"You can be so much better than this pup. You have the potential to truly unite the world against the coming storms. But you squander it right now." Astrid's words echoed across the clearing as she waited for Gavin to reappear.
Suddenly the ground began to tremble. The trees nearby creaked and groaned as leaves fell from the limbs. Astrid felt the way the ground shook under her feet and she slapped her wings to float in the air.
"Come on out, pup. Show me the gods were right in choosing you!" Astrid taunted as she swept her gaze over the ground. She noticed Erza watching her fight with narrow eyes that glowed vibrantly. The other females in the camp all had walked over to the table on the other side to watch the training session and debated amongst themselves.
Out of nowhere, Gavin jumped through the shadows of the ground. His claws extended as he reached for her and grabbed onto one of her wings. Astrid cursed as he claws sliced through the wing and pulled her back onto the ground.
Tendrils of darkness and shadow sprang from the ground and grabbed onto her limbs. They snaked their way around her body pulling her down flush against the dirt. "Not bad pup. You are finally learning to use your head." Astrid commented her approval as she tested the strength of the tendrils.
"I am not completely helpless, Valkyrie!" Gavin snarled as he let her wing go and towered above her. "It looks like you fell into my trap this time." Gavin leaned down and bared his canines at her. His smug smile and posturing grated on Astrid's nerves.
"Don't get cocky wolf." She let out a sigh and flexed her mana. She filled the nearby air around them with her magic as she effortlessly broke through the shadow tendrils that held her down. "Cute attempt, but your magic lacks real power." She spun, using her wings to batter against Gavin's defenses while putting distance between them.
Gavin cursed as he raised his arms in front of him, shielding his face from her wings.
The next thing Gavin knew, she held him by the throat and pinned him against the stump of the nearby tree. "You act on impulse, and that is why you lost." Gavin gasped as the air was forced out of his lungs with the impact.
"If you want to learn true strength. Then open your ears. Forget everything you think you know about fighting. Learn to listen, truly listen to those who have lived countless centuries." Astrid let him go and he slumped to the floor, his shift ending as he transformed back into his human self.
Tears of frustration pricked his eyes as he sat there, bruised and battered. "I have so little time, Astrid. I'm expected to accomplish all these things. World changing events. Yet I can only just barely put a scratch on you." He slammed his fist down onto the ground as a wave of red mana flared out around the impact.
"That's the point of this wolf. Now on your feet. Or do you intend to sit by when your enemies kill your mate?" Astrid took a few steps back and allowed him a moment to make his decision.
Gavin glared at her. What good does it do, to have all the elements and power at my fingertips, if I can't even protect Erza, or put a damn scratch on that smug face? The decision made, he pushed against his shaking legs. His body was heavy, exhaustion filled every limb.
Astrid watched with apparent approval in her eyes as Gavin reached his feet. "That's it wolf. If you have breath in your lungs and heart still beats then you can fight. Never give up, never surrender, or those that depend on you will pay the price!" She crouched low, legs shoulder width apart as she got into a stance.
Gavin gritted his teeth as he took a few steps forward. All her warnings filled his mind. "Then let's get this shit show started." He stumbled forward before he caught himself. He took a deep breath and took a similar stance to Astrid.
"Legs wider, you want to be low to the ground. Like a mountain, immovable, strong." Astrid commented as she studied his attempt.
Gavin nodded as he adjusted his posture. He spread his legs until they were lined up with his shoulders, left foot slightly in front of his right.
"Good now bend your knees slightly, feel the burn in your calf muscles." She instructed as she walked forward. "You are finally beginning to listen."
Gavin stayed quiet as he followed the instruction. "I feel what your talking about. This feels different than normal."
She nodded. "That's because you aren't used to actual trained combat. You have so much natural strength that until now you have been able to use brute strength and speed to overwhelm you enemies." She paused and stood before him. "That's how you fought every single enemy in the training dungeon."
He nodded. "It worked for the most part, though I still had to rely on Veronica more than I care to admit." He felt the lingering burn in his body as he kept that pose. His legs, tired and sore from the beating protested as his body trembled.
Astrid gave a rare smile. "It's good that you recognize that flaw. So tell me, in the fight against the Draconian warriors, where did you go wrong, and where could you have done better?"
"I could have listened to Veronica's suggestions better and not second guessed her. Even though I did follow her advice to a degree, I still ended up resorting to strength and speed to finish the majority of them off." He reflected over the battle that played in his mind.
Astrid nudged his legs slightly apart. "Don't lose focus, maintain the pose while we talk." She walked around him, studying every nuance of his pose as he kept his knees bent.
"Now think back. If you knew how to actually fight. Knew an actual combat style instead of throwing strikes out blindly on impulse, how much better do you think the fight would have gone?"
Gavin hesitated. "I'm not sure. I've never learned any martial arts or combat style. I've relied on instinct and emotion as the battle flows."
"That's good. Not many can actually critique and analyze their own fights. Now, what I will attempt to do during this summer is break you. Mentally, physically and emotionally." She paused before she stepped in front of him and cupped his chin in her hand and forced his eyes to meet hers. "Then I will build you into the ultimate warrior, one worthy of the trust and mission that Lord Koray gave you. It wont be easy. You will probably die, if you aren't fully committed." Astrid's words were quiet and genuine as she held his chin.
"So give me your answer now wolf. Do you have the stomach for the next few months of hell? Can you find inside yourself the fortitude to be broken repeatedly and rebuilt into something stronger, deadlier?" Her touch was surprisingly gentle against Gavin's chin.
Gavin glanced over to see Erza watching him. The concern and love in her eyes ignited a fire in Gavin's heart. He turned his eyes back to Astrid who waited quietly and patiently.
"Do your worst Valkyrie. Give me everything you have. I will pass this test. I will grow and learn, for I will never be weak again." His conviction was set. His mind made up. He would not only survive, but grow from this experience.
Astrid grinned them. Wide and unrestrained as she heard his words and better yet, his conviction. "Then lets get started. Now, in that pose, keep your left foot like it is, but move your right foot back a few inches." She instructed as she nudged his foot with hers.
Gavin followed her orders and they spent the remaining hours of the morning learning one martial art pose after the other. "These are the combat forms that every Valkyrie learns from a young age." She told him at one point.
Gavin was drenched in sweat as she pushed him through what felt like a thousand different postures and combat forms. She stood in front of him or beside him and had him shadow her movements as she went from strike to strike, keeping her movements controlled and refined.
His muscles burned and chest heaved from the exertion as she pushed him through every change and formation. "Remember how your body feels with each change. The way your muscles constrict and release on your strikes. Recognize how each form flows into the next." She continued to instruct him throughout every change. She adjusted his posture, judged his movements, guided him until he mimicked her movements exactly.
When the sun was high above the sky Astrid called a halt. "That is enough combat training for today wolf." She called over to Kara and Erza. "That's enough for today Kara!"
Kara and Erza walked back. Erza was covered in dirt, grass and sweat as she walked over slowly. "How did he do?" Kara asked as she inspected Gavin's state.
Astrid regarded Gavin before she responded. "He isn't dead. He has potential now that he's actually listening to instruction."
Gavin panted as he bent over, his hands on his knees as he struggled to catch his breath. "I don't know how much good its doing." He complained as he tried to slow his heartbeat.
"Stand up straight, shoulders wide, it'll help open your lungs and make it easier." Kara advised as she stood nearby.
What irritated Gavin was the fact that neither of the Valkryies were even out of breath. "Don't you two ever get winded or tired?" His tone was filled with annoyance as he followed Kara's instructions, and to his irritation, found it easier.
Kara grinned as she danced around. "Nope, not often. Perks of being so old. You tend to build up insane levels of stamina."
Erza swallowed hard as she reached for a bottle of water nearby. "Now what?" She took a long drink as she waited.
"Now, we begin pushing your limits with magic. Especially yours, Erza. Gavin is leaps and bounds ahead of you in that regard." Astrid's words were softly spoken as she looked to Erza.
"So, how do we accomplish that?" Gavin asked as he took the bottle from Erza and downed half of it.
"It's quite simple. You will cast a single, simple spell. Repeatedly. Non-stop until night falls." Astrid informed them as she pointed to two nearby stumps.
"You will each sit down, and cast a fireball spell. Over and over. Repeatedly using all your magic every time. As you tire and your mana depletes, you will keep pushing the limit. Eventually the spell grows stronger, lasts longer, and your mana reserves will slowly increase by pushing it to the limit again and again."
Gavin frowned as he walked over to the stump. Kara slammed her foot on the ground and an earthen wall of mud and stone erupted twenty feet away. "This will be your target. Break through this wall and it will be a sign of progress."
Gavin grumbled incoherently as they walked to the stumps. "Just conjure a fireball over and over?"
Erza sat on the stump, arm outstretched as her mana already flared around her. Her brow was furrowed as she concentrated and a ball of fire ignited in the palm of her hand. She flicked her wrist out and sent it flying at the wall. It impacted against the target and didn't leave so much as a scratch against it.
Gavin sat down. He knew it was pointless to argue with them as he followed suit. He pictured the fireball in his palm as he extended his hand. It flickered to life in his hand, the flames licking his skin as he poured his mana into it. He flicked his wrist and threw it at the stone wall.
The result was the same. Not even a scratch marked the stone as Gavin and Erza spent the afternoon expending their mana reserves over and over with the fireballs.
This is going to be a long summer. Gavin groaned. He squared his shoulders and resumed the position to try again. But, I will get stronger. This summer training is only the beginning. Soon, at the academy, I have a feeling everything will change.