(( I'm an avid MMA guy if you don't know. I'm drawing from some of that experience for a little something different for Logan. Something a little humbling, I do hope he survives it well. Enjoy. ))
PART I
I walked into the unmarked storefront, not sure what to expect. There was a slight jingle at the door signaling my arrival, but no faces turned to greet me. In the center of the room was a raised quadrant of flooring, padded. Thirty or so people, probably students grappled on the ground. Inches gained by effort were used to varying degree's. A hand placed here a foot there and an advantage gained. They wore no ceremonial garb. Just simple workout clothes, a few wore more traditional outfits, those seemed to suffer the worst. Some barely broke a sweat, others were coated in it. Lean muscles pushed and pulled. A spectacle to watch.
You see, I had some experience with the martial arts before, but this was rumored to be the best. -Just as a forewarning, I promised my training partner I would not reveal the location, but that I was going to speak about my experiences here.-
I sat on the set of bleachers overlooking the quad of mats, watching the movement on the floor. Towards the back of this room there was a workout and lifting area, mostly with resistance bands, free weights, a suspended bar with straps hanging off of it and a chalk board, scrawled with names I couldn't make out from this angle, what could have been names and times or reps scrawled over the surface. No fancy equipment, just old, solid.
Sets of doors led further into the back, no movement if there was anything back there. Dressing rooms I guessed.
There were no visible instructors, or at east nobody to greet me, so I had no choice but to wait. So I did, an hour passed… mind you it wasn't an hour wasted, I studied the movements on the mat, seeing various Minmatar, Amarr, Gallente, Caldari grappling moves plied, the quiet instructions of partners. Minute adjustments were made, and the drills and effort continued.
I was joined by a thin Siebestor entering through the front door and heading behind the small desk, a terminal and phone resting to his side. He was a few years older than me, his eyes slid over me dispassionately before waving me over. His shirt was a simple black, with tight white pants flexing with the movements of his muscled legs. He lounged in the chair with the ease of hours of practice.
"Here to learn or watch clone-boy?" He smirked up at me, obviously intending to be insulting, but his words were terribly weak after months of banter with other capsuleers. Perhaps he was just taking my measure. Self-consciously I could feel the pod jacks along my spine and back of my neck, remembered for just a second.
"Learn." I met his gaze, unflinching, but not impolite. He just nodded, the smirk did not leave his face. He looked down, filling out something on the terminal in front of him, mumbling something under his breath. I caught the last few words. "… we'll see about that."
His tone, even to himself was conversational, as if stating a fact, not really challenging, but just something he saw too often. He handed me a small thumb print device, motioning for my finger. I touched the device, and a throat cleared behind me.
I turned, a young man stood, hands clasped behind his back man, about my age, or rather, what would have been my age were I not a repeated clone of myself from when I was in my 20's stood there.
His black hair was close cut, deep brown eyes seeming to assess me down to the core instantly, calculating. He smiled and nodded towards me speaking in slightly accented Siebestor common, clear but the accent lingered. I caught a quick glance of a frowning woman, his recent sparring partner, disappearing into the back.
He extended his hand to me welcoming, "My name is Cadu, this is my school." He looked me up and down again…
"Of course we will ask you to remove your piercings, and your hair, well I will assume you know what to do with that. A capsuleer correct?" I nodded, suddenly conscious of my black mohawk bobbing, stupidly, I thought now, above me.
"Ah, good. Usually easy to pick out with all that metal in your back…" He nodded, calculating again. "Implanted… or rather, combat enhancements? Nanite blood? Steel muscles? built in weapons?" I stared for a moment, not often were those things so boldly asked. I felt no reason to lie, or conceal.
"A few enhancements, some nanite reserves in my blood, no replacement muscles on this clone, my piercings can easily be removed." I smiled at him, the man behind me made a motion and we moved off towards the back doors. He spoke over his shoulder.
"Good." He nodded, once, explaining, "I have some students that insist on the combat enhancements, replacement muscles, enhanced reflexes. Ever since their inclusion into the blood-sport they call fighting these days, it's the only way to compete. I would have had to pair you up against one of them, and none are ready… yet."
I heard a small chuckle from behind me in agreement to the last statement, but I didn't turn back around I just smiled as well, seemingly outside of the small joke. Cadu looked me over again and then nodded. "I'll have to keep an eye on you, you will be her first student."
I interrupted, "First student? You mean first capsuleer?"
Laughing again he turned away from me, leading me with a small motion of his arm to follow. "Oh, well without a doubt first capsuleer, I have trained the only other one. Students of this school are rare. A few ground rules," He started without waiting.
"Keep your fingernails trimmed and filed, always come in the same body unless you can't avoid it. Train two to three hours a day, twice a week before trying to do more, from the looks of you, it will take time to build up into that much." I felt a little color enter my cheeks. Nobody likes to be talked to like a lump of fat, I opened my mouth to protest, but didn't get the chance. "Leave all the fighting idea's you have at the door. Untrained is dangerous, untrained and full of shit idea's from holoreels, twice as dangerous."
Clearing my throat caught his attention for a moment, "And if I can't make it twice a week, or for that long each time?" He arched a brow, looking over his shoulder and then smiled, opening the single door into the back for me. "I trust you'll make it work."
There was iron in his voice, it didn't allow for argument. I stepped in and took stock of the room, a smallish dressing room the right, front wall of the dressing rooms were littered with workout gear. The mats to the left, two, each about six foot square. I turned to the mats and Cadu handed me a set of workout clothes, roughly my size and he nodded towards the changing rooms.
He nodded at the room again, sliding the door shut behind him. "Go, we will see what we have to work with."
End of PART I
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Topic: Minmatar Mixed Martial Arts (3MA) (Read 873 times)