The young girl known as Madison stood up in the crib and looked at the door as she thought of her new family. Her childish joy disappeared as she looked at the world with forty-nine year old wisdom.
Emotionally she was still seven months old, and she knew it. She had all the desires and feelings of a seven month old baby. But her knowledge had remained the same. She knew how to talk, write, drink, ride a bike... both kinds bicycle and hog, drive a car, how to get a good deal in Northern Louisiana, how to please a woman... 'I don't think I'm going to be doing that for a couple decades or so' she thought, ect., ect..
But more importantly she still knew how to fight. The 'Extra Skill' had worked. And she now had the knowledge of a Grandmaster of Anything-Goes Martial Arts. Before her knowledge of the Art had only extened to Master level in her school. Yeah because Pops and Happosai had done their best to hold her back. Keeping many secrets. Now she had Grandmaster knowledge.
She just had to train this new body, and that would take years. She lay back down and went to sleep. "I'm going to need a training partner." she thought as she drifted off.
---
Two years later...
??/??/1997
As soon as she turned two she had begun basic martial arts training on her new body. Very basic stretching mostly to help with her flexibility when she was older. She of course knew how to do the exercises on herself having the knowledge stuffed into her head. However, she had to be careful. She could seriously hurt herself or even stunt her own growth if she pushed herself too far at such an early age.
---
Quite a few years pass...
??/??/2000
Madison Clements sat at her desk and sighed as she began her first day of school in over four decades. 'Bored.' she thought. 'Bored. I'm sooo bored.' She answered with "Here." when the teacher called her name.
She was busy thinking of other things, like how she missed playing Skyrim with mods, when a name was called that got her attention.
"Taylor Hebert." called the teacher.
"Here." answered a brown-haired girl wearing glasses.
As she stared at Taylor a strange blue aura formed around the girl that only Madison could see. It was strong like hers while everyone else's was weak, not up to their level now.
Madison just stared at her. 'So.' she thought. 'I finally found you Taylor Hebert. And judging by that aura. You're the only one here who could survive my training. Hehehehehehehe. This is going to be such -fun-!'
---
Taylor was sitting alone in the playground. Such as was usual for her. All the others shunned her for 'being a weirdo'.
She was interrupted in her brooding when another girl dragged a cinder block into the area. Then another one. Then another. And another. And another.
The girl then stacked all five blocks atop each other. She then turned to Taylor and said "Watch." Such was the... presence of the girl that Taylor did as she was told.
The girl then punched the top of the top block. All the blocks cracked, broke, and crumbled into dust. The girl then turned and smiled at her.
Taylor just gawked and gaped.
The girl said "I know what you are thinking. And no. I am -not- a parahuman."
Taylor just stared at the girl and said in a quiet voice "T.T..Then H.H....How???"
The girl looked at her and said "Anyone can get that way. Well, if they're healthy enough. All it takes is training. And training. And training. And training. And training. And training. And training. And training. And training. ... You get the idea now."
Taylor just nodded dumbly. She was stunned. That was... impressive.
The girl said "Would you like to be able to do that too? I can teach you to be a marital artist like me. Just accept me as your teacher and I will, after some years, have you doing stuff that most parahumans would gawk at."
Taylor got wide eyes and said "Me? But, I'm just an ordinary girl. I can't possibly become strong like you."
The girl said "Yes you can."
Taylor said "How can you possibly know that?"
The girl said "You are the only one who can. No one else here can survive my training. I have seen it in your aura."
Taylor just looked at the cinder blocks, to the girl, back to the blocks, back to the girl. And then nodded. "Alright. I will then. I accept you as my teacher now."
"Cool!" said the girl. "My first student! Yippee! Oh, by the way. My name is Madison Clements, of the Clements School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts."
---
Some years pass...
??/??/20??
Taylor just looked at Madison and asked "Sensei, what are those?"
Madison said "Rats." and began her task.
Taylor flinched and asked "Why are you tying LIVE RATS in my hair?!"
Madison just smiled, and hit the rats with a mild taser. The rats shrieked, and went active. Clawing, biting... active.
Then Madison leapt to the next roof and said "If you keep running, leaping, and roof hopping you should stay ahead of them. Slow down though. They will bite."
Taylor yelled and started roof hopping to get ahead of the rats.
---
??/??/20??
Taylor looked around the clearing and asked "Sensei, why are we out here now?"
Madison just smiled and said "Here, hold this." and had Taylor pick up a couch.
Taylor just looked at the couch above her head and asked "Sensei, why am I holding a couch?"
Madison then leapt onto the couch causing Taylor to grunt and ask "A couch with -you- on it?"
Madison said "All part of your training." while holding a rope.
Taylor looked at the rope hanging over the side of the couch, down onto the ground, and into the bushes. "Sensei?" she asked.
"Hmmm?" inquired Madison.
"What's the rope for?" asked Taylor.
"Oh." said Madison. "Mmmm... It releases the wolves."
"WOLVES?" asked Taylor.
"All part of your training." said Madison. "Now. Run." as she pulled on the rope.
A pack of snarling, hungry, feral wolves walked out of the bushes.
They spotted Taylor.
And started drooling in hunger.
Taylor started running, ooh yeah.
"SENSEI YOU BITCH!" shrieked Taylor as she ran, the wolves nipping at her flesh.
---
"Sensei?" asked Taylor. "Why are we here? In this old building."
"You're here to learn the Ja Jinku no Apache technique." said Madison.
"What's that?" asked Taylor.
"Well." said Madison. "I lock you in this room, blindfolded, with live rattlesnakes. It is to teach you how to anticipate when something is about to move and strike at you. You will know when the snakes are about to lunge then. Try not to get bitten. These are live snakes and haven't had their poison glands drained. I doubt there any hospitals in Brockton Bay that have the needed proper antivenin."
"W...W...W...W...WHAT?!" shrieked Taylor who noticed her sensei was opening the lid of a container and jumping back from it as out of the lid poured... live rattlesnakes.
Her sensei then quickly put a blindfold on her and Taylor could hear her sensei running for the door. "Hey Taylor, I'm sure you'll do fine. Just remember not to get bitten." And then her sensei opening the door. And then her sensei closing the door.
Then Taylor felt something brush against her leg and heard it hiss. She stood very still. Then a snake leapt at her. She dodged, barely. Then another. She dodged, mostly.
Then many started leaping at her.
Suddenly time seemed to slow down, she could hear as the snake was about to move, and she could almost tell where they were.
She dodged, flawlessly. And again. And again. And again. And again.
---
A few hours later then...
Madison opened the door and watched as Taylor effortlessly dodged snake after snake after snake after snake after snake. Then she released the gas into the room that knocked them out. She went in and removed the blindfold from Taylor.
"Good work my student." she said. "You have done well. Come on with me. This calls for a bit of a celebration! I'll treat you to dinner at Fugly Bob's!"
Taylor just looked at her and said "Sensei you (words I will not repeat here ever)."
---
??/??/20??
Madison said "Today I will teach you the Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken."
---
Taylor winced as she bandaged her red hands.
---
??/??/20??
Madison said "Today I will teach you the Hiryu Shoten Ha."
---
Taylor screamed as she was sucked into the tornado.
---
??/??20??
Madison said "Today I will teach you the Mouko Takabisha."
---
Taylor hissed as she bandaged the burns from the ki blasts located on her body.
---
06/12/2007
Madison smiled at Taylor as the party started up and said "To us, the birthday girls!"
Taylor giggled, rather hysterically though, and said "I survived to see twelve. I survived all. I survived all!" More giggling happened. Then she laughed. The kind of laugh you hear a survivor make. When they realize the danger is over, for the moment, and they -have- -survived-.
(Posted Sun, 13 Mar 2016 08:40)
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