12:00 PM, in the cafeteria of the 1st Academy; Jyorta, along with his two friends sat around a table meant for three, sharing and eating their lunch.
"I heard a piece of bad news," Pausing for a second while eating, Jyorta sported a saddened expression, "Only top 3 from the 11th and 12th standard are allowed to personally meet Rhachis Ancestor Strongest, not us."
"Why?" The girl, Laila shouted, failing to control her voice.
"Where did you even get this information from?" The boy, George said, looking calmer than Laila.
"Obviously from the principal," Jyorta said, "I had gone to meet my sister but found the principal talking to a couple of teachers in her classroom. When I asked about where I could find my sister, she said all the students of her class were undergoing a health check-up in the infirmary."
"I really wanted to meet Rachis Ancestor Strongest in person." Laila lamented.
The trio completed their lunch in silence, washing their hands in a nearby washbasin and heading towards the terrace to pass the time. Entering a lift, Jyorta pressed the button for the terrace, which had the symbol of the Sun.
Before the lift door closed, a bunch of older students entered, cramping the space inside. Pushing Laila to one corner, Jyorta and George stood before her, preventing the bigger framed students from squashing her. After some time, followed by a sound, the lift doors opened, revealing an open space.
The ground was fully covered with grass, neatly trimmed to prevent them from hindering movement while also acting as a cushion. Stepping out of the lift, the trio removed their shoes, setting it aside. They walked on the grass with their bare feet, relishing in the soft experience filled with the scent of nature.
The older students who accompanied them immediately ran towards one corner of the terrace, halting before a rack filled with soccer boots. They removed their shoes and changed into the soccer boots. Behind the rack was a large soccer field with two goal posts occupying its two ends.
To their right was a wide sprawling net that formed into a dome. Within it, the trio spotted students playing cricket, cheering after every boundary the batsman scored. Next to them were students playing tennis, complaining about the wind every time the tennis ball performed a swing in the air.
"The air here feels fresh," Laila exclaimed, taking a deep breath of the refreshing air, her face brightening up with delight. She then lay flat on the grass, her limbs spread wide, a content expression plastered across her face. Jyorta lay on her right while George occupied the space on her left.
"Next period we have PT. I heard the PT teacher will teach us about martial arts. I am quite excited!" George said, clenching his palm into a fist and punching it at the sky.
…
1:05 PM, 30 students, dressed in tracksuits meant for exercise stood before a man with a hulking frame. The man stood in silence, carefully etching the face of each student into his memory. Seeing their PT teacher whose arms were twice thicker than their thighs, the students stood in silence, not daring to show even the slightest mischief.
"From today onwards, I will be teaching you the basics of martial arts. Three prime requirements lay the foundation for a good martial artist: stamina, flexibility, and foresight. You might wonder why I don't mention strength and speed, but we won't be focusing on them at present. Only students from 11th standard onwards will undergo strength and stamina training." The PT teacher's thunderous voice echoed through the surroundings, boring into the heads of the students, ensuring that they would never forget it.
"The simplest of the three is stamina training. It is the most mundane but prime necessity for any martial art. The first is a breathing technique. As long as you know how to breathe properly, you can minimise a lot of effort into executing martial techniques. Breathing and stances are the vital components of stamina training." The PT teacher said, motioning for everyone to sit on the grass.
The PT teacher sat on an elevated platform, a stool he had brought along, wide enough to seat his hulking frame. He sat on it, keeping his spine straight, facing up; his arms were relaxed while his stomach was tightened. The students followed his instructions, mimicking his posture. Many of them made mistakes, prompting the PT teacher to get up and patiently correct them.
Two hours later, the PT teacher said, "That will be all for today. Remember to practice these breathing techniques at home. Tell me if you feel a stuffy sensation."
After the class dispersed, the PT teacher walked towards a different location on the terrace, another class silently stood here, maintain minimum silence, only engaging in muffled discussions. After seeing him, the students turned silent. The PT teacher once again repeated the same content he had said for the past two hours; this was the repetitive life of a teacher.
"I never knew martial art classes were so boring. I thought I would finally be able to crush rocks and jump through buildings." George said, letting out a sigh of disappointment. He was beaten up by the PT teacher when he unconsciously snored during the breathing session.
"Thankfully, I controlled myself to stay awake. But, as you said, it really was boring," Laila said. Suddenly, her eyes lit up with excitement as she held the hands of George and the silent Jyorta, "I bought a new video game; do you guys want to play?"
"Which game?" Jyorta asked with curiosity. He had plenty of games in his house, though, he hardly enjoyed them because his sister always steamrolled him, irrespective of the game. Always losing took away his fun of games, a reason why he refused to play them. Though, his sister had enough methods to force him to play, every single time.
"Dungeon Rush; it is a hack and slash game with multiplayer mode," Laila said. She had chanced upon this game when she was browsing the game store with her parents the day before. Watching its trailer spiked her interest so she immediately bought it. Reaching home and playing it once, she immediately fell in love with the game mechanics.
"If my parents allow, I'll come," George said. Jyorta echoed in agreement. Their class hours began from 9:30 AM and concluded by 3:00 PM. So they were free to do as they pleased after that, but they couldn't be spotted in the school premises.
The trio then walked back to their class, picked up their school bags, and walked towards a corridor where the sign of 'Exit' was affixed. Beyond it, they could see many inspection gates where rows of students passed through after scanning their IDs. Inching forwards through the slightly long queue, it was finally Jyorta's turn.
The gate opened as he swiped his ID, allowing his entry when a security guard walked out of a nearby booth, motioning for his attention. When Jyorta approached the security guard, inquiring for the reason, he saw the security guard press a transceiver on his left ear, silently waiting for a couple of seconds to receive a reply.
After he received a reply, he turned to Jyorta, "Your homeroom teacher will come for you." The security guard didn't say anything afterward and just silently stood beside him. Soon, George and Laila walked out of the screening, running towards him after noticing a security guard standing beside him.
Soon, a plump lady rushed towards them, using a handkerchief to wipe the sweat covering her forehead, short of breath. After seeing Jyorta, she heaved a sigh of relief, taking a moment to catch her breath.
"Jyorta, your father informed me that he and your mother had to urgently leave for some important matters. Your sister has just finished her Induction, making her unable to return home for the day. So, he instructed me to safely send you to the Eagle residence." The homeroom teacher noticed George, her eyes beaming with happiness, "Since George is with you, it makes things easier."
"Why can't sister come home?" Jyorta questioned. He could accept his parents going out since it wasn't the first time it occurred. There had been many precedents, but it was the first time for his sister, making him worry. He didn't know what the word 'Induction' signified.
"As I said, she had just completed her Induction…" The homeroom teacher continued with slight irritation when she realised that children at Jyorta's age weren't privy of such stuff. Only after reaching 11th standard would they be privy of such knowledge. It was also a crime, as dictated by the military, to teach children about such matters before they are old enough.
It took some time before she could barely convince him with made-up reasons. George then proposed for the three of them to stay the night at Laila's house, so she had to make a call to Mr. Bone and seek his permission.
Taking the metro, the teacher, and the three students reached Laila's house. There, they changed into pyjamas Laila's parents had taken out—loose garments that belonged to Laila. The homeroom teacher advised George and Jyorta to avoid troubling Laila's parents before she bade them farewell.
"I am Princess White." Holding the ends of a frock, George made a cursory bow. His hair tied up into a ponytail, a wig attached to make it realistic, and thick red lipstick haphazardly smeared across his lips.
"And, I am princess Yellow." Jyorta mimicked his actions. He wore a wig that had long hair, reaching his hips. The lipstick smeared on his lips reached till his nose, painting a comical look. But, due to him possessing some feminine features, he looked better suited for the role than George.
"My handsome prince, can we play Dungeon Rush now?" George asked, still in his role-play. Laila, dressed in a set of loose-fitting suit looked at George and Jyorta, a bright smile etched on her face. She picked up a plastic rose from nearby and placed it in her shirt pocket, trying to appear like a refined gentleman.
"One hour, we can play the game after an hour." She said, refusing to conclude such fun activities. After a long banter, the trio sat in their living room, each with a console in their hands, immersed into the game. George and Laila experienced the shock of their lives. They got steamrolled by Jyorta, mercilessly.
After winning for the nth time, Jyorta flashed them an arrogant look. He looked at the ceiling of the room and heaved a forlorn sigh as if none could contest with him. "It is lonely at the top."
Late into the night, when Jyorta was fast asleep, the blue soul took charge, going through the day's memories by trying to recollect them, using various keywords to jolt the brain. Finally, accessing the part of the memories where the PT instructor taught them breathing exercises, Kaushik fell into deep thought, finding them familiar for some reason.
'Yoga?' He thought, trying to jolt other memories related to the afternoon exercise.