Sweat dripped down Daniel's chest as he swung his sword in a vertical arc for the one thousandth time.
"A thousand more!" A loud voice grunted behind Daniel.
The black haired teenager gritted his teeth and tried to withhold the vile words that threatened to spill from his mouth if he opened it. Instead, he took in a deep breath and raised his arms once again.
"Did I sense your anger?" The person behind him spoke again. "Yes, yes, use that anger! Imagine beating me with a stick! And the strike down!" The middle aged man with a blind fold over his left eye said with a manic grin.
The man's words enraged Daniel, giving him the extra fuel he needed to push through the fatigue that was plaguing him.
"AHHHH!" With a yell of fury, Daniel swung his sword downward.
And also, with a yell of fear, Daniel jumped up from his bed, drenched in sweat.
"Damn mad man!" Daniel cursed and slammed his fist into the wall beside his bed. His breathing was ragged and his eyes were red. He pulled back his fist and ran his fingers through his long hair, feeling the fatigue from his dream wash over him.
"I can't sleep again." With a sigh, Daniel stood up from the bed as he went over the contents of his dream. Or was it a nightmare?
He could still vividly recall the memory that had played in that dreamscape. It had been several years ago, and he had only been thirteen. He was still a wild, rash boy back then, but it was that wildness that had gotten him where he was today.
Daniel stepped out of the house and was greeted by the starry sky. Only a good run would be able to cleanse his body of the tension that filled it after that dream.
Tap tap tap.
Daniel's footfalls were soft as he began to run. His feet carried him out of the boys' quarters and through the Nine Peaks Sect. He had gotten a much better tour of the place after the class taught by Vincent. Wendy and Han had shown him around, so he knew that he would not get lost on this little run.
Daniel ran until the bright rays of light from the sun began to light up the mountain that the Nine Peaks Sect was built into. A bright ray of light sprang into his eyes as the clouds overhead moved to the side, causing him to slow down his movements as he raised an arm to protect his eyes.
"Daniel? What are you doing here?" A familiar voice called out to Daniel and he looked up, only to find Wendy jogging in his direction.
"We came out for a run." Another familiar voice spoke up behind Daniel, and he turned to find Han catching up behind him with a stoic expression on his face. Daniel instantly knew that Han was trying to cover up for him, and agreed without wasting a moment.
"Yeah, we came out for an early jog." He smiled at the brown haired girl.
"Oh, then why don't we go together?" Wendy proposed.
"Ah, I was just about to round up, but we can go on a bit more." Daniel said politely, conditioning Wendy to the mindset that he was already tired, and could leave at any moment.
"That is fine." Wendy smiled and jogged up to Daniel's side at the same time as Han. She did not stop the motion of her legs and simply jogged in one place. "Let's go."
The trio continued to jog for the next ten minutes before Daniel signaled that he was tired.
"Let's call it in, then. Besides, we have training in an hour or so. We need to get ready." Wendy agreed. She had also been out for a while before stumbling upon Daniel and Han. The young lady parted with the two boys and went her own way, returning to the girls' quarters. The two boys also went their own way.
Surprisingly, Han did not speak a word about the fact that he and Daniel had not been jogging together. Daniel was also sure that he had left the boys' quarters before Han, so they did not leave together.
"Are you going to say nothing?" Daniel eventually asked. The suspense was beginning to kill him inside.
"Every man has his demons. It is not my place to know yours when you do not seem to want to share." Han said simply as the two of them passed the gates of the boys' quarters. By now, many people were out and about, and the entry of the recent star of the sect was easily noticed. Whispers immediately broke out, but neither Daniel nor Han paid any attention to them. They simply made their way to their shared house and entered.
The duo took turns using the bathroom to freshen up before preparing for their class. Han took it upon himself to brew a herbal tea that was known to boost energy and keep the body at its peak through the day.
The moment the warm liquid sloshed down Daniel's throat, a hot but cold, refreshing feeling rushed through his body, causing him to shiver at the unexpected feeling.
"A family recipe. It is what I use to retain my energy through the day." Han noticed Daniels reaction and said with a small smirk peeking from the top of his cup. He tilted his head back and took a sip.
"This is amazing! I've never tasted anything like it!" Daniel said with surprise and enthusiasm as he quickly gulped down the remnants of the tea.
"There's more in the teapot." Han said with a nod.
"Mmm." Daniel mumbled a response as he poured a second cup of tea and guzzled it down in an instant. He was like a hungry bear stumbling upon a pot of honey. Nothing was going to get in his way as he drank the tea for every last drop there was.