Peers

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Chapter 3: Peers

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I woke up submerged in water breathing through the chamber-supplied oxygen mask, the wounds from my regular morning beat-down session throbbing. But I could feel the medicinal water working its magic, the body aches growing duller by the minute. It seemed to have healed the worst of my injuries before I woke up which explained why I could breathe without feeling my ribs howling in protest.

It wasn't very often that I slept through entire healing sessions – though it all depended on how badly Escar knocked me into unconsciousness, which was to say: very badly. The only plus to our sparring sessions outside of the zenkai boost was that I got another person to talk to besides Abbot.

My conversations with the elderly man were few and far between on account of him being very, very busy or simply a recluse. But he would make it a point to stop by every once in a while and talk to me about life. On the one hand, I got where he was coming from. It was by no means healthy for me to be pushing my body to the brink every single day for months on end and shun interacting with the rest of the world, but it was simply the fastest way for me to get stronger.

I hadn't the foggiest idea what was out there – none of my knowledge checked out – and besides being able to name a handful of the races on Sadala, getting stronger was the only thing I could do. All the while there might be an intergalactic megalomaniac thousands of times stronger and crueller than Freeza, Cell, Majin Boo, or even Omega Shenron could ever be. Sure, a small part of me was psyched at the idea of fighting them but the rest of me was scared completely witless. I just got my new life; losing it isn't at the top of my to-do list.

In the end, this was always a short-term thing. There would be a limit to how strong I'd be able to become via Escar beating on me anyways. I could feel it every time I woke up. My returns from the injury diminished ever so slightly as the gap between Escar and I closed little by little. But every incremental jump in strength was like a shot of espresso injected into me. I just couldn't get enough of it. The very idea that I could reach the apex of Saiyan strength brought the most childish of grins to my face.

Stifling a yawn, I enjoyed the warmth of the chamber, its metallic noises and shudders soothing me as I waited for it to finish. I remained still until I heard the faint gurgle of water and cracked a relieved grin.

I spread a fair amount of ki around my entire body – standing inside the now-empty tank – and expelled it out with a sharp exhale. Perfectly dry, I leisurely walked out of the chamber, not tracking a single drop of medicinal liquid with me as I bent over to pick up my clothes from the tiled floor. My lips curved upwards. This was it. I could feel the power just out of reach; greater than it was before. I pulled a tank top over my head and let it slip away into myself with practised ease.

The standard monastery-issued robe had lasted me about three months before I decided that I simply couldn't bear the coarseness anymore. All things considered, Abbot was surprisingly calm about it, telling me that I wasn't the first to say so and that he'd put down a batch order of kid-sized shirts, tank tops, and trousers. The monastery dōgi, though, I had no problem with. It was a simple but incredibly comfortable open-chested black vest, tied together with a brown belt, and accompanied by black and brown laced boots and wristbands.

But ever since I stopped wearing the robe, Callio wouldn't stop shooting me death glares. He wasn't exactly warm towards me before that but at least he didn't look at me as if I'd insulted his mother. I puzzled over his shift in attitude for a couple of minutes longer as I jogged out onto the courtyard, spotting Avaco mid-way through his lesson with the three other children, the sides of their gi hanging down their waists, leaving their tanned upper bodies bare.

"Ah, Korn!" the intimidatingly tall monk boomed, his voice reaching me from the start of the dirt path near the main building.

About halfway through it, I gave up jogging at a regular pace and fuelled my limbs with ki, blitzing my way towards him. "Hey, Avaco! How's life treating ya!"

He looked at me appraisingly, his lips curving up. "I'm well… and you've grown stronger again. If I had to ballpark it, I'd say you're a fair bit stronger than Tato."

My gaze moved to a taller-than-average and thickly muscled boy standing protectively beside Callio. Now, that wasn't really saying much since Bage, Callio, and I looked like toddlers despite all being ten, but he easily towered over all three of us. He was probably a Tuffle hybrid if anything. Turquoise eyes narrowed challengingly and he jutted his chin outward as if daring me to strike first. I did my best to give him a disarming smile, sticking my hands up beside my head.

Avaco snorted before a more serious expression crawled across his face. "And while I… disapprove of your method, I can't say that it doesn't work. Though do take some time off to simply live. If not, then what are you training for? Power? And what happens after you attain it?"

I nodded my head, understanding his point. That being said, I couldn't help but feel a flash of annoyance. The smile on my face didn't quite reach my eyes, I'd imagine. "Thank you. I'll do my best."

"Good," was all he said, gesturing that I join the others. I stood next to Bage and hurriedly rolled down my shirt to waist height. Avaco ran his eyes over the line and clasped his hands behind his back, slowly pacing back and forth. "Listen up boys. With the annual Sadalan tournament and its new junior division now only a week away, you – alongside us adults – will be representatives for the monastery."

For a moment, I sneaked a glance at the three kids. Callio stood up a little straighter, with Tato mimicking him and Bage simply rolling his eyes at the two.

"Your fists must be swift. Not a movement wasted. And above all else, you must fight together."

I narrowed my eyes. "Isn't this supposed to be a martial arts tournament?"

"For the first round at least," Avaco carried on. "With the population of Sadala and the sheer number of people of different races and creeds wanting to join it, the first round of the tournament will be a fifteen-minute battle royale. Anyone left standing after the timer runs out advances to the second round."

I reflexively raised my hand, earning a curious look from Avaco. He raised an eyebrow. "...Yes?"

"Wouldn't that mean we'd have to learn to fight together?"

"Indeed."

I frowned and folded my arms. "And then later on, we'd have to fight apart – and possibly against each other – meaning we'd end up knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses better than anyone else."

The bald man cracked a grin, his tail lashing wildly. "That just makes the ensuing battle all the more challenging."

"...True enough," I grinned at the prospect. There weren't any real stakes in the tournament so it wouldn't be a problem. "Question is: what do we do now?"

"For today, I will have each of you spar one another in turn. That way, you become familiar with how you all fight, but also so that I can see how to best fit you all together."

My grin widened even further once I realised I'd be fighting someone who wouldn't punt me across the sky and then make me eat dirt. I dashed across the field, standing a little bit away from the group, cupping my hands over my mouth and yelling, "Who's first? I volunteer!"

"Bear in mind that I said spar, not fight. The entire point of this is to learn. If I wanted you to beat each other into oblivion, I'd do it myself." Avaco turned his head and glanced at the three boys. "Now… does anyone else want to volunteer or should I choose for you?"

"...No," Callio stopped a couple of metres away from me, crossing the field in a matter of seconds and raising several dust clouds on his way. "I'll do it."

More than a little interested in his decision, I faced him, seeing nothing but determination in his steely brown eyes. A little awkwardly, I approached and stuck out a hand for him to shake. "Let's have a good one, yeah?"

He stared at it as if it were some strange foreign object, eventually clasping it before looking at me. "...Sure."

I took my ready stance, clearing my mind of everything but the fight ahead. A searing ki blast wailed as it cut through the air above us, signalling the start of our match. Callio opened his mouth a little before he slammed it shut. Whatever he was about to say wouldn't reach me anytime soon.

His lips pulled back and revealed gritted teeth as he sprung into action. I ducked underneath an elbow to my face, slamming my fist into his stomach in return. It buried itself deep into the unprotected flesh and I smirked at the sensation. There was no way he had time to reinforce himself with ki. He gasped and the air escaping him tickled my nape as I pulled back.

"I've always wanted to try that," I murmured with unrestrained glee. It wasn't as brutal as the punch Goku threw against Freeza, but the connection was solid.

Callio's eyes widened in outrage and I roared, pushing my ki out through my palms in the form of a blast of air. He tumbled across the dirt, managing to right himself and leap into the air. I rocketed up to meet him, closing the gap before he could pepper me with any ki blasts. He struck out with a kick and I brought my forearm up to block it.

"You've got some strong legs there. Any chance you could tell me how you train 'em?" I smirked despite my elbow digging into my ribs.

His frown deepened as he leaned against me with his leg. I sensed a spike in his ki, grimacing as I hurtled towards the ground. My vision was a kaleidoscope of all sorts of colours, sounds, and smells. Digging my hand into the dry earth, I flipped upright, cupping both my hands above my head.

"Woah, that was…" I heard Bage's voice drift over. "Callio! Watch out!"

A wave of yellow ki rushed towards him and a flash of light and deafening explosion was all I could hear and see for a solid few seconds. The smoke cleared to reveal a burnt and blistered Callio. My lips twisted upward at his warning. It was way too late. Sailing through the smoke, I slipped behind him and brought my hands together and slammed him down. He hit the ground so hard that it cratered, pushing him deep into the earth and out of sight.

I hovered above it, waiting for him to burst out at any moment. When he didn't, I stretched out my senses and felt for his ki. Bright blue light shot towards me and I narrowly dodged it by flying up. My jaw dropped as dozens of similar ki blasts fanned out around me, more joining them from the crater below.

"Shit…" I grunted, eyeing the bobbing orbs warily.

It was a smart idea. He'd swarmed me with ki blasts and then suppressed his ki, rendering my senses useless. But at the present, I had bigger things to worry about – like how to avoid fiery death and destruction.

Suddenly, they hurtled towards me and I dropped like a stone, heat washing over my head and back. I aimed for the crater, ki building up in my hand, yellow light escaping between my fingers. Callio streaked out of it, little more than a blur of black and brown.

He struck out against my shoulder with a heavy kick and the blast spun out of my hand wildly, disappearing off into the distance. He stopped to stare blankly at the quickly vanishing ball.

I clenched my hand to stop it quivering. "Let's hope we didn't just kill someone with that, yeah?"

"What?" his head whipped around and he glared at me, closing the distance, the fight starting up once more.

He struck out with a jab that I sandwiched between my bicep and forearm, yanking him towards me. I flooded my muscles with ki, effortlessly spinning him around dozens of times over, eventually letting him go. He cut through the air like a meteorite. My aura sparked to life and I took off after him. Callio's knees slammed into the ground, cracking it, and he barely managed to roll out of the way of the punch descending on his head.

The earth splintered, dust escaping through the cracks. Buried almost elbow-deep into the ground, I brought up my other arm, blocking a front kick to my head. He lashed his foot out again and again. With each kick, I could feel my arm forcibly being pulled out of the earth. He brought up his knee to kick at me again and I tore my arm free, grabbing his leg with both hands and sending him across the courtyard. Back on his feet, Callio dashed towards me and I sprung up, ready to intercept.

"I think that's enough," Avaco blurred into focus between us. "Fifteen minutes are up, after all. Besides, I can see that Bage and Tato are itching to go at it."

I pushed my arms through the sleeves of my shirt and used the brown obi to tie the two sides together. "Yeah. That's fair," I walked up to Callio, offering him another handshake. "So, are we cool now or do we have to fight some more?"

He shook it, a little less hesitant than before. Confusion furrowed his brow. "I… still don't understand you, but I won't say no to fighting you again."

I laughed at that. "What don't you get about me?"

He shook his head, a smile slowly crawling across his face. "Nah, never mind."

"Okay!" Avaco clapped. "Next up: Bage and Tato!"

I took a seat on the far end of the field, Callio sitting down a few spaces to my right. It felt less… tense around him now. As if he'd stopped staring at me without about as much intensity as I did food after training. I looked over at him, his focus set on the ongoing spar between the two boys.

It was clear that Tato was holding back quite a lot. But then again, so was I. The point of the exercise wasn't to faceplant your partner into the ground, it was to gauge each other out and have a chance to show your stuff whilst noting down anything useful. For instance, I'd realised that Callio favoured kicks more than he did punches and that Bage loved to dart around and be as slippery as an eel. Tato simply brute-forced his way through everything the other boy threw, tanking blasts and hits if it meant that he could dish it back tenfold.

As the spar dragged on, I gained a newfound respect for the boys. Each had their style – separate from the monastery-taught arts we all used – and had honed them so they fit in seamlessly with it. That, if nothing else, proved to me how insanely talented Saiyans were in combat. It was like an intrinsic part of us that made itself known with every punch we threw.

After a while, I leaned back on my hands, simply tracking the fight by sensing the two's ki, enjoying the sensation of the sun on my skin. They'd decide to move at speeds too fast for the eye to see anyway. Now and then, I'd hear the clashing of their fists, or the somewhat distant explosion of a ki blast and found myself oddly relaxed by the sounds as I waited to be called up again.

All the while, I wondered what the older monks were making for lunch.

(Break)

"Focus," Abbot's voice echoed through the empty room situated at the very peak of the monastery, three levels above the healing chamber and one above the halls of residence and nourishment.

Scant rays of sunlight forced their way through the cracks in the stone roofing, their warmth an odd thing in the cool and damp room. I heard a larger body shift and grumble from beside me (probably Tato), followed by the hushed but harsh rebuke from another (that must be Callio). Someone snorted at that and then yelped as a soft thump soon followed.

That one was likely to be Bage being smacked on the head by one of the older monks, I smiled. Not that I was closer to any of the kids my age than I was when I got here, but I'd observed them enough during spars and meditation sessions with Abbot to glean these kinds of things. At least when I wasn't spending the majority of the day in a healing tank.

Every time I stepped out of one, I knew I was stronger. The air felt lighter and I was one step closer to strength. Sure, Super Saiyan felt like a ways away, but not being one didn't exactly diminish my power. I also couldn't help but note the weird sense of displacement I felt every time I stepped out of the tank. It'd feel like only a moment had passed since the sun had begun its ascent. Then a blink of an eye would pass and I would realise I had missed the sunset and that the monastery was readying itself for dinner.

"Let your inner power guide you. Seek it out and let it flow around your body," Abbot's instructions continued despite the disturbance. I cracked an eye open and spotted him levitating in the air, a soft lavender glow surrounding him. "Familiarise yourself with it – focus, Korn. Do not let your mind wander, else your power will swiftly follow."

My eyes snapped shut immediately and I did as asked. I barely had to stretch out to reach it, shivering slightly at the pleasant surge of energy rushing through my body.

"That's too much, Korn," an older monk spoke from a little further behind me – Avaco, I realised.

I shifted, drawing from the energy at a slower rate than I had before. Gradually, it abated and I spent time experimenting with what was left. Shifting it around my body, spreading it equally across it, and concentrating the power in a single place. A little while later, I lifted my hands, placing them parallel to each other and slowly channelled the energy between them. I must have used too much because even with my eyes closed, I could feel the pressure of the light on my eyelids. Sighing, I slowly pulled it back until it was gone, opening my eyes to a feeble-looking ball of light. It even looked a little transparent.

I smiled and tossed it back and forth between my hands, making sure to replenish it slightly each time it touched either of my palms. There wasn't much else to do in the two-hour-long meditation sessions that Abbot led besides play with my ki. There also wasn't anything I could do to get out of them. Barring Escar, everyone in the monastery had to attend a set amount per week. Probably a special privilege granted by his strength. These days, I bet he was stronger than Abbot.

When it was all said and done, I enjoyed the meditation sessions – even the tail conditioning Abbot put us through at the start of every one. They didn't feel at all long but that was a given considering most of my day passed in the literal blink of an eye. My hands stilled and I slowly pulled the energy from it back into myself, cycling it around my body in whatever way I felt like. When I opened my eyes again, everyone was just about finished, most beginning to stir from their cross-legged spots on the floor.

"We have reached the end of today's session, it seems," Abbot was standing at the front of the room. "And just in time for dinner too. Be on your way, gentlemen. I shall meet you in the hall of nourishment shortly."

I stretched, arching my back as I did, making sure to keep my tail clear of anyone passing. Just as I was getting ready to follow them, Abbot called after me.

"Just a moment if you will, young Korn."

"Yes?" I stopped at the door, half-turned towards him.

"Walk with me," he ambled around me and wandered out of the room, leaving me a tad confused.

I jogged to catch up with him, remembering with some amusement how I did the same thing the first time we met.

"What can I do for you, old man?"

"You know, as much as you're vocal about your distaste regarding Escar, you're more like him than you'd think." the amusement in his voice was as clear as the day outside and managed to bug me. He slowed down his pace to match mine, staring serenely out of the simple, glassless stone windows lining the hallway. "The Sadala annual tournament begins next week, does it not?"

"...It does."

"And how is your training for it going?"

"Pretty good, actually. I'm getting along alright with Tato and Bage. Though Callio seems a bit prickly at times even if he's a lot more open than before."

Abbot chuckled, "It's not due to any fault of his own. That's just how he is. Have some patience with him; he's had a hard life."

I chose not to comment on that and we fell back into an odd silence. Abbot strode along the simple hallway at a leisurely pace, humming a soft tune to himself. I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. I really couldn't tell. There was always a calm steadfastness about him. In his posture, his manner of speaking, and his expressions. Just everything.

"Korn."

I jumped, not expecting the serious tone of his voice. "W-What?"

He let out a long, drawn-out sigh, stopping completely. He turned around, and somehow, even through the blindfold, his gaze felt intense. I gulped a little, consciously making sure to not step back.

"I've tried to be diplomatic about this – especially with the tournament closing in but I will stand aside no longer."

I frowned, my lips pursed in grim anticipation.

"From today, neither Escar nor any of the other monks stronger than you will help in abusing our race's inherent ability to gain strength after recovering from injury—"

"—Wait, what?!—"

He finished, shoulders slumping. "I-I… I do not like to be forceful, but you leave me no other choice, my boy. I have asked you multiple times to slow down. You could have done numerous things such as lowering your sparring sessions with Escar to a few times a week instead of daily, or simply keep yourself from being fatally injured in said spars. You did neither of these things even when they would have cost you relatively nothing."

I struggled to form a coherent reply, coming to a standstill. As upset as I was with his decision, he was right on all accounts. I could have done any of those but didn't. No… it was more accurate to say that I didn't want to. Intentionally curtailing my training felt wrong to me, and now, I wouldn't be able to do so.

"I…" pausing, I rubbed the back of my head, more ashamed at the situation than anything else. "...Nah you're right, Abbot. I could've compromised and as much as I hate to admit it, if I were you, I'd do the same thing."

His lips turned up in a small smile. "I'm glad you are choosing to be mature about this, Korn. At least you differ from Escar in that sense. If he were here, he'd be throwing a fit. But… if I may suggest something, perhaps go and explore the Capital during the week? In these five months you have lived with us, not once have you left the walls of the monastery."

I started walking beside him, peering out at the sprawling city in the distance. Even with the dejection pooling in my chest, I felt the rise of my curiosity. A small pinprick at first, but the longer I stared, the larger it grew. "You know what? That… that might not be a bad idea."