Chapter 7
Standing up from his sitting position, he went to welcome the eccentric Fifth-level mage.
Marcus Altaha, the Beast, it was hard not to hear of the odd rumors surrounding the man. Despite being known for having the greatest physical prowess in the City-State, Marcus was also known for being silly, obnoxious, and a general nuisance. Mikey, knowing how rumors could get out of hand, was more focused on Marcus’s research on Internal Mana Structures which he used to enhance his great physical prowess even further. If their was anyone who could give him more ideas on how to better enhance Mikey’s products than it would be Marcus Altaha.
"Good afternoon," Mikey greeted respectfully taking a knee with one fist on his heart as is traditional for one of the greatest protectors of the Cahokia.
Marcus gave him a dazzling smile and spoke with his infamous verbel tic, "Ho now, you must be the owner of this shop I've heard so much about!"
"I am. I feel honored to have Cahokia's leading expert in Hand-to-Hand Combat visit my humble establishment," the plump salesman complimented already falling into Super Suck-up Salesman mode before introducing himself with a respectful, "my name is Mikey Anderson, I’m a big fan."
Marcus looked taken aback at the complement, he rubbed the back of his neck while trying to look humble, "Ho now, I wouldn't say I'm the best Mage in the world."
… I didn't say that. Mikey thought, before firmly ignoring the weirdness and moving on.
"Please, there is no need to be modest, you are a pillar of strength for this generation," Mikey like a shark smelling blood in the water doubled down causing Marcus to blush as he was unused to compliments.
"Ho now, Well I guess I’m pretty strong," the man said as he stood up to his full height trying to look more heroic in front of the four-foot-tall youth.
Mikey nodded in affirmation, now that he had hooked him it was time to reel this sale in.
Come on Mikey reel in the sale, you got this! What were all those hours watching those sales master videos for if not now!, Mikey thought
"What can I offer you today, Mr. Marcus? I doubt I have much that can hold up to someone of your skills, if your reputation is anything to go by."
The poorly clothed clad man's ear twitched at that before trying and failing to ask nonchalantly, "Ho now, they talk about me? What do they saw exactly?"
Oh No! We’re moving backwards! You gotta pull harder Mikey!, Mikey thought.
"The beast has a body of steel, with strength to pull us out of the dark night, in a flash of speed he’s there, bringing the light of hope to his comrades. Like an invisible jet he flies, his endurance is like unto a machine, and he is king of atlantis- er I mean Close Combat or at least that is what the people say." Mikey said, sweating as he relied on his favorite comic book hero team to pull him through that one.
Marcus had nodded his head the entire time as if he had heard these compliments before sudenly the compliments grew too much for him and he shouted at the sky, "Ho now! You hear that Carrot head! People compliment me, oddly specific ones but they’re good things!"
Mikey couldn't help but smile at the silliness, not that he’d ever admit it to anyone.
Marcus snapped his eyes to the heavy-set young man that was waiting patiently, and his smile grew even more brighter, "Ho now, It is true young boy, I am Marcus Altaha, the Beast of Cahokia. How about an autograph?"
A sweat drop formed on the back of the chubby lad's head when he saw the excited look and stars shine in the grown man's eyes at the idea of having a real fan, Mikey had to quickly redirect by saying, "Perhaps later. Didn't you wish to buy something Mr. Marcus?"
"Ho now? Oh yes, how could I forget!?" Marcus said as he calmed himself. "I came here in search of some training equipment? A friend recommended this place?"
Finally, the sale is in motion boys, the young salesman thought to himself.
"You came at the perfect time, I have some brand new training equipment for sale! Did you have anything specific in mind or would you like to see a little of everything?"
Putting on a thinking pose, Marcus gave him a considering look before whipping a briefcase out of nowhere and opening it to reveal a massive stack of cash.
"Ho now! Show me everything! Money is no issue to those who travel on the road of self-improvement!" Marcus stated boldly while taking a careful peek at his adoring fan’s reaction to his so-called wise words. After all he wouldn’t want to disappoint his first fan.
Mikey was half paying attention as his eyes were glued to the money, 20 Dollars bills stacked in groups of 100. Eighteen stacks with a few loose bills comes out to 49,876 Dollars!
With that simple gesture, Mikey's already existing respect for the man grew to an all time high, rivaling that of the Sovereign's wife and Kris Wolffriend.
"Of course, Mr. Marcus. I’ve heard many tales of your legendary training and I will do my best to live up to it," Mikey said with a bow as he signaled for them to walk inside.
Marcus misinterpreted the awed look on Mikey's face and closed the briefcase to follow Mikey, trying to maintain his image of wise master in front of the hefty teen.
Disregarding everything that was on display, Mikey went into his room and took out the very best of his training equipment. It just so happened that Mikey had looked into Marcus’s training routine as inspiration for this line of training products. Ready to make some money Mikey headed back outside the tent.
Together they walked into an open space in the clearing, which by now looked like it had been taken from the middle of a war zone. The Great Barbecue of Destruction having left it’s mark in Mikey’s heart(and his wallet).
Holding up the very first thing that he needed to sell before conducting any other business, Mikey began his sales pitch saying, "I will start with this little piece, I'm sure you have seen something like this before."
He held up a blue tracksuit identical to the one that Marcus was wearing, the only difference was this one isn’t full of holes and has been strengthened by mikey to the point of withstanding a direct hit from a tank shell, he could only hope it’d be enough to withstand Marcus’s movements.
Seriously, how can he walk around with so many holes in the raggedy mess? It looks like it’d take one strong wind to blow through and he’ll be called a beast for very different reasons, Mikey thought.
"Ho now, this tracksuit is pretty similar to my usual ones," Marcus commented as he took the tracksuit that was offered to him.
That's because I got it from the dumpster behind where you usually buy yours, Mikey remarked mentally.
Despite it's less than flattering appearence, the jumpsuit was made of a durable material that could withstand harsh battle conditions, if it wasn’t Marcus wearing it so, they were perfect for Mikey’s strengthening ability.
"Yes, well moving on. This training suit is actually tough enough to withstand most weapons and weak spells but, the key feature I want to show you is its ability to increase the surrounding gravity up to 10 times its normal weight. So it makes a great training tool especially combined with weights," Mikey went on.
"Ho now! I'll take it!" Marcus shouted.
"Perfect, you’re more than welcome to put it on now if you wish," Mikey said hoping Marcus would take the hint.
“Ho now, I’ll wait till after to put it on. The one I’m curtrently wearing should last the rest of the night.” Marcus said implying that the rumors he has to buy a new outfit daily were true while also being completely oblivious to the hint Mikey was trying to point out.
Mikey once more ignored the weirdness as he took another item from the pile.
This item was a wooden training dummy that had been freshly polished. Mikey had found it in a trash bin behind one of the martial arts dojo's. After a bit of spit and polish, he had strengthened it. Once again Mikey couldn’t help but make the correlation with how the leftover intentions of the previous users had influenced the items abilities.
The wooden dummy for example had been made for the intention of being a sparing partner. Countless martial artist had trained with it hours on end, trying to better themselves, pouring strong emotions into it with every punch, kick, or throw. In the end, the dummy had those intentions engraved in it's very being. Mikey supposed that this was the impact that the monk had spoken about.
"This training dummy, is a two branch MMM." Mikey announced with gravitas.
"Ho now, A Two branch MMM?" Marcus said with a confused look be unfamiliar with Mikey’s made up terminology.
"Yes, it implies the item has two additional abilities added to the Mechanism on top of their prodigous strength. MMMs are my main point of sale, thanks to their special qualities any enchantments you may wish to add later on won’t conflict in any way," Mikey said taking a lecture like pose as he placed the giant marionette-like training dummy in standing position.
"The first of its abilities, is that it can replicate all types of fighting including any physical and mana-based techniques. The second, is that it will always be a little bit faster, tougher, and stronger than its opponent. Just add mana to activate," Mikey, said as he stepped back. The memory from the first time he activated it had left a strong impression.
"Ho now!" Marcus cheered as he stood up to the dummy that was roughly his size. Placing a hand on its chest he poured a minute amount of raw mana.
The dummies eyes flashed blue, and a whisper sounded out,”I have no strings on me.”
The next thing Marcus knew, he had a wooden fist in his face.
Yeah, I hate when that happens, Mikey thought as he watched the premier Close Combat Mage hit the ground with loud thump.
Standing back up with a wide grin, Marcus wiped the small amount of blood from the edge of his nose, "Ho now, seems this guy can throw a punch!"
Taking the his personal martial arts stance, the dummy was quick to copy it.
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At an unspoken signal they disappeared, leaving only clouds of dust behind.
They’re speed greatly outstripped what Mikey could see so to him it looked like chunks of dirt would vaporise randomly all around the practicing field. Mikey was going to give them some time to spar until a chunk of dirt a little to close to his feet suddenly disappeared.
After a short scream of Manly Manliness Mikey reached into his robes, he took out a yellow orb the size of a tennis ball and threw it randomly into the air.
As he expected someone broke the plastic capsule containing the foam, coating the person in question in the sticky substance.
"Oh now, what’s this?" Marcus said as he poked the growing foam attached to tiny scraps of clothing he had remaining. When he tried to pull it back, he found that it was firmly stuck to the foam almost as if it were encased in concrete.
The dummy however decided to take advantage of the opening and shot a fist into Marcus 's abdomen only to get stuck as well.
The Fifth-level mage tried to put mana into his muscles to pull out his hand, but that only made things worse as the yellow foam exploded outward until it covered his entire torso, making him fall down to the ground. He tried to struggle but it slowly surrounded him and the dummy till only his face remained visible.
Now that he was sure that he wouldn't accidentally get his head smashed in, Mikey took out a small squirt bottle from its hiding space and walked over to them.
"Sorry about that Mr. Marcus, I’m afraid your fight has taken quite the toll on the practicing field. I’ll have you out of there in a jiffy," the smiling salesman said as indicated to the field that looked more like a pit after their short bout.
"Ho now! How exciting. It's been a while since I fought someone that could match me blow for blow, I suppose I got carried away!" the eccentric man said with a wide grin not even acknowledging the damage to the once peaceful meadow.
The foam dissolved rapidly into nothing thanks to the solution and the man was freed in an instant. "Ho now. How much for him little one?" Marcus said as he stared passionately at the wooden dummy that had gone limp from inactivity.
"Well, as you can tell its high quality piece of equipment and its ability to match whoever it’s facing means you will never have to waste a single dollar on another dummy ever again. It was made from the best materials and the crafting process was both intricate and time-consuming, as such it is no surprise that it will be a little expensive compared to my other products," Mikey said, all the while Marcus was nodding along with his eyes closed.
"Ho now! It is as you say little one! His use as a training partner could not be understated! Fear not, for I have plenty of money, and I’m determined to purchase him," The man said with fire in his eyes, as he took out three identical breifcases from his pack, showing that he had more money than Mikey had first assumed.
Lets see, 4,000 Dollars should be enough right? Mikey thought.
"Umm. Well then I suppose I can part with him, for 4-" the young salesman began to say only to be cut off mid-sentence.
"Ho now, let me guess, 40,000 Dollars right!? Such magnificent training equipment would no doubt cost at least that much!" the man shouted as he began to gather the amount mentioned from his briefcases.
"-Right you are Mr. Marcus! Unbelievable, you guessed the exact amount, as expected of someone with your stunning reputation! Let me just write a receipt and I will hand him over at once," the greedy Mage School student said as his hands flashed inside of his robes and he took out a receipt pad from out of nowhere.
"Ho now,, I think I will call him Stumpy. What do you think Little one!?" Marcus said as he stared warmly at his new training partner.
I don't care if you give it a wig, and call it your girlfriend, just pay me first!, Mikey thought.
"I think that is a wonderful name Mr. Marcus, it suits him," Mikey said with a smile even as he shoved the receipt into his face so that he could sign.
Marcus gave him the money agreed upon and signed the receipt without a problem. Mikey held onto the stack of money like a certain creature did a certain gold ring.
Truth be told, Mikey was glad to finally be rid of that training dummy ever since he woke up to it standing over him in the middle of the night. He had come close to shitting himself when he saw it’s unsettling grin, which should not have been possible, looking down at him. When he had sprung out of bed, he threatened to turn it into wood chips for Ishitasa’s bedding, before tying it up in chains and sticky foam, then shoving it into the darkest parts of his backpack.
With a weak smile Mikey replied, "Yes, it suits him quite nicely. Would you like to see the rest of the merchandise I’ve prepared for you?"
"Ho now, Of course, let’s see what other gems you have hidden!" Marcus roared still riding the enthusiasm from his new purchase.After taking a breather to calm down he asked, "Ho now, what exactly was that foam from earlier?"
Taking another one of those yellow capsules from the depth of his robes, Mikey was happy to elaborate, "I like to call them Sticky Bombs. It's filled with a foam like substance that activates when exposed to air, and continuously grows bigger by sucking away the captured person's mana. It sticks to any substance making escape with brute force impossible and its elastic nature makes it difficult to tear or damage, the only way to get rid of it is a special solution I carry with me. By the way, these aren't for sale just yet."
Actually, there were a number of ways to get rid of the foam, like burning it with mana-less fire or exposing it with salt water just to name a few. Since elemental spells contained mana, it would just make it worse.
Also, despite calling it a bomb, it was actually an elixir that he had placed inside brittle see-through plastic snow globes. The ingredients needed to make them were a little more expensive, so he could only make a few, but he made sure to place one globe in every single Self Statue manning the shop. If they were ever to be attacked by a customer or someone else, then the orb would activate and spray the offending party in the sticky foam. He kept the very best for himself after all.
"Ho now a great shame, I have no doubt my training could improve ten-fold with such an item! With it, I could attach a boulder to my back and climb the cliffs without the need for mana!" Marcus said passionately, as he clenched his fist and cried rivers of tears at the missed opportunity.
"Alrighty then, moving on. My next item may surprise you," Mikey said as he took out a green pill from a glass jar that gave off a powerful smell of medicine.
"As a mage who specialized in Hand-to-Hand Combat, your body is your greatest weapon. Correct?" Mikey asked the man performing Push-Ups of Excitement.
"It is true, the body is the baseline all combat is built off of. It does not matter what great a weapon you have if you are unable to wield it," he said with a serious face that was a stark contrast to his normally goofy one.
"This next line of products is focused on improving that baseline. For instance, despite how we try, there will always be flaws and impurities that accumulate in the body through age and time. What this pill does, is expel impurities found in the body, I call it ummm- The Green Phoenix Pill!" Mikey said as he forgot to make a name for the pill beforehand.
"Ho now, The Green Phoenix Pill," Marcus looked at the pill in awe. Trusting the word of the boy as he had more than proven himself by manufacturing Stumpy.
"With this kind of medicinal effect you won’t want more than one unlike this next pill," Mikey said as he placed it back in the jar, then took out a new pill. It was a shiny grey ball that looked like a steel ball bearing.
"This is the Iron Tiger Pill, it heals and strengthens destroyed muscle fibers without the need for medical spells. Allowing for reduced resting time and increased training time," Mikey explained.
"Ho now! I'll take it!" Marcus said excitedly.
Mikey was unable to hold back the shark-like grin when he heard those words. "Perfect. Let me just ring you up."
The total was around 16,500 Dollars not including the dummy.
Right now, Mikey was on cloud nine as he placed the money in his iron safe, which was decked out with many different kinds of traps and safeguards.
Now that their business had concluded, Mikey could ask Marcus a few questions he’d been curious about. "Mr. Marcus, if you don't mind, could I ask you some questions about your style of magic."
Marcus, wanting to appear as the wise master he thought Mikey saw him as, nodded sagely, "Ho now, I’m always open to the sharing of knowledge among allies. It is through fresh perspectives we see the most growth after all!"
Snapping his fingers, a Statue began to prepare a quick meal for them. "Please, this way Mr. Marcus, we can talk over a meal if you don’t mind?"
"Ho now, if your food is half as good as your products then I’m in for a treat," Marcus said to the plump boy.
They sat around the marble table Mikey placed outside and waited for their meal, Ishtasa was taking a nap on a pillow placed on another chair.
"Ho now, what was it that you wanted to ask Little one?" Marcus says with an aura of jubilance.
"Seeing as you are the leading expert in this field Mr, Marcus, I wanted to learn a bit about Internal Mana Structures?" Mikey inquired with an eagerness in his eyes.
Taken off guard, Marcus put on a serious expression, "Ho now. You aren't thinking of opening them by yourself, are you?"
The Mage School student waved him off, "No, no. What I want to know is exactly what are they?"
Marcus looked like he was going to shut down the whole conversation before he stopped himself. "Ho now, if it's that much it should be fine. Tell me, what do you know about our mana systems?"
"I know a little. Our mana is generated from our intent, we produce human-aspected mana that we refer to as pure mana. This mana flows through metaphysical veins that are different for every person. Our junctions in the mana veins are similar to one another but only because they assist in our body’s autonomous processes like our heartbeat and hormone regulation," Mikey stopped to look up at the Fifth-level mage's face that hadn't changed from the serious expression.
"We use objects as catalysts to influence our mana to embody different concepts which cause the mana to act in a way matching said concepts. We then manipulate this aspected mana to form spells.” Mikey said, quoting his textbook where the world spell system differed from his own.
The mostly nude man nodded with a seriousness that contrasted his looks before saying, "Ho now, You are mostly correct, Little one. Our mana junctions don’t just assist our physical forms' natural processes they also control them. Without a mana juncture our bodies would fail from know having the information needed to automate these processes."
Picking up a stick to draw in the dirt, Marcus drew an outline of the person with several crossing points. "Ho now, The Structures are artificial mana veins that we form to skip critical junctures in our mana pathways. When people talk of 'Implementing' the Structures, what they really mean is that they’re ripping a hole into two parts of their mana system and connecting these through a mana bridge. Often times these holes will never heal but by doing so a person can force their body to utulise strength typically held in reserve. "
The chubby teen was giving his outmost attention as this was exactly what he was hoping to learn. Even Ishtasa who was faking being asleep had one ear trained on Marcus.
“It is only with enough mana control one can hold their mana in their body after implementing a mana structure. I’ve lost many friends because they weren’t quick enough to figure out how to stop the flow of mana.” Marcus said with a distant look in his eyes.
The more I hear of these Structures, the more dangerous they sound, Mikey thought.
Composing himself, Marcus went on, "The next thing that you should be aware of is that these Structures are manipulating the autonomic nervous system to push the body into overdrive."
Taking the stick, he pointed to the first of the Structures on the diagram that was connecting the head and the spine, "For example, the first of these Structures is known as the Last Resort. A bit of a misnomer. What it actually does is two things, first it floods our bodies with a steady stream of never-ending adrenaline, numbing the pain from any injuries. It then forces the mitochondria in our cells to burn almost all of the glucose stored in our blood system to make more energy," Marcus confessed shocking Mikey greatly.
Now I know why it's considered a forbidden technique. You are literally butchering yourself every single time you use one of these Structures, Mikey thought with a grimace.
The Fifth-level mage nodded, "The second the Last Respite, connecting the spine to the heart, removes the restrictions that control our heart rates and in turn the heart will increase blood flow. The user will usually overheat at this point from a combination of blood pressure and overworking of the mitochondria."
"So you are forcing a heart attack every time you use this Structure is what you are saying," the teen concluded. The heart could only take so much stress after all.
"I never knew the Structures had such a dark secret." Mikey commented.
Marcus hesitantly asked, "Ho, now. Should I stop?"
Mikey shook his head, he wanted to know the rest.
He spoke in the most serious voice he could manage without a voice crack, "Please, go on. I want to know everything."
Like that, the afternoon was spent. Mikey learned everything there was to know about the Structures without actually experiencing them himself.
Standing up from his seat, he walked in front of Gai, then he gave a 90-degree bow, "Thank you."
"Huh?" Marcus said as he hadn't expected that.
"It seems I was not wrong about you Mr. Marcus. This noble persona of yours- this willingness to sacrifice yourself for your teammates and your City-State, I don't think I will ever meet someone that is more fit for the title of mage. On behalf of everyone in the City-State that you have protected I want to say… thank you!" Mikey spoke with as much gratitude as he could manage while staring down at the floor.
In the blink of an eye, Marcus had wrapped him in a bear hug.
"Gahh!" Mikey yelped when he felt the tears on his cheeks. With a quick spell he switched with a nearby Self Statue.
Wiping his cheeks clean he made to excuse himself, "You know what, let me check on our meals, they should have been done by know."
Actually, that's a good question, just what exactly has that statue been doing this entire time?, Mikey thought.