Kilniara immediately bowed her head more deeply and apologized, “I’m so sorry we have failed you and cannot learn your skills.”
Zilnek apologized as well, but seemed more sour than apologetic. Garnedell was retreating, hiding from the conflict, and Joe realized it was a bit of a bigger deal than he thought. Joe looked back and forth between the two and began again.
“Right. Let’s get into this, but first. Waiter! Four breakfasts, please!” Joe called out, catching the attention of the staff. After they acknowledged his request, he turned back to the other two and began again.
“You guys really shouldn’t be apologizing, nor should you be feeling bad. You guys are doing very well. In fact, you are doing about as well as some of the best students of my dojo… my combat clan. So you really shouldn’t…”
Joe trailed off as he saw Garnedell goggle at him and Zilnek and Kilniara glance up with him with a bit of shock on their faces. Joe smiled and nodded.
“You really are doing quite well. I’m not joking. Only a few amongst students of similar training to you could be considered better, so you should be feeling quite proud. You are doing well. I understand that it’s frustrating because you have two forms…”
Joe trailed off again when he saw Zilnek stifling a sour frown and Joe frowned himself slightly; just a subtle pursing of his lips.
“What’s wrong, Zilnek? I don’t understand why you are angry? I told you that you were doing really well, but you seem more annoyed.”
Zilnek’s frown deepened but he kept a polite tone, “But we are Acokzau.”
Joe nodded, “Yeah. That makes it a bit tougher for you. You have two forms… actually three, to be able to fully understand and control the forms with. It will be very hard to…”
Joe trailed off as Zilnek’s frown deepened, showing he wasn’t relieved at all, “OK. I’m missing something. You guys really are doing very well, but you seem unhappy with it. So, talk to me. What’s going on?”
Zilnek and Kilniara looked at each other before Kilniara took the lead and stated rather simply, “We are Acokzau.”
Joe didn’t say anything, waiting politely, but didn’t immediately reply as he didn’t want to offend either one of them. Garnedell watched the interaction before he interrupted.
“They are Acokzau, Joe. And Acokzau are famous for being perfect warriors. They are capable of learning almost any physical skill simply by watching. They can even learn it after only seeing it once.”
Joe looked back and forth after Garnedell finished, waiting for an explanation before Joe realized the conversation was finished. Not… really an explanation?
“So Acokzau have excellent body control?”
“Yes,” Kilniara nodded.
“Well, it seems obvious to me that you both do very well.”
However, Joe’s response obviously wasn’t getting to the point as all three glanced at each other uncomfortably staring at each other. Joe sighed and grimaced.
“I’m obviously not understanding this. Please, explain to me exactly what you mean.”
Garnedell sighed and stepped up, “You do not have Acokzau on your plane, right Joe?”
Joe frowned, “Yes, there are no Acokzau on my plane.”
Garnedell nodded while Kilniara and Zilnek both seemed to relax now that Garnedell was explaining. They seemed happy to let him speak, sitting back to listen calmly while did so, “Acokzau are known for their physical capabilities. Like they said before, they are capable of perfectly duplicating any action or movement after the first try.”
Joe kept his face neutral but didn’t agree with their assessment. While the two did very well duplicating his movements, they never… They never evaluated the movement in light of current conditions! The understanding hit like a freight train and Joe settled back in his seat with the realization.
He nodded, “OK. So you can perfectly recreate the form I demonstrate for you.”
Kilniara and Zilnek both nodded but didn’t reply.
Joe considered for a moment then replied, “Do you think the form should be identical when you have a tail and when you don’t?”
Kilniara and Zilnek both blinked at that, their thoughts now reconsidering. Joe saw them become thoughtful, their anger diminished. Joe continued.
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“If your tail can change how a form should be completed, then how about if one of your feet are higher than another? What about if your feet are angled because you are standing on the side of a hill? What if one of your feet is on unstable ground, or a rolling rock? What if they are twisted slightly?
“That is just your body! What if you are fighting a small enemy, like a goblin? Or what if you are fighting a giant? Do you stand and fight the same way? What if you fight an enemy like a snake, without arms or legs? Or one without bones? Do you stand and move the same way? How do you stand to fight a slime? How do you stand to be hit by a leaping slime or the punch of a giant or the swipe from a massive tail? How?”
Kilniara and Zilnek both had moments of epiphany as they looked at Joe with a sense of renewed respect. Joe nodded at seeing it and continued his explanation.
“I could see how you would be frustrated if you were able to copy my movements exactly, but my movements are for my size and strength. I’m stronger and slower than you both. You are much faster but a bit weaker than me and Kilniara, you are faster and weaker than Zilnek. Neither of you should be using the forms in the same way, let alone the same as me or Garnedell.
“You need to know the purpose of the forms and how they should be acted out. If you understand them, truly understand them, you can change them to meet any situation you are in. That is what it means to master the forms. It doesn’t matter where you are, the weather, how your feet are placed or where are standing. You will be able to move or change to correctly take advantage or mitigate disadvantage.
“You guys have been copying me, especially your arms, very well. But your feet, legs, and body have not been done very well. And even if you did move your feet, legs, and body correctly, you are not doing so for your body, height, and skills!
“Now, granted, the differences are subtle. Very, very, very subtle, but these are differences between a master and an average martial artist. I hope to teach you to be masters because you will be able to do it. Truly.”
Joe ended his impromptu explanation and inspirational speech. He’d let it go on a bit too long, he realized, but it still proved effective as the siblings both had renewed their trust in him and Garnedell’s eyes actually seemed to be sparkling a bit. Joe chuckled and retreated a bit as the two Acokzau quickly and excitedly spoke to one another and Joe, peppering him with questions about some of the changes he suggested. While they asked, their breakfast meal came and they took a short break to accept their meals then begin eating. Once settled again, the siblings immediately launched back into quite detailed questions at bodily movements, proper forms, and their purpose. As he listened to some of their questions, he began to understand some of the attributed genius to Acokzau. Or the siblings are superb geniuses, but since even Garnedell says it, then… Maybe its common knowledge?
Joe spent some time offering advice, but the questions about the training, days and even weeks ago, proved too long ago for his memory to remember the details necessary to explain how and why he’d made the changes. After a few of these questions, Joe interrupted with his own question.
“Do you guys actually remember back that far?”
Kilniara and Zilnek looked at him before nodding, “Yes.”
“You actually remember it, as in you have a memory if it? You can see it in your mind?”
At first, both of them were nodding but with the last question, they both stopped nodding and began to reconsider. After a few moments of thought, both began frowning. Zilnek took a bit to reply due to his lower intelligence score and Kilniara replied much faster.
“I’m… not remembering. I’m … feeling it? I can feel… remember the way my arms or legs moved.”
“How?”
“I can feel it … the way my arms and legs move.”
“You think it? Or you feel it?”
“I feel it.”
Zilnek replied shorty after, agreeing with Kilniara, “Yeah… I can feel my arms, my leg… well, my whole body. I can feel my whole body moving.”
Joe sighed at that, shaking his head, “OK. That really is an amazing ability.”
Garnedell laughed at that before interjecting, “Yeah, but you said they are only in the best, not the best. That means your people are able to match and exceed the Acokzau.”
Kilniara quickly interjected at that since she was curious, “Yes. I was curious. Do you truly have base humans who are our equal in copying?”
Joe cocked his head in thought before nodding thoughtfully, “Well… not as good as you guys. Are all Acokzau as good as you? Are some better than others?”
Kilniara quickly shook her head, “No. All Acokzau are basically as good as each other.”
“So there isn’t really any variation?”
“I’m… not really sure, I guess? But from what I remember of my family and other Acokzau friends, we were all basically the same.”
“Huh. Well, my plane’s people seem to be capable of the same, but it seems we have a bit of variety. There are some who are not that capable at all, sometimes because they are just weaker in that ability or because their body itself is weak or deformed. Some have diseases that make it very difficult to control the body, so that also effects their ability to do this. But on the whole, most people are about as good as me and I would say most… the average amongst my kind is just a bit less than you? Although there are many who are better or even much better, and then there are some few… very few, who are … extremely capable in their physicality.”
All the other three grew silent at that, eye’s wide and then Garnedell breathed out excitedly, “Base humans who are better than Kin?”
Zilnek and Kilniara both frowned a bit at that before schooling their face and thoughtfully considering. Neither said anything, and Joe was curious about Garnedell’s comment, but thought to ask it later, as the siblings seemed unhappy with the comment and he didn’t want to rub anything in. As they’d pretty much finished breakfast by this point, Joe decided to bring the meal to an end and guided them out of the inn, heading back into the streets.
“Right. So, today, before you two boys take off and do whatever it is you do, we’re heading into the inner city to get your new clothes. After that, you can take off as you want to, although you can’t go play around until we’re back in the outer city. You really don’t want to run around in the inner city with these clothes. So, first plan. To the tailor for our clothes.”
When Joe brought up an itinerary for the morning, both boys originally were disappointed, hiding frowns and grumbles until Joe brought up new clothing and both perked up excitedly at that. Joe hid a smirk, wondering how they would handle the process but decided to not dampen either one’s mood. All four headed towards the inner city briskly.
When they neared the inner city gate, the guards were more considerate as one of the guards from yesterday recognized Joe. They had bristled at the beginning but when Joe came close enough to recognize, one of the guards quickly corralled the others in and he stepped forward before bowing.
“Welcome to the inner city, esteemed guest. If I could see your guest medallion once again?”