Edge stepped into the guard station and waved to the deputies working in the lobby—a pair of cored fighters whose names hadn’t stuck in his head just yet. Then he made his way through the locker room and walked into the gym.
Melania was already waiting for him while going through a series of drills. Her fists darted out in a blur, unleashing a sequence of lightning-fast jabs that were far more vicious than anything she’d thrown his way… yet. She followed up with a sweeping kick that transitioned into an uppercut, before darting away in a flash.
Edge watched her warmup for a few more minutes before she waved him over. He said hello, took off his shirt and shoes, and then stepped into the ring. There wasn’t any point staining the rest of his clothes with the sweat and blood he was certain to be covered in by the time that they were done.
He took a deep breath, centered himself, and assumed his stance. Alright, Edge. Let’s give this your best shot.
Instead of charging right in this time, Mel stopped to take a long, lingering look at his body, nodding to herself while checking him out. He felt a bit self-conscious from the attention, but he didn’t lower his guard.
When she was done, she looked him in the eyes and said, “You look amazing, Edge. This rate of progression is nothing short of incredible. I can actually see the changes taking place day by day. I’m sure that other people have stumbled onto this method before. But I think you will wind up maxing out your conditioning points faster than anyone I’ve ever heard of.
“If healing skills weren’t so rare, and Doc’s fees so expensive, I’d try it out with our new recruits. A fresh batch volunteered to join us after the mayor’s speech, but most of them are still as green as the sea.”
He blushed at her intense scrutiny, then a bit more when she licked her lips. Mel let loose a throaty chuckle to show that she was teasing, then took mercy on him and got down to business. Maybe mercy is too strong a word, considering that she’s about to beat the ever-living shit out of me.
Right on cue, Mel came in fast and hard, raining endless blows upon him. Although she didn’t stop punching until Edge couldn’t get back up, she explained what she was doing this time around, so that he could learn more from the experience.
While she was working him over, Mel went through the basics of stances and the mechanics of using your own body as a weapon. How to throw a punch and land a kick. When to use an elbow or knee instead. How to protect your vital points, and when to go in for the kill.
Grappling was beyond the scope of their session, but it was still a solid education of the art of the brawl. Not so much the individual moves, which would take time to learn, but practical experience in fighting an opponent who knew what they were doing and intended to do him harm. Edge was sure that if he ever found himself in a fistfight, he would be far less intimidated by the prospect of pain or taking a blow.
This time, he tried punching back whenever he saw an opening. Not because he had any hope of landing a hit, but because he wanted to work on his Control along with Durability. Combined with his largely futile efforts to dodge, he was sure that he was conditioning his Reflex too.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Sure enough, near the end of the session, the messages he was hoping for appeared.
By conditioning the connection between your body and mind, your Control has increased by 1.
By conditioning the connection between your body and mind, your Reflex has increased by 1.
He had a hunch that another round or two would raise all three attributes, and he arranged for another hour of Mel’s services sometime soon. She had to work harder to take me down this time. This method is really paying off.
On his way out of the ring, she stopped him with a hand on the shoulder and said, “One of these nights, you should come and have a few beers with us. Get to know Earl and the deputies better. It will be a good opportunity for you to develop relationships with the key players in town and have some fun along the way.”
Although Edge would rather spend some quality time with Mel alone, he agreed to join them whenever he had time to spare. But it would have to wait until after he passed his exam.
She collected her Credits and showed him where he could take a shower. Then Mel left him to get cleaned up, after one last catcall that had him blushing beet red. He was still getting used to the idea that most people would find him attractive, which had never really happened in his old life.
Given the dynamics of the puppet system, casual relationships were common on Ord, something that he hadn’t wrapped his head around just yet. When Edge stopped to look in the mirror, he realized that he did look better than before. There was a marked improvement since the last time he’d examined his body.
His torso was lean and toned, the contour of each muscle clearly defined. If he was back on Earth, he could have made a living as a model, which kind of blew his mind. It made him wonder how he would look when his conditioning was complete. Something to look forward to over the days ahead.
He still had a few hours left before bedtime and some magicytes in his tank, so Edge decided to keep on going. He walked over to the green and started running on the track.
This time, he focused exclusively on wind sprints, trying to push his body into picking up another point of Speed. Sure enough, by the time he was ready to call it a night, it happened.
By conditioning your body, your Speed has increased by 1.
Hell yes! He came to a staggering stop, fighting for breath, as his exhaustion went to war with the endorphins from his run and the euphoria that always came from watching the numbers go up.
After draining his canteen, he pulled up the conditioning menu to check his progress to date.
Physical conditioning (Attribute points may be conditioned up to five points each)
Power: 2 Reflex: 2 Endurance: 2 Perception: 1 Speed: 2 Control: 1 Durability: 3
Encouraged by his best day of training so far, Edge went back to his room and fell asleep with a smile on his face.