Toxic Impulse ⁕

five.

Astraea raised her arms up, locking one in front of her face with a fist with the other across her abdomen, shielding both sections. Her feet stood firmly on the ground with her dominate leg positioned slightly behind as her arms flexed in this defensive position. She eyed her target, her golden-russet eyes sharp with concentration. In one swift move she twisted her body around, as her right leg surged up with full power. A loud smacking sound echoed throughout the room as the sole of her foot slammed against the patted bag. Her movement was smooth, precise, and swift.

In no time, she switched positions, this time using her left leg that equally pushed enough power. She stood up straight and turned around to face the group before her that consisted of about twenty women, all shapes and sizes.

"Alright, last move of the day. You can get back in your lines as before, come up to the target and give it your best. Four times each, then we'll call it," Astraea instructed. The women looked to her and nodded their heads as each of them split up in their respected lines, ten on each side.

One by one they stepped up to the bag that was being held up her two assistants, one male, one female that stood firm on the ground as they awaited the kicks. Astraea watched inventively as each of the woman took turns practicing their spinning kick. The first two times they were a bit awkward, trying to get used to turning their body and immediately kicking without stumbling.

"Remember, eye your target first. Trust your eyes and your leg will do the rest," she instructed, while she watched them intensively. With new instructions, the women were stumbling less. Not perfect, but far better than before.

"Good." She would say from time to time, as each one gave it their best.

"A little harder, you got this," she said as she watched a soft kick from one of the women. She was young woman who appeared to be in her late teens. She was tall and quite slender, and appeared fragile. The young lady shyly nodded, declining eye contact as she turned her body to the opposite side. She attempted the kick again, though it was still soft it was noticeably harder than before.

"Better," Astraea said, as the woman quickly glanced at Astraea and smiled before walking to the back of the line.

"Remember, you're kicking someone who wants to hurt you. Don't be afraid to out power into it!" she exclaimed, in hopes that she would boost some of their confidence.

For the next few minutes she observed the rest of the class slowly becoming more comfortable with this kick, though there was still plenty of room for improvement. As they finished she rounded everyone up and briefly summarized their plans for the next class.

"We'll go over all the kicks you've learned, then begin punching techniques," Astraea instructed with a slight smile as she shared glances with everyone.

"Whew, I'll take that over kicking and stumbling," one woman remarked, causing a wave of small laughter around the room, including from Astraea.

"Oh no, we'll get back to kicking eventually," she informed, slight laughter present in her voice. She then congratulated everyone on getting through their first day, especially considering that all of these women were on different levels of physical fitness. She thanked them and bid them farewell until next time.

She said a few words to her two assistants who were both certified trainers and had the arms and legs to prove it. They did not have as much training as Astraea, but were far from beginners.

"Thanks guys, I'll see you two later," she said to them. They briefly exchanged hugs before stepping away from each other. The two trainers headed towards the locker rooms while Astraea brought her attention to where Yela had been waiting for her.