Planet Zandor

Zandor was a planet that had found a balance between martial arts and technology. The individuals of this planet had learned to blend science with martial arts and were able to use one to improve the other. As the years passed and the seasons became recurrent, more technology was developed to improve martial arts and martial artists showed their gratefulness to science by donating some of their income to further scientific research.

Zandor was a planet with a rich history. Legend states that millions of years ago, when the continents were initially one whole and the seas were not yet divided, gods ruled this planet. These gods ruled with tyranny and cared not for the livelihood of the people they claimed to rule. They took what they wanted and destroyed what they could not have. That was until they touched something they were not supposed to touch. That marked the beginning of a war that forever changed the geography of this planet. A war that marked the rise of the human emperor.

Legend speaks very little of the human emperor and what became of the gods after they had lost the war. One thing it makes clear though is the disappearance of the human emperor. According to the great sages and the books they left behind, the human emperor left after the war and he hadn't been sighted since. Zandor is now without a protector. She is more vulnerable than she has ever been but that is okay. The gods are no more and the war ended several millennia ago. Unfortunately, no one knows whether these legends are true or just a means to explain the things science could not.

This planet was not a large one. It had only five continents and 3 seas. Each continent was united and were a single entity. Hence, there were only five major countries, each with their own rules and each had their own set of skills. The Eastern and Western countries were famous for their fighting skills, whereas Northern countrymen were renowned scholars and tacticians. The Central country had the best healers in the entire world and the Southern country's understanding of science and technology had long left the other countries in the dust. This did not mean that the Western country had no scientists or that the Northern country had no fighters. For instance, though the Northern country had weaker fighters, they made up for that weakness with their shrewd thinking and supreme intelligence.

Although each continent was owned by a country, many parts of the world had not yet been explored. Most of these unexplored areas were not left unattended to due to the lack of interest but fear. These areas had been explored before but none of the explorers returned. No matter how skilled the team was, they never returned to give a report. This struck fear in the hearts of the countries and caused them to proclaim these areas as forbidden grounds.

There was only one country that still sought to explore these lands, the country of science and technology- the Southern country.

Of these forbidden lands, the most bizarre was a forest dubbed the 'Forest of the Slumbering Gods' by the major countries. It was situated at the border of the Eastern country and was filled with huge trees that were hundreds of feet tall. Initially, the Eastern country was thrilled when they discovered this forest.

The size of the trees and the wide range of the forest meant they would not have to worry about wood for a long time. Unfortunately, they could not cut down a single tree. Initially they assumed that the problem was with their technology and sent some of their most elite of fighters to deal with the issue.

To their delight, they were finally able to cut down a few trees. However their joy was short lived. The very next day, the fighters who bought down the trees were dead. Their skins were pale and wrinkled with very little flesh remaining to cover their muscles and bones. Most bizarre was the fact that the cut trees had miraculously recovered and looked even taller than before.

A few more tries led to the same result and the forest was labelled as the most dangerous of all the forbidden grounds!

Occasionally, a few loud noises and sounds that signified a battle between people could be heard from the forest. People concluded that it was the spirits of the gods still battling with the human emperor and hence the name of the forest.

What many perceived to be the home of the gods was the home of a little boy. This little boy was training in a series of strange movements. He seemed to be about eight years and had a dubious complexion. He could not be considered white or black. He looked like a light skinned Black American. He had wavy black hair with strips of blue hair interweaved with the black. His hair extended to the back of his neck with a few locks of his hair covering one of his eyes.

This boy had a rare trait- he had heterochromia. Heterochromia is a condition in which the iris is multicolored. The iris of his left eye was golden brown with a transparent red ring around the pupil. His right eye shared some similarities with his left, the only difference being the presence of a blue- not red- ring around his pupil.

The boy was following the lead of the originator of these movements- a middle aged man with deep blue eyes. The boy's tutor was about five feet ten inches tall with a very well defined body. He was not overly muscular or of a lanky build but had a very well trained body that seemed to be filled with just the right amount of strength and speed. He had a blue headband that covered the entirety of his forehead and extended into his brown hair. However, the most noticeable feature of this man was his metallic right forearm. The metallic forearm was fused to the man's arm at the elbow joint and functioned just like a regular arm. This arm was made from black metal, harder than anything the boy had ever seen and weighed at least twenty five kilograms.

Unfortunately, no matter the number of times the boy pestered the man to tell him the name of the black metal, he never received the answer. All he received was a smack to the shoulder and the words, "Stop sweating the small stuff and concentrate on your studies".

Watching the young boy's movement the man spoke, "You have improved massively Race."

Race had a smug smile and was about to say something when he received an all too familiar smack to his left shoulder. "Don't look so smug little brat. You still have a long way to go."

Race rubbed his sore shoulder and looked bitterly at the man. The man's expression softened upon receiving his bitter look and rubbed Race's hair as a consolation.

Unfortunately, Race was not pleased with this action and shifted the man's hand from his hair. The man laughed heartedly at the young boy's antics but did not do so for long. "Damn Oldman. You're always messing up my hair. I know you are jealous of my beautiful hair but you don't have to…."

Race's speech was cut short by another smack to the shoulder which caused him to grimace in pain. "How many times do I have to tell you to call me Grandpa Winks!" he exclaimed in frustration, not bothering about the fact that an eight year old had just used a curse word.

"Or do you want me to call you little monkey again?" Race flinched at the threat. Race's hair was so thick that it covered a large portion of his head with a few of locks of hair falling onto his face and shielding one of his eyes.

He did not know why his grandfather had such a poor naming sense but he kept calling him little monkey until they both agreed to call each other by their actual names.

"Old- sorry. Grandpa Winks, I feel as though I am missing something from this technique. I seem to have gotten everything right but I feel as though I am not bringing out the full force of the technique", Race said in an obvious attempt to change the subject.

Grandpa Winks ignored the boy's initial blunder (almost calling him an old man) and spoke in a dignified manner,

"You need to understand the essence of this technique. Nature's bane is a technique that involves understanding nature itself. You must become a friend to nature and yet be its enemy at the same time. Understanding nature to destroy it. That is the essence of this technique."

Grandpa Winks looked to his side to ensure that the boy was listening only to see the little brat picking his nose. He smiled bitterly as he wondered were the little brat inherited such a short attention span from.

*SMACK*

After gaining Race's attention, he decided to demonstrate. He took a sideways stand with his right foot in front of the other and lifted his right arm with his fingers straightened like a blade and his thumb resting on his index finger.

For as long as he could remember, Race had never seen his grandfather use his left arm. Initially he assumed that his grandfather's metallic forearm gave him a boost in strength which was why he preferred to use his right arm but his intuition screamed that he was wrong.

Race watched his grandfather drop his right arm in a nonchalant manner as the winds howled and the air around him became chaotic. He shielded his face to protect his eyes and opened them to a wondrous sight. The large trees from before had been parted with those in the middle destroyed.

There was a large dent where these trees formerly claimed as their territory and established their roots. Even with his superb vision he could not identify how far or deep the dent stretched. Race knew his grandfather was strong but this… He sighed as he recalled the dent he had made in on tree and the other tree he had snapped in half during his training as he thought,

"Indeed I have a long way to go."

Grandpa Winks smirked when he saw the gobsmacked look on his grandson's face. Race had never shown this expression before. The little brat only praised him concerning his cooking skills and nothing more. He took out his mobile phone from his back pocket to take a picture. He wanted to brand the boy's expression as a fond memory he will always carry.

Grandpa Winks was returning the phone to his pocket when he realised something. The boy was still looking at the dent. He turned to the location the boy had his eyes glued on and realised something astonishing. A little bird was flying through some of the leaves left from the destruction.

With his eyesight he realised that the bird was moving in such a manner that it did not touch any of the leaves! It seemed as though it was having some difficulty due to how closely it dodged the leaves but Grandpa Winks knew that was not true. This bird had developed its own movement technique!

His lips twitched at the realization of another vital point. Race was not impressed with his skill. The little brat was admiring the small bird! He lifted his right arm and swung it at the boy's shoulder.

*Smack*