I rushed in again. This time I was ready. The cane moved up to intercept me, but I used my left paw to intercept his blow and deflect it. Gary took a step back as I moved in but didn’t attack while he pulled back his cane.

Stepping forward, I slashed out again. Gary side stepped out of the way, but I was stepping to the side as well as his cane lashed out. My other paw moved up and deflected the blow. I moved in, he stepped back while recovering his stance.

I felt the skill Claw Combat adjusting my movement, improving and letting me know what I was doing right or wrong. It was a subtle push, but my understanding was rapidly increasing. My wrist needed to twist more to deflect his blow better. My hind paws need to use their claws to increase their leverage. My tail needed to twist and turn in a certain way to adjust my positioning to counter Gary and attack him.

Striking out again, I focused on carving his chest, but pulled back and adjusted my position. His cane was pushed aside, and my other paw darted forward. Right before I struck him, his free hand darted up and struck the center of my paw. It spasmed and the claws retracted, and all the force behind it was lost. He struck out with his free hand again, but I had already retreated, his blow sweeping through the space I had just vacated.

I looked at my paw which was still spasming and then at Gary who smiled. “Congratulations. One point for forcing me to use my nerve strike. You wish to continue?”

“Yes,” I replied without hesitation and rushed in again as Gary smiled serenely at me. This time, there was no hesitation on either side between exchanges. Gary constantly striking out with his cane and his paw, deflecting and attacking while I did the same for my claws.

I could feel the knowledge flowing into me as part of the Claw Arts. My strikes became more precise, my movement crisper. I began to circle Gary, using the minute adjustments while he turned to create openings, forcing him to act and counter.

The pace kept up for what seemed like forever, but it was just seconds, then half a minute. I kicked out, hoping to catch the old mouse by surprise, but he dropped down to the ground, and tackles by other leg. I went crashing to the ground as he raced next to me jabbing his tiny little paws into my body.

Each blow delivered immense amounts of pain as my entire body shook and spasmed. “Accck!” I couldn’t even scream properly.

“That was well done. Paladin Bloodclaw, has she had prior training?”

“No combat training, no fighting. I have asked,” he replied.

“Truly impressive. The natural instinct of a cat forced me to put in a bit of effort.” The spasms began to subside. “Next,” Gary said and moved to the side, leaving me lying on the ground. While I had earned a point, I felt frustrated I hadn’t been able to strike him.

I slowly got up as Gary went back to just striking creatures with his cane, not even using his paw to strike their nerves. He was just playing around. Fenrir was a wolf, so I didn’t feel bad about losing to him. But Gary was an old mouse. The fact he had easily defeated me was humbling, which was probably the point.

There had been a slight bit of me that had been thinking I could defeat him with Mes and the skills aiding me. While I had improved, Gary was just that much better. My entire body ached as I got back to my feet, still twitching from his blows. Kicking hadn’t been a mistake, but I hadn’t been ready for him to drop to the ground like that.

But that was what training was for. To learn these things and be ready next time. Gary was brutal and soon, all the others in my cohort were defeated and no one was getting back up after their brutal beatdowns. I stepped forward again.

“Oh, back for more,” Gary asked me with a smile.

“Yes,” I replied, my body under my control again. I advanced and struck out. I began adding short kicks in the mix, carefully paying attention in case Gary dropped to the ground again. He was content dodging and pushing my attacks away with his cane.

I increased my tempo, and he easily matched me. I didn’t allow for any openings that he could exploit without taking a counterattack in return. He was content to just match me and counter. I wanted to lunge at him in frustration, but even without my skill, I knew that was a bad idea.

Throwing in more feints, I tried to make him over commit, but he was careful as well. He never let himself get over extended or put his body at risk. After a minute of back and forth, I was breathing heavily and slowed down slightly.

That was when Gary acted, pressing the attack. It was all I could do to defend and retreat, but he didn’t let up in the slightest. I swung a paw at him, and he leapt into the air, his cane tossed away. His hands struck my arm as he flipped over my shoulder, landing strikes down my back and my leg.

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I instantly collapsed to the ground, screaming in pain no matter how much I tried to stop myself. He slowly went over and picked up his cane. “If you increase the tempo, make sure you can sustain it or are able to retreat. You over committed yourself to attacking and didn’t have any energy left afterwards.”

“It is always impressive to see you fight,” Paladin Bloodclaw said as he came over.

“Thank you, but my age is catching up with me. I only stuck her five times. In my prime, I would have landed eight strikes with that move before I landed on the ground. If I pushed myself even ten strikes might have been possible.” He was a monster. A monster disguised as a mouse.

“Age comes for us all,” the Paladin said. Well not me, according to Mes if I purchased more life.

“Cats are always tricky fighters. Their natural instincts are quite strong. Who are you bringing in next?” Gary asked.

“Southpaw has volunteered. I am inclined to say yes,” Paladin Bloodclaw responded.

“He is brutal and relentless,” Gary replied.

“It is good training. You can’t learn to fight by hiding away and just copying moves,” Paladin Bloodclaw replied stoically as I finally began to get my body back under control.

“True. They do need a lot of work to hone their instincts,” Gary replied as I slowly got to my feet, breathing heavily and trying to get control of my arm. I settled into a stance and brought up my paws. They both looked over at me.

“Master Assassin Gary, I am still able to continue,” I replied.

“I won’t be kind, since I am a bit tired,” Gary replied.

“I don’t expect you to be. But I can’t let this opportunity to improve how I fight pass me by,” I replied.

“Very well. I shall go all out, right from the start. Brace yourself cat!” Gary rushed at me, and threw his cane in front of him. I tilted my head to the side to avoid the projectile as he came into my range. I struck out, making sure to place my claws in the face of any counter strikes.

Gary dodged to the side and my attacks easily. After three missed swipes, he ducked in close on my fourth and I couldn’t retreat fast enough as his paws struck my legs at the same time. My muscles spasmed and I collapsed. He raced over me, delivering blow after blow to my body and limbs.

I couldn’t move. The pain was too much, and my throat had locked up. It was hard to breathe. “You lasted ten seconds against me. Not bad. You read the flow of combat well. But your decision to keep pushing when you are not capable should inform you of your limitations.”

Just before I blacked out, my throat opened up and I gasped for air. “I always welcome a challenge. Train hard and you might be able to match me in a decade or two,” Gary chuckled as he walked away to pick up his walking stick.

“Everyone stand up and get over here,” Paladin Bloodclaw said. I was the last to get into position, dragging myself part of the way until I could get my feet under me. He didn’t say anything as I unsteadily stood in front of him along with the other creatures of my cohort.

“Tomorrow you will train against Master Assassin Southpaw. The rest of the day is yours to recover and train how you wish,” Paladin Bloodclaw said and then left.

“You got guts Mittens. Facing that mouse,” Sharpfang said.

“Were weapons meant to do anything?” Mary asked.

“The idea is to find what works best for us. They aren’t going to hold our hands. If we aren’t at Mittens level by the time of the final evaluation, we will be let go or offered a Trainee position most likely,” Knaves said.

“Well, we can train against each other. As long as both creatures agree it isn’t sabotage,” Blackfur suggested.

“I don’t think so. They might hurt us, but nothing crippling. I wouldn’t be able to hold back,” Shiversnout replied. That was an excellent point. I hurt too much and was exhausted at the moment. I walked off towards the obstacle course outside. I wasn’t in the mood to push myself any more.

‘Avatar. Interface,’ I mentally focused on the command and Mes appeared and had the interface appear in front of me. The cameras wouldn’t not be able to see anything since I knew the gray stone was buried in my personal items in my room, inside a small dresser. There was no point to have a camera in there and the light wouldn’t leak out.

Experience: -18,500 EXP

Features: Interface, Avatar, Skill Attunement

T1 Skills: Movement (47/100), Listening (33/100), Balance (29/100)

T2 Skills: Danger Sense (18/100)

T3 Skills: Claw Combat (12/100)

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‘What can I help you with User Mittens?’ Mes asked me as they floated around in front of me.

‘Anything you can do to help make me better?’ I asked mentally. It was nice to see the numbers go up, but I was still struggling. I wanted to win, to be stronger. But the losses I had experienced put me in a bad mood.

‘My hands are tied. If you want more EXP, kill some creatures. Your skills are improving.’

‘That isn’t enough. You must know how easily I was defeated. There was nothing I could do against the nerve strikes.’ Mes was silent as I continued walking, not making any sign I was talking with them.

‘A skill would be sub-optimal to counter those attacks. What you need would be another feature to improve your body through various purchases afterwards. But it isn’t cheap, and I can’t give it to you on credit when you haven’t accomplished anything.’

That was frustrating. I wanted more skills, more features. I could feel the constant improvement that flowed through me while fighting Gary. ‘How can I improve my skills more quickly?’

‘Use them in a range of circumstances. Refine your actions. Adjust your actions. Change your actions. Claw Combat isn’t just about fighting but defending. You only defended yourself from a cane and the small paws of an old mouse. No serious weapons.’

It pained me to admit it, but Mes was right. I was being greedy and unfair, but I hated getting beat up. I didn’t want to kill them, except maybe Fenrir, but it felt like school, only more physical. ‘Anything to help me heal?’

‘Nothing that you can afford.’ The story of my life.