It was Monday, a new week had begun. It was afternoon after classes and my siblings met in the old library with Ciella, Arlene, Mitsuki and Concordia.
"Are we going to the second floor to train as usual?" Ciella asked Arlene.
"No, not today. At the very least you've acquired the basic theoretical knowledge needed to survive as a Dream Knight. From now on, we're entering a new phase of your training programme, combat training" Arlene said seriously.
Ciella gulped.
"Combat training?" she asked.
"We're going to help you figure out the sort of combat style that best suits you. If you intend to become a Dream Knight even for the purposes of support, you should at least learn some techniques for self-defense in case you find yourself in a situation where your allies can't help you" Arlene said.
"How will we do that?" Ciella asked.
"We'll start with the basics. Raising your physical strength, your speed and your stamina" Arlene said.
"Arlene, this isn't the sort of thing that can be accomplished by relying solely on strict theoretical rules. Besides, I think I have a better training module in mind" Concordia said with a smirk.
"What do you mean?" Arlene asked.
"Different people have different body types and by implication different styles of training and combat suited to them. Some rely on brute force, others on their natural speed and some on flexibility. It's true though, the basics can't be overlooked but I doubt Ciella will easily grasp the theory of combat" Concordia said.
"Interesting, so how do you intend to go about things?" Arlene asked.
"Ciella, all you need to do is answer one very important question. What do you value most?" Concordia asked.
Arlene sighed.
"The answer should be obvious" Arlene said.
In an instant, Concordia streaked past Ciella and snatched the mini-representation of Christopher.
"It's simple really…if you ever want to speak with San while he's in the Dream World, you'll have to reclaim this" Concordia said.
"Typical old school kung-fu training logic" Arlene slapped herself on the forehead.
Ciella stared at Concordia in surprise.
"So what will it be?" Concordia asked while tossing and catching the mini-representation of Christopher repeatedly.
A determined look slowly spread across Ciella's face.
"I'll do it!" she roared and charged towards Concordia.
Just before she could reach for the mini-representation of Christopher, Concordia sidestepped and tripped her. Before she could hit the ground, Concordia held her by the hand to break her fall and leapt nimbly away from her. Ciella chased Concordia all about the area but got no closer to catching her. There were times when Concordia would toss the mini-representation of Christopher over Ciella's head, then using a high speed step phase behind Ciella and grab it. Whenever Ciella charged for the mini-representation of Christopher, Concordia would sidestep and knock her off balance with a light push to the back.
Arlene observed Ciella's training.
"Pretty sly Concordia. By giving Ciella a goal, you're able to draw out her focus. You're also purposely running all about the arena to get her to train her speed and stamina. Every time you counter her charge, you're basically telling her to pay attention to her centre of gravity and what's even more impressive is…" Arlene narrowed her eyes.
"…by evading in specific ways, you're getting her to gradually adjust her movements until they feel more natural. Every time she charges at you, her movements become less stiff…" Arlene noted.
A week passed, then two weeks and finally the third week commenced. Ciella's speed still didn't match Concordia's however at the very least she had begun to avoid Concordia's light counterattacks.
"She's paying more attention to her balance now" Arlene noted.
Mitsuki stared at the time.
"They've been going at it for almost an hour now" Mitsuki said.
"Pretty impressive that Ciella's stamina hasn't worn out yet" Arlene noted.
"What's even more impressive is the fact that her movements are gradually beginning to develop into fighting stances. She doesn't seem to have realized it though" Saito noted.
"Concordia's pretty amazing, being able to direct Ciella's movements and gradually sharpen them. When Ciella makes the right movement, she moves in ways that cause Ciella to repeat that movement until it becomes ingrained in her body like a reflex. However, when Ciella makes the wrong movement, she uses a counter to throw her off balance until Ciella finally reaches the realization that the movement in question is ineffective" Keiran noted.
"Well amongst Dream Knights our age, Concordia is the only one whose archery skills come close to the Nightmare King's and the Dreamweaver's" Arlene admitted.
"I now understand why she always looks so surprised whenever she misses a shot" Keiran teased.
Saito knocked him on the head.
"Don't you even think of going cat mode stupid big brother" she warned.
"It's been gradual but Ciella's confidence appears to be growing as well" Ariel noted.
Ciella's training continued for a month. After a month passed, she had gradually become swifter in keeping up with Concordia's movements and had gradually gotten closer to retrieving the mini-representation of Christopher.
"Just a little more" Ciella encouraged herself.
When the day ended, she dropped to the ground in exhaustion.
"I wasn't able to retrieve the mini-representation of Christopher today as well" she panted tiredly while lying flat on her back and staring at the ceiling.
She turned to look at Concordia. Concordia hardly looked exhausted.
"The difference in our physical ability is still too great. Have I gotten stronger at all?" Ciella wondered.
The next day, she returned to the old library. She looked slightly depressed.
"Prepared to retrieve the mini-representation yet?" Concordia asked with a smile.
"I'm certainly not giving up on getting it back but…am I really becoming stronger?" Ciella asked worriedly.
In a flash Concordia stood before her aiming for a blow to her gut. Ciella instinctively reacted by sidestepping and deflecting Concordia's blow downwards, then grabbing Concordia by the shoulder, she used the force of Concordia's charge to throw her however Concordia somersaulted and landed on her feet to regain balance. Ciella stared at her palms in shock.
"D-Did I just do that?" she wondered in surprise.
"Yes, you did. In attempting to retrieve the mini-representation of Christopher, you've gradually been raising your speed and stamina. You've also gradually learnt to control your centre of gravity and avoid my counterattacks. All your movements have gradually been increasing in sharpness and have slowly transformed into fighting stances. You countered my attack on reflex. Though you don't comprehend combat on a cognitive level, you are able to react to attacks and counter them on reflex. I've been training your sensory memory instead of your cognitive memory" Concordia explained. "However, there is a downside to this training style. You'll only be able to fight when attacked. You are still unable to fight on a conscious level" Concordia said.
"How can I overcome this limitation?" Ciella asked.
Concordia tossed the mini-representation of Christopher to her.
"To do that, you might need to do some image training" Concordia said.
"Image training?" Ciella asked.
"I'll leave it to Arlene to explain. She's always been good at technical stuff" Concordia said and sat with her back against the wall of the old library.
"Arlene, what's this image training Concordia is talking of and how can it help me?" Ciella asked with concern.
"It's basically a sort of training style that focuses on honing one's abilities through visualization" Arlene explained.
"Visualization?" Ciella asked.
"It's kinda like how sportsmen watch videos of their opponents' matches to gain an understanding of their play styles and come up with a strategy to counter them" Arlene explained.
"I see" Ciella reflected on Arlene's words.
"In your case, you'll be trying to find a style of combat that suits you and comes naturally to you. Arlene has a number of combat styles recorded in Christopher. Records of sparring sessions between Dream Knights as well as multiple kung-fu movies" Mitsuki explained.
"For now, all you need to do is watch them" Arlene said.
"That's all?" Ciella asked.
"Watch them as though you were the one in combat. Try to think of how you'd counter each move of an opponent by putting yourself in the shoes of a combatant" Arlene explained.
"In the Dream World, most of our battles are fought more with our minds and spirits than with our bodies. However, you sort of have a 'body' which is a mental projection of how you view yourself. Since it's a battle of minds and spirits, you can only use combat techniques you've acquired while in the Real World. Simply put, in the Dream World, experiences literally become power. To put it in terms you can relate to, it's kinda like how gamers battle with avatars" Concordia explained.
"It's kinda ironic that Ciella's training style has begun to shadow that of San's training five years ago" Saito noted.
Keiran nodded in agreement.