Agents of the Multiverse

DATE: 06/02/Y2 - 9:30am
LOCATION: The Omphalos's Gymnasium

Steven hadn't been entirely sure about the whole teaching classes thing. He'd taught other kinds of classes before, of course. He was always in and out of Little Homeworld, even these days. Driving, gardening, human culture-- stuff like that. Fighting... fighting was different, though. Connie was better at that kind of stuff. Not that Steven couldn't fight. That wasn't it at all. He could hold his own just fine, more than fine.

But sometimes people got hurt, sometimes they needed to be pushed. Sometimes 'good job' wasn't enough to get them through. Connie always said he was too soft on people, which, yeah, she was right, but Steven liked that about himself. He liked being soft. He liked making people feel safe.

But right now, if he wanted the people around them to be safe and not just feel it, he needed to step up. The AotM didn't have as many teachers as they needed, and Steven had skills that could help save lives. It might not be comfortable, and they'd both be learning new things, teacher and student alike, but he knew he had to get involved or sit with the knowledge that he could have helped and hadn't.

So he had bitten the bullet. Just one class for now, quietly posted up on the Omphalos's Commnet without any fanfare. Steven had half been hoping no one would show. At least, he had been when he had first gotten into the atrium. But about thirty minutes had passed, and he had begun to loosen up with a few practice shots against the targets on the far side of the gym. It was all starting to come back to him, bit by bit. Connie and Lars hadn't had much time for sparring since the Corruption had shown up and turned all of their lives upside down. Neither had the Crystal Gems. They were all just... so busy, all of the time. Including Steven.

But it felt good to be moving his body again, and Steven let it fall into old familiar rhythms. He flowed forward with the grace of long practice, one shoulder twisting forward. The muscles in his back and shoulder bunched, and he let all that momentum carry into his shield. The glowing disk thrummed through the air, a blur of gossamer pink, as it left his hand. It slammed into one of the higher up targets with a satisfying, metallic THUNK before bouncing into another lower down and ricocheting home. Steven caught it with ease, like it was part of him, then let it fly again.

I hope I don't scare them too much, he thought, watching the shield sail in a wide arc over the target range. It clipped one of the dummies in the back of the head, sending it bouncing over, and Steven lifted his hand almost absently to catch it. I know I'm kind of a big guy... An understatement. He was 6'11" and a mountain of heavy frame and soft strength, having apparently taken after his mother in more than just her alien heritage. I wish Lars wasn't out hunting down supplies for Spacetries. He's so good at lightening up the mood, even when he's being sarcastic.

Steven smiled, and threw the shield again.

Especially when he's being sarcastic.

But Lars hated playing teacher. He didn't have the patience for it. At least not without lasers blasting in the background. And Spacetries was important too. Both of their businesses had been struggling since the Corruption had hit. It was hard to get basic ingredients sometimes, nevermind the rarer delicacies that Lars favored for some of his more Filipino forward desserts. But they were managing. Lars practically thrived in environments like Harbor, after all, as much as the AotM frowned upon his visits.

It was a novelty to actually have clothing to choose from, and Nendara may have taken a little more time than strictly necessary to get ready. Dressed in capri-length pants, a breathable t-shirt, sneakers (at least, that’s what the shopkeep had called them), and their cloak (for comfort), they hoped this would be sufficient for some sparring.

Upon arriving, Nendara watched Steven from the doorway for a moment or two, not sure he’d heard them enter with their generally light steps. It was good to have a moment to catch their breath. Since Nendara had been accepted as an Agent, they’d done their best to get the lay of the land, but this was their first time actually going to the gymnasium. After getting ready, they absolutely had not been running around trying to get there on time, but they had certainly been moving briskly.

Toss. THUNK. Catch. Toss. THUNK THUNK. Catch.

Steven’s movements seemed practiced. Effortless, even. Clearly someone who’d seen some combat. Nendara was no stranger to combat either, but they supposed they were lucky that it had been a while since they’d had to use those skills. After leaving their dying world, it had taken a few more days to feel well enough to even want to practice. Nendara was still a little tired, but being back on a world with access to magic was overall revitalizing.

Wait, what am I doing just watching?? I'm going to be late!!

Snapping out of their reverie, Nendara stumbled forward into the room proper before snapping to attention as she’d seen guards do. “I’m sorry if I’m late, Agent Universe! It won’t happen again! I’m here to attend your class!”

Not knowing what they’d need, they’d come armed with their bow, arrows, dagger, and pouches of seeds. Although they worried that the arrows and dagger might be too much, but, they’d defer to Agent Universe’s instructions.

Heh, Agent Universe. It's something he and Connie would have loved to pretend back when they had been kids. Secret agents fighting through time and space. Even now, despite it all, the title sent a little thrill of adventure racing down Steven's spine, even as the weight of the meaning of it loomed large behind the feeling.

"Just Steven's fine," Steven said, not unkindly. He lowered his shield and padded over to the comparably much smaller being. They looked fairly human, but the pointed ears suggested maybe otherwise. "I don't think I've met you though. Thanks for coming at all," he laughed. "I wasn't sure anyone was going to show at this point, honestly."

He looked over the equipment Nendara had brought with them.

"Those look like they mean business," Steven complimented. "But I think we should probably stick to practice weapons for now. Less chance of taking and arrow to the knee, you know?" Her flashed her a wide grin, then held up his gauntleted hand.

"Hey, wanna see a neat trick? Make a fist with your Gauntlet like this, then give me a fist bump." Steven himself had learned said trick not too long ago, completely by accident. Doing so instantly brought up the other person's information on both Gauntlet screens. It wasn't a feature that had been advertised in any of the handbooks he had been given, so Steven suspected that it was someone's idea of an Easter egg. Either way, it was useful though-- and fun in a silly kind of way.

Ah. So they were a bit late. Nendara would have to try harder next time. "Again, I'm sorry Ag-Steven. I'm still finding my way around. But I am ready!"

As Steven mentioned that they should stick to practice weapons for now, Nendara nodded and began to remove the deadlier items. "An arrow to the knee would be quite grievous indeed!" Leaning the bow and quiver of arrows gently against the wall, they placed the dagger beside them. Seeds and practice weapons it would be!

When Steven asked if they wanted to see a neat trick, Nendara leaned in close to watch and take a customary sniff. Following his instructions, Nendara made a fist with their Gauntlet and gave his fist a bump. He was pretty darn tall, so they had to reach up. The sudden display of information took Nendara by surprise, but she was quick to scan the available information. "I didn't know it did that!"

"Lessee... Artifact Hunter... Junior Medic... Beach City sounds like a nice place. I'm from a deep forest. Not a lot of beach out there, heh." They glanced up, wondering how much of their own information he was reading on his device. "Is this, uh, is this part of the class? Is it customary to exchange personal information before training?"

"I don't think a lot of people do," Steven admitted with a laugh. "I kinda found out by accident. I think whoever designed these thought it might be funny. I dunno if it's the same where you're from, but where I come from, a fist bump is a kind of a silly greeting. It shows you're familiar with someone, and that maybe you like them."

He glanced down at his own screen, reading the information that scrolled across.

"You're pretty brand new, huh?" Steven asked sympathetically. "Well, welcome, I guess! I know we both probably wish it were better circumstances, but..."

He trailed off, shaking his head as though he could physically dispel the gloom.

"Beach City's really nice," Steven told her, his voice a little brighter. For all its shortcomings, he was proud of his home. "You should come visit sometime. There's forest there too, but yeah-- the beach is the big draw for sure. You should come by on bonfire night!"

His beaming grin turned a little sheepish at the edges, though. "But uh-- besides names? No, not really. I just thought it might be a neat thing to show you. We can jump right into training though, if you want. I think you might be my only student, so that kinda simplifies things."

He brought up his shield across his chest and thumped the glowing pink surface with the flat of his free hand. It made a hollow sort of sound, more solid than expected for its ethereal appearance.

"Let's start with our gear. How much training do you have already? It's important that you're honest, so I know where to start."

Nendara grinned at the explanation of the concept of a fist bump. "It is a little silly, but I like it! Where I'm from, a simple handshake would do. Or for a real comradely greeting, you grab each other's forearm for a solid singular shake." They demonstrated with their own arms, just in case Steven was unfamiliar.

They appreciated Steven's sympathy for their situation. "Thank you," they said, words genuinely heartfelt. "I know most people around here have gone through something similar, so, I appreciate the warm welcome, as well as the invitation to visit Beach City! It sounds lovely!" They hadn't been to an actual beach in a long time.

"And thank you for showing me the fist bump trick. It really is neat!" They were totally planning to teach Fiyero and Elphaba if they didn't already know about it.

But for now, training time! Steven gave his glowing shield a solid thump and asked about their personal skills.

"I mostly use the bow to hunt for food, but I've also used it to defend myself against nastier foes. I tend to stay further back or up in trees to keep some distance. I'm a pretty decent shot, if I do say so myself. The knife hasn't seen as much battle as much as being used to cut plants that I find, but it's plenty sharp in a pinch. Mostly if things get up close and personal, I have a wooden staff that I've been using for years. Which... I left in my room." Oh gods, that was embarrassing. Blushing with embarrassment, Nendara hurriedly continued. "Ahaha, or I have these." They patted their pouches of seeds. "Seeds. Simple plants, I can grow on my own, but it's easier if I start with the seeds. Out in the world, there's usually enough vegetation or seedlings under the dirt to just pull from what's around me."

Nendara wasn't sure if this next part counted as much. "I've also been learning how to transform into different animals, but it takes some doing and they don't come out quite right."

Steven looked down at the bundle of seeds with interest. Something they had in common, and something he'd have to revisit later. But it sounded like maybe Nendara needed some basics covered first. They'd see in a moment.

"That's fine," he assured them, waving off their embarrassment about the staff. "There's practice weapons we can use if we need them. But that's actually a great starting point. You know, in the field, you lose gear all the time. And--" he looked around, gesturing with one broad hand. "I don't see any trees either. Which means you're stuck with your opponent on the ground with no weapons in sight, and nowhere to run to."

There were weapons, technically-- mostly in the racks behind them. Soft and padded, or simple wood. But Steven wanted to see how Nendara figure this problem out on their own.

He took a step forward, thumping his shield and purposefully drawing himself up to his full height, his eyes darkening with intent-- not quite menacing, but at Steven's size, he certainly danced with the borders of it.

"C'mon then. Let's see what you do."

Nendara’s muscles began to tense as Steven described the situation they now found themselves in. His tone wasn’t threatening, but he was definitely going somewhere with this. They had a feeling they knew where this was going, and as Steven suddenly loomed ever closer, issuing a challenge, Nendara acted on instinct.

Quickly dipping a hand into one of the seed pouches, Nendara flung it in Steven’s face like pocket sand and willed the seeds to start growing now. They then attempted to dip around his non-shield side with as much space as they could spare while he was hopefully distracted. The seeds would rapidly grow into sturdy vines to help keep Steven tied up. Or at least briefly distracted for a moment longer.

If they could manage to grow the distance between them, Nendara would scatter more seeds in the floor as they ran to grow some difficult terrain: thick underbrush with more vines and thorny plants to grab and slow their opponent. There might not be any vegetation in the gym to start with, but they could fix that temporarily. They would also keep an eye over their shoulder for that flying shield in case they had to dodge.

They just needed to keep space between them and Steven for a few solid moments so they could try to transform into a bear with, probably, a thick bark hide.

If he was neither fooled by the seed attack nor slowed much by the vines, Nendara would do her best to dodge any incoming melee attacks as they tried to run around him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hey!" Steven laughed. He raised his shield against the seeds instinctively, and he was glad he did too. They pinged harmlessly off the construct, but they could have gotten in his eyes, or his mouth, and with the rate they were growing, that could have been bad. A quick bubble took care of the rest, expanding around him in a wide, magenta colored orb to give him some breathing room while the vines twined around him.

"You're doing five things at once here," he said, relaxing his stance again, though not the bubble, in case those vines were a little more autonomous than they looked. "And you're kinda making a mess. Slow down."

He watched them bounce around for a moment.

"I said no weapons, remember? Those plants of yours definitely count. And this is a friendly sparring lesson, not a life or death struggle. You gotta be careful you don't seriously hurt your opponent. It's lucky I've got fast reflexes, but I don't think I would have enjoyed getting an eyeful of your seeds, Nendara."

Nendara had been not been expecting the bubble, and that plus Steven's words did in fact get them to slow down. No weapons included the plants? Aww... With a wave of their hand, the seedlings parted around Steven, leaving a path from him to Nendara. They'd have the plants move into a pile that would be easier to clean up later.

"I'm sorry. I guess it's been a while since I actually... sparred in a friendly fashion. I've been focusing on just surviving for a long time."

Nendara unclipped the belt with the seed pouches and tossed it towards where their other weapons were leaning, so they wouldn't even be tempted to use them again accidentally. Looking sheepish and a little nervous, all that was left to do was... they guessed... get in a ready position, legs apart and arms up to black whatever was coming. If Steven hadn't guessed already, hand-to-hand combat was not a strong point of theirs.

"What... what would you like me to do?"

Steven's smile was encouraging. He noted the tense posture, the embarrassed expression-- and most notably the clear lack of any sort of formal training in the blocking department. This was someone, to him at least, who was very much used to only fighting threats until they could successfully run away from them.

Unfortunately, in the AotM, that wouldn't always, or even often be a solution, and thinking with your lizard brain first was a good way to get in trouble. Nendara hadn't panicked exactly, but their approach hadn't been all that organized either.

Steven didn't immediately switch back to sparring mode. Instead he rested his shield on the ground beside him, leaning against one leg, and held out his hands, palms open, to show that they were still friendly.

"First? Breathe. Biiiig deep breath in through your nose, then out through your mouth. Then look around. Look at me. What's the first three things you notice about this situation?"

He needed to get Nendara thinking about their surroundings, and their opponents, not just reacting to them, and actually seeing them was the first step.

Deep breath in, deep breath out. And another deep breath for good measure.

Nendara was doing their best to follow Steven's instructions, but they weren't sure exactly what kind of answer he was looking for.

"You're larger and stronger than I am," they began slowly. "You have your shield, which you can use for melee or ranged attacks."

Looking around the gym, Nendara was hard pressed to come up with a third thing. "We're in a wide open space. With some training dummies."

Squinting at the wrack of practice weapons, Nendara ventured a question. "I'm not allowed to start with weapons... but am I allowed to try to grab one? Yanno... improvise by using what's technically around me?" It was worth a shot. The worst he could say was 'no.'

Steven shook his head.

"No, no weapons right now," he said. "I want you to focus on figuring out your opponent before we move on to armed combat. Weapons are an extension of the best weapon you already have, which is that big old brain of yours."

He tapped the side of his head with one finger, and offered up another encouraging smile.

"And I'm bigger, you're right. And I have a weapon. But you're smaller and faster, and harder to hit. Because I'm bigger, my reach is bigger too. If you get inside of it, it's harder for me to get at you, and if I do, I won't be able to hit you with my full strength."

Steven shifted his weight sideways and let his shield slip a little, feigning an opening.

"Whether you're big or small, anatomy still works mostly the same. You can get in close, and go for places like the backs of the knees, which benefits from being behind me where I can't reach as well."

Steven reached back and patted one leg to demonstrate, showing that he had to crouch and twist slightly to do so.

"Larger fighters also carry more weight. We've got to work harder to stay balanced when moving. Say I start to charge you--"

He took a stomping step forward, bringing his shield up before him fiercely.

"If you run, I'll just catch you. You're faster when it comes to up close maneuverability, but head to head, I have the bigger stride. Chances are, someone like me is going to be able to outrun you, and I don't tire easily. If you monkey up a tree, then you're just stuck up a tree. I can either climb up after you, or pull the whole tree down with you in it if it's flimsy enough."

Steven leaned forward a little more, exaggerating his movement so they could more easily see the weak points, where a push might overbalance him.

"But see where my center of gravity is? If you side step the charge instead and get behind me, you can use my momentum to your advantage and push or trip me. Sometimes what an opponent thinks is a strength can be turned into a weakness. But you've gotta really think about how bodies and motion work together."

He straightened again, considering Nendara.

"Tell you what-- Lets try a game. Today we'll just work on your footwork."

Steven dismissed his shield in a hum of pink light. He hadn't really been holding onto it to use it-- more because summoning it again took energy, but he didn't think they'd need it again today anyway.

"Here's the goal. Your job is to try and get in close enough to slap the back of one of my knees. My job is to try and stop you. If you can get five knee slaps before the timer on my Gauntlet goes off, I'll treat you to a shopping trip in Sanctuary next time we both have time off. How's that sound?"

Yep, no weapons. They figured.

Thank the gods that Steven was being as gentle and encouraging as he was, because it was hard to not feel thoroughly embarrassed by their lack of fighting know-how. His tone and care made it easier to focus on listening and to drown out the negative thoughts that would otherwise be eating at them right now.

Focus. Being smaller and faster had its advantages if used right. They might still get hit while up close, but if close enough, they wouldn't have to take a hit at full power.

Focus. The backs of the knees, at least on a bipedal foe, were a good place to aim. Use that speed and relative nimbleness to get behind them and force them down.

Focus. Side-stepping a charge would be more effective than running away. Momentum could be as useful a tool against the enemy as it would be against Nendara if they didn't move out of the way.

Nendara utterly serious expression turned to surprise at the suggestion of a game instead. A footwork exercise? "Alright... I can give that a try." Steven dismissed his shield and explained the rules. "Five taps before the timer goes off. Got it." They were less interested in the shopping trip prize than they were in just trying to get a few taps in, but the offer was nice nevertheless.

They slowly started to close the distance between them, though not getting too close, while they waited for Steven to give the signal that the game had started.