Above All Shadows [Loki Timetravel fic - Completed]

31. Rock Climbing

Between the clanging blades, the shouting and the thunder of the soldiers' feet, the ambient noise in the training hall verged on deafening. There wasn't much to be done about the clanging - this was the point of their endeavours here. The exclamations of victory, grunts of exertion and raucous war cries also bothered Loki little. The stomping, on the other hand, bothered him a great deal.

The Exians as a species were naturally heavy on their feet and not renowned for their martial skills, a testament to the scraps Thanos accepted into his fold. Loki had gone through dozens of footwork drills over the past fortnight in an effort to do something about this obvious handicap. The Exians were starting to change direction quicker, but so far, the noise hadn't improved in the slightest.

There won't be many covert missions for this lot.

Loki paused to watch one of the many mock fights going on in the hall. The two fighters had training gear on, which was laden with sensors that identified where they had been struck, as well as the velocity and the angle of the hit. It was enough information to identify not only who had won the exchange, but to also calculate the likelihood of death from every strike given and received. Watching the two men sparring were three of their comrades, whose task was to do what the sensors couldn't - identify why certain moves were successful and others failed.

Ince roared in frustration as the sensors on his chest and left arm lit up, then flashed the pattern that indicated he had received a fatal blow. Whipping off his mask, the Exian turned to Loki. 'He keeps hitting into my attack. These three can't tell me what I'm mucking up here.'

The three observers to this sparring pair started to respond, but Loki motioned for them to quieten down. This was a flaw in this system of peer-review, but while he would have liked to watch and coach every pair, there was only one of him for the dozens of Exians in his charge. He beckoned over Ince's opponent.

'Would you like to share how you are getting these hits on Ince?' Loki asked. He recognised the man's face, he was one of the youngest in the company and rather smaller than the others, but his name escaped Loki.

The Exian's ears drew up. 'I can't quite explain it, sir. I see him moving towards me and I just know that if I go for it, I'll get him before he can get me.'

This one's worth watching.

'It's all right,' Loki replied. 'There are many things we see without realising that we are seeing them. Ince, he's not counter-attacking into your attack. He's attacking into your preparation. Your first step is very large and slow. Once you notice it, it's like a warning beacon for what you're about to do.'

'It's always about the footwork with you, captain.' Ince said. He let out a guttural roar, which Loki had come to understand passed for a chuckle among the Exians.

Loki smiled. 'I think you're catching on, Ince. We'll work on this tomorrow. Is it time for you to rotate partners?'

'One more hit.'

'Make it count then.'

A warm hand slid over Loki's shoulder and trailed up to the top of his head. Words - unintelligible, but soothing - crooned into his ear. Loki slammed the boundaries of his mind shut and his vision exploded in white pain.

'Sir?' Ince called out, grabbing Loki's arm.

It took a few seconds for Loki's vision to clear. He now stood about a foot back from where he had been, with Ince's long fingers wrapped around his forearm. Loki extracted himself from Ince's grasp and glanced around. Only a couple of the other Exians had noticed that something had just made their instructor stagger back like he'd been struck with a lightning bolt.