Axel had thought that the martial arts training would be something cool. He hadn't imagined it to be simple, but he had really thought it would be, well, thrilling. Like something he would actually enjoy.
But, alas. It wasn't so.
It seemed insidious. The act. Axel thought of it as harmful.
The first factor of him doing so was that he had to wake up very early in the morning. Around 4am, and go to train.
They basically trained in a hall, small, Axel finding ok. Axel would always be sleepy, trudging to the hall and dozing off sometimes when walking. He had complained to the martial arts teacher about it, but he said the mind was always clear early in the morning and that was the best time to fight.
In his words:
"This is literally morning. You should actually be waking up at twelve as that is the start of a new day."
Axel found it ridiculous, in fact outrageous.
The days went by, to Axel, it went by quickly because anytime he was done training, he usually just jumped on his bed and went to sleep.
Feeling exhausted and all, he usually slept till the next day when it was time to go to the hall.
He had come late for once and had been seriously bashed for it by his teacher.
"We have four more days and at the rate you're learning, it'll take ages!"
Sometimes Axel had to stay more than usual, his teacher complaining that they had many things to cover.
The fifth day of training was when, to the martial arts teacher, Axel really put on a good show.
That day Axel, as usual, came into the hall, looking sleepy like someone needing some good shut-eye.
The hall had been dimly lit, more umbral, with a seemingly gloaming flair.
They had gone through the basics, the teacher teaching Axel how to throw jabs, dodge one and all sorts. He was basically just going over it again as to him, Axel hadn't learnt a thing.
The first day had been hell because that was when the teacher went over the basics. Dodging, how to maintain stance and all. Axel had felt the whole day to be almost too painful because the whole training stuff had been on another degree.
And then, on the fifth day, with the teacher going over them, it felt like he was reliving the first day.
"Duck when you sense a strike," the martial arts teacher said. "Not necessarily you see it, but when you sense it, just duck. Ducking is the only safe move as moving sideways or swerving to the left or right might not be too good. You might get the punch, kick, slap or whatever it might have been."
Axel only nodded.
Knowing what the enemy wanted to do wasn't his problem. At least he had the powers, he could sense stuff. His body system was frigid and acting like it wouldn't respond to what he wanted to do.
And so, they got to practice. A combat actually, Axel trying to use all the basic training he had received into test. But to face the martial arts teacher always seemed daunting and so it always tugged at him.
The teacher threw Axel a punch, which he dodged, tumbling on the ground as the force with which the punch came was tremendously incredible. It felt sensational actually, and even though it hadn't met him, he still felt something. Perhaps the aura it carried?
The atmosphere was glacial now, not literally but more metaphorically. It was cold. There were no windows actually in the room, but Axel still felt cold.
The combat teacher was sending him a jab now. It was incredibly dangerous, and if Axel hadn't dodged it, it would have certainly plucked out one of his teeth.
The reason the fight seemed dangerous or unbeatable to Axel was that he was without his powers. He wasn't an Inferno Hero, he wasn't Inferno Blaze, he was just Axel. And right now, being Axel sucked because the whole stuff just seemed insurmountable.
"Fight with precision," the combat teacher said. "Fight for real, like your life is in danger, like I'm some bastard you need to defeat to progress. Don't dance, fight!"
The last words stunned Axel.
'Don't dance, fight!'
'Hell, then what am I doing all along!'
He received a kick to his midsection, two punches that clapped his nose and cheeks respectively. That really hurt, and he couldn't help but grunt.
"Don't be pathetic, Axel, c'mon!, you're a fkin superhero!, you're gonna save the world, act a goddamn hero, a fkin superhero!"
Axel could only stare, his eyes not blinking. They went on. Already he had fallen on the ground about three times, and Axel was doubting if Axel was actually good without his superpowers. He seemed not to be.
Exhausted, Axel fell to the ground, almost motionless, unless that he moved his head and used his hands to hold his mouth, which was already letting out blood.
The martial arts teacher wasn't pitying him. He was ready to go ultra mode in his pound for pound if Axel didn't quit acting like a crybaby.
"Axel!" the teacher screamed into his face. "Act!, the fate of the world is in your hands, man, your damn hands. Don't be afraid!"
The words bolstered Axel up on his feet, his demeanor all changed.
'Now we're talking,' the teacher thought.
The teacher threw a punch, Axel dodged, ducking, and from his opponent's point of view, he seemed colossal, like a menace. He seemed titanic.
Axel threw a punch, the teacher ducked, for the first time in years, now moving back in an actual face-to-face combat when training a student. It seemed exaggerated, but it was true.
Axel pressed on. Shaking off any punches he received, watching his steps, acting real cautious, yet brave. His teacher was impressed, dodging every punch he received from Axel with flair.
Well, Axel pestered on, and soon, his teacher couldn't dodge his seventh punch, which layed by the side of his opponent's face, landing on the floor and making him to fall.