Fes and Hes both looked at me with trepidation. What had happened to this boy? He sees violence as necessary!
I could tell from the looks they were giving me that I had to explain or they might never stop fearing me, thinking I'm just a monster in a man's skin. "He threatened to whip me when he arrived after I had just got my ass beat by the sergeant for losing control of my temper and using my fire mana against him. I couldn't even keep my eyes open"
I tried to defend myself as looks of horror appeared on both their faces when I told them that I had "lost control" and I had "attacked the sergeant". Fes and Hes both looked at each other and in silent agreement decided to never piss me off.
After I had completed the tour a couple of hours before supper I headed to the training grounds to watch some senior trainees practice unarmed combat with each other I sent Fes and Hes back to get settled in the bunkhouse. when I arrived I went and sat on benches that dotted the area around the training grounds and focused on trying to learn the simple yet effective forms. They were simple in that everyone could learn to use them, but that didn't make it weak, it was a military unarmed combat style after all.
I Stood up and headed to an empty training square and slowly tried to mimic the forms I saw the seniors using. I Practiced the first form as best I could while keeping the image of what they looked like and how they moved into the ready position and the first hip movement up to the way the shoulder started to move forward while twisting the elbow and aligning the wrist for maximum power in a small but powerful jab forward.
I had closed my eyes while visualizing and performing each step meticulously when my hand shot out as fast as I could in the same jab the soldiers were training. This was similar to what Reed had taught me for a few weeks in what felt like a lifetime ago.
As my fist shot out it made contact with Sergeant Kace's open palm I opened my eyes in surprise as Kace started to talk.
"You have a pretty decent form for a trainee, who taught you?" he asked as he released my hand and took a step back, and with a wave of his hand told me to continue what I was doing.
"sir" I responded as I went back to the beginning of the form and started to explain. "In my village, I was best friends with a guards boy, and as he was taught by his dad he tried to impart me with some of his teachings and we would spar regularly," I said as I reset the form once again starting from the First step all the way to the jab that came out at the end in a slow but measured speed. Doing the form properly was better than doing it quickly Reed had informed me that first day when I tried to rush through the forms without actually learning them and I held to that training philosophy as often as I could.
"Good, good," he said before going to the bench and looked at me before he started to explain the finer points top the first form to me as I slowly stood and practiced while paying as much attention as I could when I was shifting my form just slightly at his observations and advice. "A little tidbit of advice for you Bruni," he said seriously after I finished the form again causing me to stop and look at him expectantly, "Once the official training has started, you need to get along with everyone in your bunkhouse, the more you fight each other the worse you will do. I know I haven't made it any easier to get along with Richard for you, but you will all need each other to along or else the next 4 months will be hell not just for them but for you as well." he said before he got up and walked away leaving me disconcerted as to what the training would be like to force us all to work together. I could already tell that Richard would rather rip his own fingernails off than cooperate with me or anyone else for that matter.
Kace told me during training the previous day that the boy had been ordered by his father to join this training outpost on the threat of disownment if he didn't arrive in time to join this season. Richard was a spoiled rotten bastard, yes, but he also was a young man that had been given no choice in the matter and was ordered to join as a show of support from his father to the war effort.
This war wouldn't be fought by the old-established ruling members of house no, it would be fought with sons and daughters of said houses, used as pawns in the great game known as politics.
Not only did I have to sort out my own issues, but I also had to make nice with a noble son who had threatened to whip me bloody? This wouldn't be easy and I don't think I even want to at this point regardless of the tips the sergeant gave me, I still hated the brat and would enjoy every minute of his suffering even if it meant I had to suffer as much as him it didn't matter to me, suffering was like an old friend at this point.