For the rest of the morning the six of them threw each other around and pounded each other with various grappling moves that they had learned from yesterday. Their werewolf form gave them more strength, but it also gave their opponent more to grip and tear at. William had been pared with Achelois and she was vicious in her counter attacks. William found that he had to use all of his strength to do some of the techniques on her that were relatively easy against Nicolas. Achelois was as agile as anything William could imagine from a body that had a six-foot nine-inch frame, and she clawed at him relentlessly when he had her on the ground. William spent most of the time blocking and jerking his head back and forth to avoid her razor-sharp claws. She didn’t seem to be fighting with the reserve of a wolf, she seemed to be fighting with that wild rabid abandon of a trained fighting animal. The whole morning was a little intimidating and exhausting.
When they were finally let go to go back to eat, they had to change back into their human form. William almost turned his back on Katherine, but the words of Efraim from that morning stayed his posture and he closed his eyes. He let the dark wash over him. He felt calm and relaxed and when he opened his eyes he was back in his human form. Katherine didn’t pay attention to any of the boys as she already had on her bra and panties. She was in the process of pulling on her jeans. William heaved a heavy sigh and got dressed as fast as he could.
The four of them walked back to the cafeteria. William was still a little stunned at just how vicious Achelois had been. Nicolas looked like he wanted to reach out and nudge Charles but then though better of it. “Charles was pretty good except when I grabbed his tail and yanked him around on the ground. You yelped like a puppy, man,”
Charles didn’t seem to find the joke funny. He gave Nicolas a withering look but remained silent.
“Hey, don’t look at me like that. You heard Efraim yesterday we are supposed to be learning how to fight. In a fight anything goes.”
William couldn’t help but agree with Nicolas. They were going to face things out there that did not play by any rules that they had heard of. He knew this from firsthand experience. He almost started telling them about the Shadows but decided not to. They would find out about them when Efraim or somebody else decided it was important for them to know. Nicolas had done the right thing for the wrong reason. William let it drop at that.
When they had finished their lunch, they hurried back to their training building. Efraim was waiting for them inside their room. They kicked off their shoes and walked inside. Efraim taught them various forms of punches and how to counter them. He taught them more grabs and throws, and multiple combinations. William was pared with Charles and Nicolas got to work with Katherine. Charles had longer arms than William so William had to rely more on the grabs and counters than he would have had to with Nicolas or Katherine. After that morning’s encounter with Achelois he was grateful for having to rely more on defensive maneuvers.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Charles, for all his height, was quick. His lanky arms shot out at William at all sorts of angles and speeds. William did manage one time to sidestep into a right hook from Charles, grab the man’s elbow, and twist him to the ground. To William it was a revelation. It had happened exactly as Efraim had explained it to them. However, after that one time Charles seemed to increase his speed even more and protect his elbows with the angles of his punches. After several hours of punching, dodging, practicing, and learning how to do it all over again, William and the rest of them were exhausted.
Efraim dismissed them for dinner but they were to come back afterward. Efraim didn’t give them a time limit this time around. William was under no illusion though. He had this gut feeling that the longer they took at dinner they later it would be before they got to go back to their rooms and sleep. After their intensive two days with Efraim the most important thing to William was sleeping. They didn’t dawdle at dinner. They finished quickly but it was Charles who once again led them to stand up and leave the cafeteria. They made their way back to the training room. Efraim was standing there in his bare feet watching them enter the room. “Katherine you’re with William, Nicolas, pair up with Charles.” The four moved into positions facing each other. “You are free to go.” William looked into Katherine’s bright green eyes, not fully comprehending what he just heard. He saw the same uncertainty reflected back at him. He slowly turned his head toward the combat master.
Efraim looked at the four of them. “Or we could stay and work out again, your choice.”
The four of them hurried out of the training building and put their shoes back on. There was very little talking and the four of them split up and went their separate ways. William walked back to his room and in much the same manner as yesterday he ripped off his clothes and dove onto his bed, burying himself in thick furs. But sleep didn’t come easily for him.
He was tired, he still felt full from dinner, but no matter how long he closed his eyes his body would not drift to sleep. The image of Katherine standing naked turned slightly to the side and what Efraim had said about all of them kept repeating itself in his mind. Katherine was a beautiful woman.
Their bodies are tools, nothing more. He held up his hand in front of his face. He flexed his arms and legs under the furs. He had never thought about his body as a tool before. He had never thought about how he viewed the opposite sex’s body either. This seemed to be a theme for this place, respect above all else. Respect for other’s religious preference, respect for one’s personal space, respect for privacy when asked. Everything here spoke of something that he had never thought possible. There was that but also the fact that all the inhabitants of this city were held accountable for their actions.