5th month of 980 ANB

  They lived beside hills, three kilometres from Kubuyashi slum on Amen Isnd in Jotei of Suantan. The House of Bharata and Shakhai Amir with them.

  Like a blink of aime flew. Ilm became ten years old, so his martial arts training had been started. He never uood why they had to be trained in martial arts, sword-fighting, archery, and other ons. His mother was also trained with them. And it was not like a hobby or passion, you o take a proper test and had to pass it, sur practice is important. It was like how parents force their children to go to school and to study, but instead of studying, there is self-defence. Of course, you could do other things but as a hobby. The Bharata family was different.

  "Did you study information about martial arts? I advised you yesterday to do this beforehand," Pema asked.

  "Yes!" Ilm answered.

  "Well, what do you know about martial arts?"

  "Okay, so, martial arts are the arts of fighting?" Ilm burst out ughing at his own answer.

  "No, it's not," Pema replied with a serious tone. A strict voice that Ilm stopped ughing. "Martial arts are not solely fhting; they are about preventing flict. This is a defence meism. The main thing here is to keep your mind calm, fighting ot keep your mind calm. Uand?"

  "Yes Maa," Ilm nodded.

  "Call me Sifu."

  "Yes, Sifu."

  "Look like, you've lied to me. Don't do that again. Tomorrow, you must be prepared before the css. Anyway. Today, we will practice with hand-punches," Pema started her teag. She tinued her instrus. "But at first you have to know how to make a good fist. Here like that."

  She made a fist with her right hand pg the thumb on the rest of the fingers.

  "This, this is a powerful fist. Now, let's get to go to learn the basiches. First Straight punch. In favour of martial arts, our body is divided into three parts. the face, the middle body, and the lower body part. I'll show you Straight punch."

  She held her right fist by her side while extending her left hand forward in a tight fist. She held her body straight and made a strong stand. Then she uhe right-hand fist straight with the all ford took back the left hand with the same energy. She shouted "Kiai" with the punch.

  "Wow, it's impressive. But one question. Why? I mean why should we learn this? I just focus on Business studies taught by Baba?" Ilm shrugged. His eyes were full of fear. For a moment his soul left his body, as he regretted what he just said. He knew his mother could scold him again.

  "Simply for self-defence" Pema calmly replied.

  He sighed with relief and asked, "But who is going to attack me? I heard about the school from Baba. He said that there he was bullied by other kids because he was an orphan. But I don't go to school like him or like other kids; you and Baba didn't sehere. So, who will bully me?"

  "Are you pining about not sending you to school?"

  "No." Ilm chuckled. "I am very grateful for that. So, why to learn self-defence?"

  "Well, you don't know about the future. For now, you do not need self-defe, but who knows what'll happe? Moreover, all of your previous geions of Bharatas were taught this." But there was one more thing she wao say, in the end, self-defence wasn't the sole reason for learning martial arts.

  The grassless training ground was situated in a shrine field. It was just in front of the dusted faded red haiden, the worship hall. The whole shrine was on top of a hillock, beside House Bharata's vil and was separated from outside surroundings by a gigantic upside-down bowl-shaped gss shield c the top of the hillock. Maybe, it was due to the 'bad' enviro. People could see the sky covered with dusted and yellowish clouds from inside of the shield.

  The transparerance 'door' of the gss shield was ected with the torii, the main gate of the shrine. From the torii, stairs cut through the hillock.

  This nd had no trees, so no sacred forest, and no trace of life. Even the purification fountain was dried and the ruins of Guardian Lion-dogs were still in the ground.

  Toddler Rov was sleepih the shade of haiden. His head was still bandaged after the operation of installing ara 10 Yottabytes memory ste and ara intelligence chip in his brain. You could solve triple integral calculus in the blink of an eye or even remember how your mother made you sleep if you had this operation before that. Every member of the Bharata family had dohis operation.

  Beside Rov, it was a five-foot bck robot with a dustbin-like body, two thick arms, rge wheels fs, and a spherical head that could rotate 360 degrees. He was tagged as Yan-969-c-001 on his chest, and this family called him Kuro.

  There was a little pause between Pema and Ilm. Then Ilm said, "I don't uand what you have said."

  Pema sighed but smiled. After all, Ilm was just a ten-year-old boy. "Okay, let's tinue," she said.

  In just two hours of training, Ilm was taught all the basiches. He anting. "Oh, no more training, or else I'll die," he yelled.

  "I'm twenty-two years older than you. I've practised with you equally. But ironically, I'm not tired but you are… oh my… this geion of kids is dooming, no more energy? Okay, for now, that's it. Now you will fight with me using all the punches you have learned. Remember only those basiches, don't try to be clever or do more extra things," Pema said.

  "But you are a pro fighter. My bones will be broken," Ilm looked tense. His forehead was full of sweat.

  "Rex, your mother is not going to break your bones—"

  "What!"

  "I shall be defending myself while you will be in attag position. Deal?" Pema had cleared all the circumstances.

  They bowed to each other. And soon after, their fight had begun. Ilm made the first move using a jab punch. He lifted both his hands, right hand in the lead position. Quied and delivered the blow. Pema dodged it by tilting her head. With the er of her eye, she saw Ilm g his teeth.

  Wonderful! she thought. At that moment, Ilm made another move and threw another punch with his left hand targetiomach. Pema blocked it using the lower block teique. With every move, Ilm quied his moves, but Pema was faster than him.

  And then, Ilm made a mistake. He used a kick. Pema smiled; she found an opening—an opening to end this dodging game. She picked up his leg, hung him around, and then threw him to the ground. His face became dusted and mudded blending with his sweat.

  "Aaa, my back," Ilm yelled. "You said that you would be defending yourself."

  "But you didn't keep my word. I said not to use extra things. Didn't I?" Pema Replied.

  "But you were not surrendering?" Ilm said puffing out his cheeks.

  "Is that so?"

  "Now, we end our css?"

  Pema sighed. "Okay, okay."

  Kuro came to them. He said in his meical voice, "It seems like your css is done. Little master was quietly sleeping. May I bring those suit boxes? And does young master need something to drink?"

  "Yes, yes, of course," Ilm replied quickly.

  "and following," after saying this, Kuro ged his chubby five-fingers-hands with pincers. He brought two boxes and a bag from the hohe main sanctuary of the shrine.

  "Here the suit boxes. And ihis bag, there are the shield capsule for little master and a water bottle."

  "Give me that bag, Kuro. Let me get that bottle," Ilm yelled.

  Pema was holding Rov with her motherly g hands. Rov was sleeping until Ilm's noise made him awaken. He was g.

  "Aww, look Ilm, you made him cry. No Rov, no, your mother is here. I know your brother is a little naughty."

  "Yes, yes, the world is rotting because of me," Ilm puffed out his cheeks again.

  Pema rubbed Ilm's hair with her long, soft, and delicate fingers and smiled. Her face was bright. Ilm felt like a goddess was blessing him—a goddess in his mother. He blushed. His eyes were glittering. She said, "Let's get back to the home. Yrandpa is waiting for us."

  Pema opehe capsule a Rov into it. Then they pressed a button on each box and a blue light was turned on. Both boxes were opehey ied their hands into them. As they did, the shape of each box shifted c their entire bodies iallic suits. Nanoteology. Only the faces remained visible through transparent face-cover. Then they lifted their left hands and ched their fists activating a holographic s. They gave some inputs and the material of those suits ged into lead.

  Then they weo the entrance door. Pema used her index fio trace a pattern on the door—a circle with seven smaller circles around it and a dot in the tre. The door ened. And they got down through the stairs. Kuro was following them slowly maintaining the bance of his wheels with each step. The door was closed.