[Flashback] Strength in Numbers (Imass)

[Naeya]

Timestamp: Season of Fall, 78th Day, 494 AV – Noon After sliding the front door open, Naeya stepped hesitantly inside the single-story building. The wind rustled her pale blonde hair, plaited into a fishtail braid, as it attempted to wrestle its way into the Sasaran with her, and she turned swiftly to block its entrance. As the dust settled, her attention was captured by the echoing shouts that rose and fell rhythmically throughout the wooden structure. The Tuvya Sasaran was rarely empty, and today that was to her benefit. Naeya had come to the building in search of Imass, the young Akalak boy she had met at the Zhongjie Warren only five days prior. There was a rumour floating around that he had been called to stand trial by combat for crimes against the city - crimes which the Konti knew were committed with a true heart and a just soul. She wanted to apologize for the predicament she’d gotten him into, but, admittedly, she was also looking for an excuse to see him again. If the rumour was true, she expected to find her new friend practicing his skill in unarmed combat and guessed that he would be spending lot of this time training in the Sasaran. She knew he couldn’t afford to lose, because losing meant an admission of guilt. “Are you here to sign up as a student, miss?” an Akalak instructor asked in Tukant, interrupting the young Konti’s reverie. “Oh! No, no.” Naeya shook her head vigorously in response as her cheeks turned pink. “I’ve come in search of someone. A boy named Imass. Dark blue skin, about yea-high…” She stood on the tips of her toes and waved a hand above her head to describe the boy’s height. “Have you seen him?” The instructor nodded and pointed down the nearest hall. “Third training room on the right,” he stated. Naeya slipped out of her low boots and stepped onto the wooden floor with bare feet. She wore a pair of simple brown breeches under a white cotton tunic, choosing to leave her usual long dresses at home for this particular occasion. After pulling back her shoulders and setting her chin, she followed the directions she was given and approached Imass’ assumed location. The Konti girl slid open the door to the third training room and poked her head inside, green eyes searching for that one familiar face. “Imass?” she called out tentatively.

[Imass]

Imass was kneeling on his shins in the small private training room. He was facing an older Akalak instructor who was prostrated in the same position directly opposite of him. Imass was wearing a long white tunic tucked into white pants. His outfit was impeccable, his body was clean, his hair trimmed nicely; Imass just had an overall look of professionalism and neatness.

As soon as Naeya walked inside, Imass turned slightly and motioned her to his side, "Naeya," he said in a whisper, "Kneel in front of the good master just like I am."

Facing the master once more, Imass closed his eyes. There was nothing else to explain to Naeya, for the instructor would carry on the lesson from here on out.

Kneeling on the floor innately uncomfortable, but it was bearable because of the soft material that compromised the ground. The walls were made out of a thin, translucent material. It was possible to see vague shadows on the other side; however it was impossible to see much else. Strangely, this room was dampened from the noises of training Akalak in the main hall. Other than that the whole room was completely bare.

The Akalak that was kneeling in front of the two new friends was wizened and old. There was much experience in his grave face. He had wrinkly, purple skin with long flowing white hair. He was thin, but still had the faint traces of the muscles of his youth hidden under his skin and bones.

The Akalak master spoke after giving Naeya a minute to sit down. His voice was melodic, soft, and almost hypnotizing.

"Welcome Naeya. All you need to do is listening to my every word. Before we begin. Sit in a comfortable position. Relax your muscles from head to toe. You do not need to be on your knees like Imass and I."

The instructor took a deep breath.

"Breath gently... In... And out... Breathe with your stomach, not your chest... Imagine pushing your chest down into your stomach as you breathe...Breath gently...In... out... In ... Out..."

Imass did as the instructor asked. He took in deep breaths imagining water filling up his stomach. He made no noises while breathing; he simply let the air flow through his body. The calm voice of the older Akalak soothed him greatly and allowed him to focus on merely breathing.

"Be present right now and feel the sensation of your body...Let every muscles relax...your muscles are relaxed... Put your mind at rest... your mind is at rest... The air on your skin... Your eyes are open and relaxed... Be present in what is going on at this moment... you forget everything... your attention is at rest... your gaze is soft and fills the whole field of vision... sounds around you appear....and....fade away... persistence mental chatter in a mind causes tension... in your quiet mind the mental chatter fades and even stops... all that remains is a quiet and peaceful awareness...Let's begin now to deepen this experience..."

Imass hung on every word of the instructor. He continued his quiet breathing and his meditation. He let the words of the guided meditation control his every action. When the old Akalak commanded him to rest his muscles, he felt his body slump lower as blood circulated ever slower through his limbs. He opened his eyes and merely looked at the whole room as a whole. He tried not to focus on any one point. Imass continued to breath and tried very little to do anything. He let the soothing voice make his mind fade and his mental chatter disappear. Thoughts of Naeya and her progress entered his mind, but his instructor’s voice drove them away.

Imass was ready to enter into a deeper trance.

[Naeya]

The two Akalak were knelt on the floor, still and peaceful. Silence pervaded the small training room, and as Naeya stepped inside she felt as though she had intruded on a sacred ritual. When Imass turned and instructed her to kneel with him, the thought of refusal did not cross her mind even once. It seemed clear to her that a second interruption would be nothing less than shameful. Soft footsteps took the Konti girl over to Imass’ left side, and she was on her knees a moment later. She glanced sideways at her friend and attempted to imitate his pose. She leaned against her heels with a straight back, and placed her hands palm-down on her thighs. Closing her eyes, she inhaled one short breath. Petch. Naeya shifted awkwardly as the kneeling position immediately began to pain her shins. Scrunching up her face, she tried to push on with open eyes. Another breath… And then more movement. The Akalak instructor began to speak, welcoming her to the training session she’d barged into. She tried to concentrate on his words, but her discomfort must have been clear. In his soft, melodic voice, the instructor gave her permission to release her kneeling position and choose a more comfortable stance. Oh, thank Avalis. She let out a quiet sigh of relief and sat back into a cross-legged position. Her hands rested palms-up on her knees, and her fingers fell loosely inward. Naeya allowed her eyes to close once more, and did her best to concentrate on the instructor’s words. One breath in, one breath out… At first, the young Konti had to consciously focus on breathing from her stomach. She imagined the air as a stream of light and followed its path into and out of her lungs. Her stomach drew in as the flow of air and light entered her body, and pushed outwards as the air was released. The Akalak instructor continued to speak, and Naeya was drawn into a hypnotic spell as the words flowed over her. With each individual breath, she loosened the tension in her muscles just a little more. First her face… then her shoulders… her arms… and then her stomach. She became aware of the hidden stress that penetrated deep into her skin, and slowly released the upper layers bit by bit. One breath in, one breath out. Naeya was directed to open her eyes and she did, slowly filtering the room’s light into her vision. Out of the corner of her eye she could see an outline of Imass’ form, and her mind began to wander. Is he scared for his combat trial? Is he prepared? Was it entirely my fault? Will he win? I hope he wins. And then, I’d like to go swimming in the underground water park after this. It’s so crisp outside… I enjoy autumn, but I miss the sea and warm summer days. When will the first snow come? Will the monsters come with it? Without proper focus, her breathing quickened and she began to lose her connection with the instructor’s voice. As he spoke of mental chatter, however, she pulled herself back in. Naeya refocused on a speck on the wall in front of her, which soon faded out of her vision as her eyelids softened and her gaze glazed over. She did her best to stay present by following her breaths and clearing her mind as soon as a stray thought appeared. She didn’t always succeed, but this time she managed to hold on. One breath in, one breath out.

[Imass]

"Now turn your attention to the sensations of the body... the weight of your body sitting on the floor...feel the rhythmic sensation of breathing... feel the air on your skin... feel the sensation of being here right now..." the instructor continued leading the two adolescents deeper into the meditative trance. His voice was now slightly deeper in order to pierce deeper into the minds of both Naeya and Imass, however it would be impossible for the novices to hear this.

Imass tried his hardest to follow his instructor's directions on point. He continued to breath deep. He was good at breathing already and meditative inhalation was one of his strong points. Albeit meditative breathing was something easily learned, this was one less thing Imass had to worry about during this training. The Akalak boy tried to feel the weight of his body press into the floor, but he only felt his presence on the floor. He tried to feel the air on his skin, but each time he tried his mind wandered again. Imass was trying way too hard to follow the directions of the instructor.

The elder Akalak would continue to train these youngster though. He knew it would be very difficult for them to completely detach, "These sensations bring you to this present moment... be awake and alert... eyes remain open and relaxed... your eyes remain still... your eyes do not wander... notice everything in your whole field of vision at the same time... see everything, but focus on nothing... as your eyes wander to any specific point in the room, blink once to unfocused your vision... if you focus on a thought, return to the experience of the whole field..."

Although the would-be-warrior's mind was not racing, it was far from perfect and absolute quietness. He couldn't help trying to sneak a look at Naeya who was sitting next to him. When this happened, he tried not to think about it and he blinked slowly to reset his vision. This technique worked for a few seconds at a time, but not much longer. Having complete vision of the room actually began to hurt his eyes. For the short amount of time he was able to look with total vision, he felt great, but it quickly became too much to bare; his vision became burly and his temples became uncomfortable. Imass' thoughts always returned to the instructor's words though. They were the foundation for the whole experience.

It seemed as if the instructor knew exactly what Imass was thinking because he began to address the issues that the children were having, "If you focus on a thought think of your body sitting here... blink to reset your vision... your attention becomes steady as it sees the whole field... remain conscious and aware... notice the sounds around you... sounds come to you without any effort to you on any part... sounds appear, linger for a while, then simply fade away... the sounds just fade away and nothing needs to be done... a thought may arise in the mind... it lingers for a while then simply fades... moments of quiet appear may appear when there is no thought at all... allow the sensation of a quiet mind to remain and grow larger..."

As random clattering thoughts entered Imass' brain he turned his attention back to the room and everything around him. He tried to think of what was going on during the present time. The problem was that the moment he tried to abandon this random thought, the thought of actually trying to let them go entered his mind. This would in turn make him think of his surroundings and what the instructor was speaking. It was only then, for a few seconds he would achieve this state of awareness, but ultimately it leads him back to another thought. It was a circle that he was desperately trying to escape. The more he tried though, the harder it got, and eventually he stopped trying. When he stopped trying this actually allowed him to have a quiet mind and awareness, but the moment this happened another thought entered his mind.

Meditation was not as easy as it seems and the instructor knew that so he explained the Naeya and Imass how to make thoughts leave the mind, "As you are sitting here you may forget and become attached to a thought... let the thought go and rest again in the quiet mind... you will notice a cycle of forgetting and remembering, it will happen again and again, becoming forgetful as the attention attaches to thoughts, then remembering again and resting in a quiet mind... a quiet mind restores balance to your mind, body, and life... your inner environment and the world around responds anew to a quiet mind... along with this new feeling of a quiet mind, observe a feeling of gratitude... gratitude develops receptivity and deepens this experience..."


That was the key! Once he achieved a quiet mind, Imass needed to have gratitude and thanks. If that was the thought that entered his mind, then he would be able to minimize the mental clatter. Instead of several thoughts leading to a few seconds of bliss, only one or two thoughts would lead to that moment of living the present. That moment of harmony. Despite having realized this, Imass was having trouble actually executing it. So he returned back to his original problem. He was making progress though.

The Akalak warrior continued to breathe deeply and waited for the next instructions.

[Naeya]

Naeya's breathing was nowhere near rhythmical. Her breaths followed a pattern. Despite trying to quiet her mind by imagining empty space, the Konti girl would inevitably become distracted by a wandering thought. This thought would steal her focus and attention for several seconds, and her breathing would become quicker and more shallow. Then, realizing her mistake, she would have to force herself to concentrate once more on the instructor and her breaths would become exaggeratedly long. The repetition prevailed, but there was no flow to be found. The older Akalak pushed forward. He instructed the two teenagers to become more alert, so Naeya blinked twice in order to refocus. The spot she had been staring at melted into the rest of the wall, and she promptly became aware of the room's larger presence. By refocusing her vision, however, her surroundings were remembered and her gaze once again snuck over to her new friend. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips when she spotted Imass glance her way at the same moment. She had expected him to be far less distracted than herself, and the sight of him looking over calmed the anxiety she felt over her difficulties with the exercise. Unfortunately, that sly peek also resulted in the quickening of her breath. Aw, come on Nae. What did the instructor just say? Something about your eyes not wandering... She blushed and turned her green eyes forward once more. She was determined to follow the meditation properly, even if she hadn't visited the Sasaran with the intention of taking lessons. As the instructor spoke of noticing the sounds around her, Naeya began to listen and breathe. First, the melodic undertones of the older Akalak's voice caught her attention. Then, the hum of a room that was close to silence. Finally, and very faintly, she could hear the shouts of students practicing in other areas of the building. She did her best to let it all fade away into the background, leaving only herself and her soft breaths. Naeya found the Akalak's description of a quiet mind rather appealing. It was often so tiring to be oversaturated with hopes, worries, and fears. At this point, however, emptying her mind was far more of a dream than a reality. Stray thoughts continued to wander in, but she tried to avoid the judgement that popped up when they arrived. She accepted the thoughts on her inhale, but on her exhale she let them go. Catch and release.

[Imass]

The instructor paused his guided meditation and allowed for the two to continue breathing quietly for some time.

Regardless of Imass' struggle to obtain a quiet mind, he was still much more aware and calm than earlier. If anything at least he had forgotten about the trial that was about to ensue for his crimes against the city. At least now he was focusing on something good.

He felt the air enter his stomach like a torrential flood of water. He felt his abdomen expand as his lungs pushed down with air. After getting guided through almost twenty minutes of meditation, the blue skinned boy was already feeling more air flow. His nostrils were wide and clear. Every last portion of his chest filled with air. Blood was pumping, his mind was lightened and his temples felt as light as a feather.

The instructor stood to his feet and motioned the two students. Imass leaned back onto his heels and stood quickly. He felt all the blood rush to his head; it felt absolutely great. Despite not really achieving what the instructor wanted, Imass still had quieted his mind somewhat. It was a huge relief.

The Akalak was genuinely smiling now. He looked Neaya in the eyes and peered undauntedly into her mind; the very mind they were exercising now. Imass took a deep breath and widened his smile. She was worth it, Imass decided.

The instructor continued his lesson, "Your mind is a quiet mind... you are breathing deeply and rhythmically... you are not forcing your breathing... you only observe your breathing...Now clasp your hands over your head and point up..."

The old Akalak trainer interlocked all his fingers except for his index fingers, which he kept straight and pointed. He then moved his hands over the top of his head.

"Take a deep breath in... breathes out... Take a deep breath in... Breath out all the air in our body... then stretch like this..." The instructor exhaled loudly then leaned his upper body to his right. He tried to bring his right shoulder down to his hip as far as possible. His index fingers were pointed at forty-five degree angle to the floor. He did not move his legs at all they were completely straight. He was leaning at the hip.

When he stretched as far as he could he gave the two more instructions, "Look up at the ceiling... twist your body..." With his body leaned all the way to the right, the instructor brought his right shoulder up and twisted his shoulders and chest for maximum stretching. He held it for several second then exhaled.

"You should feel the stretch all over on your side. By exhaling you will tuck your stomach in and allow for even more stretching. It is important that you control your breathing here..."

The instructor proceeded to coach Neaya through the stretch. Imass already knew what to do, so he continued with the exercise.

[Naeya]

The Akalak instructor's voice slowed, quieted, and then trailed off, leaving Naeya to meditate on her own. In the silence that followed, she became intently aware of the breaths that both filled and emptied her lungs. These breaths seemed deafening in comparison to Imass', but she continued on regardless. Several long moments passed before the older Akalak rose from his kneeling position. While Imass stood quickly, Naeya took half a chime to inhale deeply. This final breath indicated the finality of the meditation. It signified closure and forgiveness. It allowed the Konti to forgive her own inability to completely release the erratic thoughts from her tightly-wound mind, and to move forward. She gently rolled her neck from left to right, and pushed herself onto her feet. Her muscles felt stiff from the twenty chimes spent in a seated position, and Naeya absent-mindedly began to massage out a knot in her upper back. As she did, her gaze turned upwards to Imass. His height eclipsed hers, but the smile on his face was anything but intimidating. Her eyes met his, and she looked searchingly into their golden depths. She wanted, nay, needed, to know if he was vexed with her for getting him in trouble. Slender eyebrows narrowed in concern. The question was clear in her mind, and she hoped it translated into her countenance. A pause. A breath. And then a broadened grin. The message was plain: they were going to be okay. Imass' grin was returned with a shy smile of her own before she turned back to the instructor. She stood facing the front of the room with her feet shoulder-width apart and her hands dropped loosely by her sides. She inhaled and exhaled at the older Akalak's words, and interlocked her fingers above her head in imitation of his stance. She too leaned to her right, though her flexibility was not nearly as impressive as the instructor's. The stretch challenged and pulled at the muscles along her left side, and she felt herself struggling when asked to twist. The breaths came more raggedly than during her meditation, though she did her best to keep them under control. After a chime, the man instructed her to release the stretch and move back towards the center. She inhaled, and followed him back to standing position. Then, to the left side. The stretch was repeated, and she felt the same tugging at her muscles on the opposing half of her body. Twist. Hold. Release. Naeya was then directed to sweep her arms towards the ceiling, and then back towards the ground while she hinged forward at her hips. The Konti made an effort to keep her back straight as she reached down to her toes. She could feel the stretch in her calf muscles, and tried to breathe into it to lessen the ache. The instructor led her through several more movements with the intent of loosening her muscles. Her legs, hips, core, and shoulders were all targeted, and the release came gladly. She couldn't remember the last time she'd allowed the tension in her body to dissipate so thoroughly. When the stretches finally ended, the Akalak clasped his hands together and gave the two students a wizened smile. "Shall we begin the combat practice?" At these words, Naeya glanced nervously over to Imass. Combat practice? Oh, Avalis. What have I gotten myself into?

[Imass]

The mediation and stretching continued.

As the Konti and Akalak pair stood together, the two’s gaze locked for a few moment s of intense introspection, followed by solidarity; there was now an unspoken connection made between them. There was a genuine look of worry in Naeya’s face which struck a chord with Imass. He smiled even more brightly than ever and tried to think positive, reassuring thoughts that the instructor had just instilled in his mind. Imass knew that deep down he would never ever blame Naeya for what happened. She did nothing and hopefully his smile would translate these emotions to her.

Imass twisted his torso again, while staring at the ceiling. He held the stretch for a moment, until his body cracked in delight. Waves of pains went through his body, but it relieved tension more than torture. It was like the satisfaction of removing a scab and eating it. The blue boy inhaled on his way back up. The blood was flowing all across his sides, hips, and back. He took several deep full breaths and got ready to stretch backwards.

The Akalak boy let thoughts enter his mind and his conscience trailed off while stretching. The meditative trance was still affecting his mind, but he was no longer trying to keep his mind quiet. Now he was contemplating on the trial that lay ahead. He would not lose. He could not lose. He would not let his father down, or his new friend Naeya. He would come through for them and show them he could be a loyal and honorable Akalak. In a way, Imass was longing to grow up. He wanted to be tall and strong and chivalrous. It was imperative he won the duel for the honor of his house.

Imass took a deep breath and exhaled. He leaned backward as far as his body could take him. He tightened his abs and let his core hold up his arched back. There was another loud pop as his chest cracked from stretching. On the instructor’s orders, he rose back inhaling as he went up. It almost felt orgasmic; blood surged through his now loosened muscles and relaxed him.

Exhaling again, he brought his hands from over his head down to his toes. He tightened his stomach as much as possible so he could get the best possible stretch. This time nothing popped, but he could feel the fire of blood rush through his hamstrings and calves. Inhaling again, he stood up at the instructors call.

Imass looked over at Naeya again as she stretched. She was a strong woman. Even though she was new at all this stuff, she seemed to be doing surprisingly well, especially for a female. This made Imass smile even more. If the Konti was to be strong, then he would do. The blue warrior closed his eyes, breathing deep, then continued stretching until eventually the instructor had enough and ordered for combat training to start.

Imass nodded, “Yes, Ensei , let’s start!” The boy addressed the instructor by the traditional Akalak warrior slang term to denote a teacher.

“An warrior is as strong as a mountain,” the wizened instructor said calmly. He crouched down into a fighting stance. His feet where heavy on the floor and his movements made him seem like pure lead. Imass copied him. He felt the weight of his body out and dispersed it evenly throughout his body. He made sure to center his gravity as low as possible.

The instructor walked over to Naeya and tried to help her into a stance, “Stand with you feet out… yes good… now sit down in your stance… don’t let me push you over…” The old Akalak tapped Naeya on the shoulders over and over until she could stand perfectly still without moving. Imass looked as the girl struggled, but he believed in her. He hoped that the instructor would demonstrate on him to make Naeya feel better.

Imass made eye contact with the instructor and pleaded with unspoken words to demonstrate on him. The instructor smirked, “Naeya, try pushing Imass with all your might!”

[Naeya]

"Ehm, yes... Ensei. Let's start." Naeya's words mirrored her friend's, but they sounded far more hesitant. Despite growing up in Riverfall and being surrounded by a culture of warriors, she had very little familiarity with the actual practice of unarmed combat. Her youth had been different from that of her Akalak peers. She was not expected, as they were, to pass the Rites of Trial and Passage, and she was not yet one of the Kuvan. Sure, Kobalt had recently been trying to introduce the practice to her, but she usually cited her piquing interest in jewelcrafting as being a more favourable way to spend her time. He'll be thrilled to know that Imass succeeded where he could not, she thought dryly, glancing over at the young Akalak. As Naeya watched her friend's enthusiasm with a small smile, a new thought popped into her head and she found herself sizing him up for the first time. The instructor doesn't expect us to practice fighting each other... does he? She was given no time to contemplate this new possibility, however, as the older Akalak had begun to speak. He'd shifted himself into what looked like a fighting pose, and seemed to expect his young students to do the same. Imass seemed to be right at home in the stance, but Naeya stood there for a moment with a look of uncertainty on her face. Okay, legs apart... The Konti stepped her left foot a few inches to the side so that her feet were spread the same width as her shoulders. She moved to bend her knees, but a quick peek at Imass showed her that she was still not in the expected position. The instructor had apparently noticed this as well, and walked over to her side in order to make the proper corrections. Naeya did her best to follow the older Akalak's more personal instructions. She adjusted her right leg so that it was slightly behind her core, and kept her left leg at the front. When she was told to sit down in her stance, she bent her knees while keeping her back as straight as she could manage. Before she could become too pleased with herself, though, the instructor began to push. At his first push, she stumbled out of the stance with little effort on the Akalak's part. He allowed her a moment to collect herself (though she could do little about her reddening cheeks) and return to her original position. He pushed once more, and again she stumbled forward. And again. And again. The more the instructor tapped her on the shoulder, however, the more determined Naeya became. Her jaw was set in a resolute line, and her brow was furrowed in concentration. Each time he pushed, she made a new adjustment. First, she tried to direct more strength towards her core by tightening her abs and setting her shoulders. When she found that her legs still felt unstable, she tried to keep her knees loose and shifted some of the core strength to her glutes and thighs. After several more taps on the instructor's part and tweak's on Naeya's, he finally seemed relatively satisfied with her progress after finding that she'd barely moved during his last push. His attention then turned to Imass, who he instructed Naeya to push over. Finally! she thought, grinning slightly. She wasn't sure she would be strong enough to move her mountain of a friend, but it was a relief not to have all of the attention on herself. Besides, it really was his combat training. He'd just tricked her into joining. Several short steps took Naeya to her friend's side. She paused before following the instructions given to her and leaned in towards Imass. "I can't believe you got me into this," she murmured, shooting him a teasing glare. A wicked glint in her eyes and a mischievous smile soon followed. The Konti took a half-step back and gathered her strength. After giving Imass a wink, she reached out in a burst of motion and shoved her arms towards his chest. The entire - and possibly insignificant - weight of her small body was behind the push, and she hoped to at least see a muscle shift if not make him stumble backwards (despite knowing deep down that it was possible he wouldn't even flinch).

[Imass]

Naeya teased Imass as she stepped towards him. The boy just gave the Konti a raised eyebrow. He was taking this training serious, so his expression was almost comically extreme, yet gentle with the innocence of his youth. There was no aggressiveness in the expression, just shock.

Suddenly his eyes where back on the instructor as he gave the final instructions. It was time for Naeya to push him. Taking several big deep breaths Imass prepared himself. He reviews the lesson in his mind to make sure he had the technique down, Still as a mountain. Breathe from the stomach deep. Let out the air and tighten your abs. Trust the maiden. Filling up his stomach with dense hot air, he waited for Naeya to approach. He bent down lower and stuck his feet in the ground as he was taught. He did not move a muscle.

When the Konti girl pushed, Imass imagined his whole body pushing against the floor, while trusting his hips forward. He wasn't moving his muscles, but he had them tensed up and "pushing" in that direction. He visualized it in his mind through words. As Naeya came in, he exhaled slowly and tightened his abs even more. Although he didn't realize it, in this position he had leverage over her. His strength was worth pound for pound twice as much as Naeya's running position.

This was the strength of the mountain technique. Naeya tried maybe twice more to push Imass down but not once did he move his feet. He moved his hips a little, but not his position. The instructor noted to Imass the areas he needed to improve on the technique too; where to distribute your body weight on the foot and how trust the hips without moving them even the slightest. Imass was ready to push forward immediately and could only achieve several inches of stillness at contact. He still had a lot of work to do on his technique.

"Enough Naeya!" the Instructor said after three pushes, "See how Imass's stance stayed the same despite being driven back? This is the stance you want to be in at all times whilst fighting. The Mountain stance. The enemy will not knock you down. It requires a clear mind and a strong core. In order to knock down an enemy using the mountain techniques, you will need to use the same techniques. Plus they will make your hips strong for child bearing when you are older."

Imass looked away from Naeya blushing at the mention of children. It was embarrassing to think about it. The adults talked about it all the time, but Imass never understood. He didn't want to look at Naeya.

The instructor seemed to not notice the tender social interactions of the children though and he continued right on!

"Now Naeya plant your feet on the floor. Now take deep breaths like before...Yes...Yes... Now hold your fists at your sides like this... good, wait, no, good.... Now breathe into your stomach. Fill up your stomach like a balloon. Fill it," Here the instructor put his hands up to tap her, "Exhale fully, but don't let me knock you down," The instructor tapped her just strong enough to move her five inches at the most. It wasn't meant to knock her down or move her, but to teach her what muscles to use.

The continued the exercise for a while longer. Imass pushed her gently over and over. They review the trusting techniques with her; dropping the knees, trusting upwards, and spreading the legs out backwards into a V. Yeah they went over that. It was the first step to gaining a strong core. Her abs would be hurting just like Imass', but probably even more!

Finally, the session came to a close and both kids found themselves sitting sweaty on the floor as the master began to make his exit. He left them with only one thing, "Come back again Naeya, and remember training with each other, competing with each other is where we draw strength from in Riverfall. Naeya... Imass... you best learn this now: we draw strength from each other... that is how we survived the cataclysm five centuries ago... that is why we are the best warriors and Konti are the strongest child bearers, " Imass blushed almost laughed, " Strength in numbers!"