Monster Hunters

Everything Takes Time

James had awoken early as he had planned, but when he did so, he was both confused and concerned. When he looked over to see if Ben was awake, he was met with the sight of an empty bed that had no sign of Ben anywhere on it aside from his signature satchel. Realizing that Ben was nowhere to be found, James quickly got all of his usual clothing on that was next to his bed, grabbed his sword, put it over his shoulder, and quickly made his way up the staircase to see where his apprentice was. When he reached the top, though, what he saw shocked him beyond belief. Upon reaching the top training area, he was greeted by the sight of Ben holding his handstand style position over the same pool of water as the day before.

James: He's already out training, huh? Well, I guess I better give him a bit of a challenge then, shouldn't I?

Just as he could finish his thought, James grabbed one of the wooden frisbees that was next to the balancing platform and slung it as hard as he could at Ben, but Ben managed to move out of the way without even leaving his hands, sending complete shock and amazement through James.

Ben: And.. twenty!

Ben made his way back onto his feet and began to carefully walk back off the balancing beam and onto the steady platform. Once he had, he noticed James standing in front of the platform watching him.

Ben: Oh, good morning, James! How'd you sleep?

James: Alright, I guess? How long have you been awake for?

Ben: Oh, me? I haven't been awake for too long. I'd say since about four-thirty or so.

James glanced up at the dome to see where the sun was located in the sky and noticed that it was in the area that would signal the beginning of seven o'clock.

James: Man, you got up two and a half hours before I did. I gotta give it to ya, Ben, I didn't think you had that big of a work ethic.

Ben: What can I say? A dream come true can be quite the motivational tool.

James: Hehe... Yeah, I guess it can be... Anyways, you ready for some more training?

Ben: Let's do it!

Ben would begin his second piece of training, being the obstacle course, and he would make it through the planks quicker than he had the previous day and seemed much more confident jumping over the pit of swords. Once he had successfully made the leap, he managed to jump out of the way of the dummy before it could hit him, meaning that he had actually completed the obstacle course. On the third test, the pain tolerance test, Ben took his shirt off to reveal the wounds that still lingered all over his body from the previous day and prepared himself for more lashings. James proceeded to beating down on Ben with the kendo stick as Ben began to seem slightly less phased with them compared to the day prior. After about twenty-five to thirty minutes of taking kendo stick shots, Ben would begin his forth piece of training for the day: chopping wood. Ben had managed to cut a total of thirty pieces within just ten minutes, making the average amount of time it took him to chop a piece just a few seconds. The fifth test was the concentration test, and Ben used everything he had left to give for the day in an attempt to clear his mind completely and focus only on one thing: how he was going to take down James in a few minutes. After completing his ten minute long meditation sequence, Ben quickly stood up and readied himself for the fight that he knew James was going to bring.

James: You ready for this?

Ben: As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose.

James: Alright then... Fight!

James quickly charged Ben, and while Ben was expecting that, he wasn't expecting for James' first swing to target his face; however, Ben was barely quick enough to dodge it. With him having dodged James' first attempt at a punch, Ben was feeling much more confident as he quickly went for a punch of his own, but James was quick to block it and would grab Ben by the wrist and throw him over his shoulder and onto the ground, meaning that Ben had lost once again. As Ben sat in slight sadness and frustration, James merely looked at him from over top of him and grinned.

James: I gotta give it to ya, Ben... You're catching on to all of this stuff far quicker than I would've ever even thought possible.

Ben: I guess.. but I still wasn't able to even get one swing in on you... Regardless of how much better I do on the other tests, what good is it all if I can't hold my own against you?

James: Well, Ben, you have to keep in mind that I'm much older than you; therefore, I have much more experience than you do. I am thirty-six, after all. I'm no spring chicken.

Ben: Man, you're thirty-six? I would've never guessed that.

James: Yep, that is the case... Wait, what do you mean by, "I would've never guessed that?!"

Ben: Hahaha! I'm sorry, I just had to make some sort of joke. I haven't gotten to make one today.

James: So, you choose to make fun of my age? Man... Ya know, you think you're starting to know a guy... Ya know what, you can get up yourself.

Ben: Heh... Alright.

Ben began to slowly make his way back to his feet as James simply watched on in both amusement and satisfaction.

James: I gotta say, though.. I am proud of how much you've improved just overnight, Ben... I really am...

Ben: Hehe... It's nothing, really. I just do the best I can, ya know?

James: That's what has me excited... Your best will only become better over time... Things like this... They just take a little time...