Ember set down her bag, riffling through it until she found the long strips of bloodstained fabric that served as her hand wraps. All around the clearing, Mr. Badger’s trainees were similarly preparing for the evaluation. They spoke in low voices as they stretched, occasionally discussing finals but mainly preparing their strategies for the rotation spar. Many of them—even some of those who were sure to receive a beatdown—sported the jitters of nervous excitement.
Ember licked her lips, pausing as her tongue passed over the cold sting of metal. The cap on her tooth, although small, sat in her mouth like an unfamiliar object. On the other side, the gap left by the other missing canine was still raw.
A blur rushed past Ember, thumping her in the back. “Oof!” she exclaimed, glaring at Jisu. “What was that for?”
“Congratulations on first rank!” the panther exclaimed, purposefully drawing the attention of some of their peers. “I’m jealous of whatever your stipend will be.”
“Be quiet, will you?” Ember hissed.
“Relax,” Jisu said, lowering her voice. “But just because you took the top spot in the freshmen academics doesn’t mean you’ll best me today.”
Ember took a step back, looking at her training partner. The panther was dressed sleekly despite the cool weather, in tight black leggings and a top that only covered her chest. She was barefoot, and the claws on both her hands and her feet had been noticeably sharpened. She’s serious about this… about beating me. Well, that’s why Mr. Badger paired us up, after all.
Ember shrugged, continuing to wrap the fabric around her knuckles. Both she and Jisu had trained separately for the past week outside of class, though their spars during class time had seen Ember winning only sporadically. Meanwhile, she had trained with the reptiles almost daily—with the exception of the day before, which had been used for rest—for a total of nine sessions.
“Attention!” Mr. Badger called, folding his arms over his chest. A small, flighty-looking mammal stood next to him, poised to take notes. “As you all know,” he said, “today is our rotation spar. It will determine who will move to the intermediate class for non-rankers, and who will continue to train with me for the foreseeable future. On my count, you will split into pairs. Billy,” he pointed to the mammal, who looked increasingly concerned, “will inform me when three minutes have passed. You will then have two minutes of rest before finding a new partner. Meanwhile, I will walk between the pairs and make observations.”
There were nods all around. Already, many of the trainees were dripping with nervous sweat. As Ember looked around, she felt surprisingly calm; few were as intimidating as Jisu, and even she did not rival the reptiles or the margay.
“Of course, you will be exhausted,” the instructor continued. “There are nineteen students here, so each of you will be sparring eighteen times. The following matches will be held at the end, for everyone to observe: Lance and Anton; Ember and Jisu; Jamarqius and Simmons.”
Ember glanced at Jisu as their names were announced, receiving a knowing glance in return. She had expected as much; after all, they were among the most likely to be promoted to the intermediate class. Despite her antisocial tendencies, Jisu’s habit of analyzing her opponents had rubbed off on Ember, and she was able to put faces to some of the other names. At the very least, it was a reminder to be especially on guard during her rotational spars with them.
After waiting another few minutes to allow for warming up, Mr. Badger called for the spar to begin. “Hurry, now!” he bellowed, and the students rushed to find a partner, leaving no time to be selective.
Ember was jostled sideways, finding herself facing a pisces as her first opponent. As Mr. Badger counted down from three, she made a quick evaluation of the fish. She had a much heavier build than Naz, with scaleless grey skin and eight whisker-like spines spouting from around her mouth. She’ll be less agile than Naz but have stronger defenses, Ember hypothesized. It wasn’t just a matter of size: if she had learned anything during her misadventures at the Saline Lake, it was that the spines of aquatic animals were likely to be venomous.
Each pair greeted each other in a show of respect as Mr. Badger finished his count. Then, without further ceremony, the pisces swung a heavy fist at Ember’s head. She dodged just in time, feeling the rush of air against her ear. The attempt had left the pisces vulnerable to attack, and Ember swung at her calf with a low kick, careful to keep her distance in case the fish was hiding a finishing move. The kick connected with a thwack, and the pisces backed off, grimacing.
Ember took the opportunity to warm up her strikes. She hit the pisces with two jabs, a cross, and a front kick, pushing her back before she could counter. As per Elliot’s advice, she focused carefully on each movement, pinpointing exactly where it would hit while being mindful of the spines. It wasn’t the type of match that had to be finished early; it was much better to show consistency, ensuring that she wouldn’t take on one opponent just to freeze in front of the next.
Each time the pisces attempted a punch, Ember slipped easily beneath her arm, coming up with an uppercut or hook to her liver. She was careful to conserve her energy, using just enough to make it clear to Mr. Badger that she had the upper hand. When his call of “Time!” came, she was hardly winded, while the pisces had to double over to catch her breath.
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The next round came all too soon, and after, Ember was sucked into fight after fight, each unbelievably fast-paced. The students rushed to find new opponents, panting desperately during the rest period only to have to throw themselves at each other a moment later. Their moves grew sloppy, and it quickly became a test of endurance rather than skill alone.
In many of the spars, Ember had a clear advantage, but she would not characterize her opponents as easy. Nearly all of them had dropped the unpredictable movements characteristic of true novices, and could at least hold out in a casual spar. More than once, she spotted Jisu watching her in between strikes, gauging her condition for their upcoming match. Ember was grateful that she had not yet utilized the grappling techniques that the reptiles had taught her, choosing instead to debut them only when the situation required it.
The rotation spar passed in a blur. When Mr. Badger mercifully called the last round to an end, many of the students dropped to the ground in exhaustion, heaving up what little food they had eaten for breakfast. The instructor looked upon them disapprovingly, allowing only a moment for rest before directing them to form a semi-circle. “Now, we’ll begin the final spars,” he explained. “First up, Lance and Anton.”
Ember rested on her knees, sucking in air. Watching the match would benefit her little, now, so she focused on recovering her strength. With both fighters exhausted, the match finished quickly and Lance was declared the winner.
“Next, Ember and Jisu,” Mr. Badger ordered. Ember stood slowly, doing a mental scan of her physical state. Her condition was relatively good: she was bruised but had sustained few major hits, and her muscles had regained some of their strength in the brief rest period.
Ember walked to the center of the semicircle, facing Jisu. She took stock of her surroundings, verifying that there were no nearby obstacles and checking that Jisu appeared to be in approximately the same condition as herself. Then, she narrowed her eyes, consciously tuning out the spectators and all other distractions.
“Begin,” Mr. Badger ordered. Ember and Jisu shook hands, then stepped back several paces. For a fraction of a second, Ember let tension build in her muscles before striking forward, at full speed, with an axe kick to Jisu’s head.
It was an explosive strike. Ember’s heel connected with Jisu’s body, producing a crack that rang through the clearing. The force sent both fighters skidding apart. Jisu widened her stance, keeping herself from falling as she was pushed back in a cloud of dust. Her arm, now deeply red, was poised above her head where she had managed to block the hit. She panted, her canines visible through her half-open mouth. Behind her fierce countenance, her emerald eyes widened slightly.
Ember scowled. She had put all of her energy into the first attack, her best chance of a quick victory, and it had failed. Jisu quickly corrected her stance, her long tail sticking out behind her for balance. She growled, darting forward to engage Ember in a series of blows.
Ember took a deep breath, raising her fists to her cheekbones and tucking her chin to protect herself from the onslaught. Jisu’s agility overwhelmed her own, leaving her trapped in a defensive position. She kept her eyes trained on the cat’s torso, treating every subtle movement as an indication that a strike was coming. She slipped, ducked, and rolled around the shots, barely managing to dodge. Fists flew passed her head, scraping the skin off of her cheeks, and kicks connected enough to create shallow bruises.
Without warning, the panther sprang into the air, locking her hands around Ember’s neck. Her legs kicked at Ember’s stomach, the long claws tearing at her flesh. Ember twisted, forcing her head from Jisu’s grasp and using her knee to push her off. She retreated quickly, clamping a hand over the wound and feeling warm blood leaking through her fingers. Her tattered shirt fluttered in the breeze, and the back of her head burned where it had been sliced by the panther’s claws.
She glanced at Mr. Badger, giving a slight nod to indicate that she wanted to continue. In front of her, Jisu was poised in a crouch, her canines bared. Bloodloss-induced dizziness blurred the edges of her vision. I’m running out of time.
She took a deep breath, finding the thread that connected her to her instincts. Then, with razor-sharp focus, she let it fray.
Like when she had seen Charlie for the first time, a wave of electricity rushed through Ember’s body. Her infrared sensors activated, overlaying her vision with shades of red and orange. Time slowed down to a crawl, each second ticking by like water dripping from a facet. Her vision sharpened, illuminating Jisu’s features as if through a microscope: the pores on her forehead seeping sweat, a muscle twitching above her eye, and a cloud of warm air hanging from her lips as she exhaled.
Ember darted forward fast enough to hear the rushing of the wind in her ears. Her punch connected with Jisu’s shoulder, hard, sinking into the flesh. The force repelled the fighters apart with a bang.
The panther recovered in seconds, coming at Ember in an attempt to surprise her. This time, though, Ember matched her intensity. The speed and power of the strikes locked the fighters in a bubble of burning hot air. Some of the blows glanced off of Ember’s defenses, lost in space, but others landed with bursts of pain. One of her eyes pinched shut, blocked by a rivulet of blood. Her opponent, too, was growing desperate and dangerous. An opening… I need an opening.
She sucked in a breath as Jisu launched herself forward. The panther’s arm stretched out, poised to strike head-on. Ember forced herself to stay still, to root herself in place until a tenth of a second before impact. Her good eye flicked over her opponent with vivid clarity.
There it is. Jisu had overextended herself—not even by an inch, but enough that she would not be able to retreat in time. Ember’s right arm snapped out, grabbing the back of Jisu’s head and pushing her further into the path of her momentum. At the same time, she sidestepped behind the panther.
With all the speed she could muster, she threw herself at the cat’s back. Jisu tried to whip around, her emerald eye burning with anger, but it was too late. Ember had wrapped her arm around her opponent’s neck, gripping her own bicep to create the unbreakable seal characteristic of the guillotine choke.
Jisu hissed, writhing as she tried to sink her teeth into Ember’s flesh, but her neck was immobilized. Ember tightened her grip steadily. The cat’s claws scratched desperately at her arm, initially glancing off of her scales but then finding purchase and gouging the skin beneath.
Ember closed her eyes, weathering the pain. Jisu stumbled, sputtering, her attempts at dislodging her growing increasingly weak. Then, finally, her knees buckled, sending them both collapsing to the forest floor.