''I wonder if he got it signed.'' Alek's master thought to himself while waiting for him in the alley.
''Hi master'' Alek greeted him
''Did your parents sign the paper I gave you?''
''They did'' Alek gave the man in the hoodie the paper
It was a form for self defence lessons.
''They agreed to this?'' The man in a hoodie asked
''I guess I sounded very excited when I explained it to them. They said they were happy I found something that I was passionate about."
''I hope you didn't tell them too much. Anything that happens that is out of the ordinary is going to stay between us. Got it!?'' He said with a serious expression
''I didn't tell them anything about the other planets. They wouldn't believe me, anyway.'' Alek said
''That's good'' Alek's master said in relief ''Did they say anything else?''
''Yes, they said that they trust you to make sure I come home unharmed. They want to be certain that I won't get hurt too badly.''
''I can work with that. I promise you will come home unharmed.'' the man in a hoodie said confidently ''Let's go then, shall we?"
Alek and his master made their way further into the alley and after checking if noone was looking, they teleported to the blue grass planet.
''All our training will be happening here.'' Said the man in a hoodie ''So make sure you remember the password and don't forget to check if noone is looking when teleporting.''
''I understand'' Alek replied
''Alright, then I will explain everything to you."
Alek sat on the ground and prepared himself to hear whatever his master had to say
''You've already heard the story about the barrier, how it locked away humanity's powers. When I broke the barrier inside your heart, I unlocked the hidden potential within you to use these powers outside of earth. I will teach you how to use them.''
Alek's face lit up
''Will I be able to be as strong as you, master? Or go through the ground like that police officer?'' Alek asked with excitement
''That's the thing, they manifest very differently from one person to another. But they share some things in common.''
The man in the hoodie walked closer to Alek
''Before we do anything, I want to check something'' The man in a hoodie put his hand on Alek's head ''Some people, throughout their life or when they are born, gain something known as an ability or something known as a preference. I will now run my energy through you and check if you have them. Are you ready?''
Alek nodded his head
Alek's master went silent for a few seconds. Alek felt a little nervous and began to feel weird. He saw a white light around him, similar to when he was saying goodbye to the boar. He also began to feel better than usual. After a few seconds the light disappeared and his master spoke
''It's like I thought, nothing''
Alek froze from shock for a second
''What does that mean, master?''
''It means you don't have any special powers, kid''
Alek was struck with grief
''Does that mean I can't be an adventurer now, since I can't use powers?'' Alek said with a tear in his eye
''No, I guess I worded it wrong. Sorry about that. You don't have any special powers NOW, is what I wanted to say. You can still learn how to use them. It just means we will have to start from scratch.'' Said the man in a hoodie
Alek felt relieved ''What even are preferences and abilities, master?'' he asked
''It's pointless to explain them now'' Said Alek's master ''You will learn everything as we go along. When we see them I will teach you about them. Got it?''
Alek nodded his head
''So what do we do now?'' Alek asked
''We start from the beginning'' Said the man in a hoodie ''The first thing you need to learn is how to fight. Now, come at me''
Alek was surprised ''You want me to attack you''
''Yes'' the man replied with confidence ''The universe is very dangerous, so you will need to know how to defend yourself. If you can land a hit on me, we will move on to the next stage.''
''I understand, master'' Alek said a little unsure
Alek stood up. He akwardly took a battle stance and ran towards his master. He tried to punch him in the chest, but the man in a hoodie easily dodged his attack.
With minimal movements Alek's master dodged every attack that Alek threw his way. Kicks, right hooks, left hooks, even headbutts didn't land.
After a short while He stopped alek and said:
''you are holding your fist wrong. Your thumb should be on the outside, not inside.''
Alek looked at his hand, corrected it and went back to the fight.
After an hour of Alek throwing punches, taking short breaks and his master correcting his movements and fighting technique, Alek fell to his knees completely exhausted, while his master didn't look fazed at all.
''Are you done for today?'' The man in a hoodie asked politely
Alek was too tired to reply
''See me when you are ready to fight again. I will be here at 5pm every day, Got it?''
Alek nodded his head ''I'll come back tomorrow.''
With the help of his master, Alek teleported back to earth and went home for the day.