Rain had begun to beat down across the forest but their canopy let loose a waterfall and Alice threw him into it after an hour of rest. She claimed it was because he stank, but her belly laugh as he shrieked as ice cold water rushed over him made him think it was for different reasons.
They settled in to sleep and Diur kept close to him as Alice tossed them a few pieces of cooked meat and took the first watch. The Ulmna woman looked exhausted, her limbs limp and her eyes drooped as she sat there.
“Does she train you like this everyday?”
“Basically. Says I’m out of shape and need to get strong,” Kon muttered as he chewed the gamy E-Grade meat. It was overcooked and his jaw ached as he mauled it with vicious grinding bites.
“You are weak? In my clan, you would be a premier student.”
“Really? You’re so much faster than me. And stronger.”
“Obviously. I’m a realm above you. You are fast for a mortal and your stamina is impressive. You ran all day and then trained all night with only one meal? I fear you humans are the monsters we whisper about if you are weak,” Diur said. Kon stared at her, not able to formulate a response. He looked over to his mentor who stood on the edge of the shelter, her back to them.
“Are all humans this strong compared to the rest of the galaxy? Or is she making me a monster?” The thought ricocheted in his mind until exhaustion claimed him and he fell into a dreamless sleep.