Location: Fogwell's Gym, Queens
Timeline: a week after initial encounter
Steve Rogers was getting his ass kicked.
This shouldn't have been possible. He was a super soldier. He'd trained with the best fighters in the world during the war. He'd fought Hydra across Europe.
But the dark Urshifu was teaching him that there was always someone better.
The creature moved like lightning, its dark fur barely visible as it launched into another combination. Left jab, right cross, elbow strike, knee—all flowing together with such perfect economy of motion that Steve barely had time to block, let alone counter.
He tried to go defensive, bringing his arms up, but Urshifu was already shifting, dropping low for a leg sweep that Steve had to jump to avoid. While he was airborne—vulnerable—Urshifu's fist came up in an uppercut that would have taken Steve's head off if it had connected.
It didn't connect. Because the grey Urshifu caught his partner's fist mid-strike.
Too aggressive, the flowing grey Urshifu's posture said.
The dark one pulled back, nodded, and reset his stance.
Steve landed, breathing hard, sweat dripping down his face. "Okay. Okay, I think I'm starting to see it."
Both Urshifu tilted their heads.
"You're not just teaching me your styles," Steve said, thinking it through out loud. "You're teaching me when to use them. You—" he gestured to the dark one, "—you're about commitment. All-in aggression. Overwhelming force. But you—" the grey one, "—you're about adaptation. Flow. Using the opponent's strength against them."
Both creatures nodded enthusiastically.
"And you want me to learn both. To know when to attack and when to redirect."
More nodding.
Steve wiped the sweat from his forehead. "That's... that's actually brilliant. In the war, I fought more like you." He nodded to the dark Urshifu. "Hit hard, hit first, don't give the enemy time to recover. But in this new world, with creatures like you, maybe I need to fight more like you." He gestured to the grey one. "More adaptable."
The grey Urshifu stepped forward, gesturing to Steve, then to itself, then made a flowing motion with its paws.
Steve nodded. "Let's do this."
He took his stance—the one he'd learned in basic training, honed during the war. The grey Urshifu stood relaxed, almost casual, waiting.
Steve moved.
He went in with a simple jab, testing. The Urshifu swayed, let it pass by millimeters. Steve followed with a cross. The creature pivoted, redirected it with one paw. Hook to the body—blocked, turned, Steve's own momentum used to move him slightly off-balance.
Steve pressed harder, adding the super-soldier speed and strength. Combination attacks. Feints. Everything he knew.
And the grey Urshifu flowed around all of it like water, never striking back, just defending and redirecting, teaching through demonstration.
Finally, Steve threw a high kick—and found himself on his back, the Urshifu having caught his leg, turned his momentum, and gently put him on the ground.
The creature extended a paw to help him up.
Steve took it, laughing despite himself. "You make it look so easy."
"Urshi," the dark one called from the side of the mat. Both Steve and the grey Urshifu turned.
The dark Urshifu was pointing at Steve, then at both of them, then made a gesture that looked like... combining?
"You want me to spar against both of you," Steve said slowly. "At once."
They nodded.
"That seems like a terrible idea," Steve said.
They nodded more enthusiastically.
Steve looked at the two creatures, these warriors from another dimension who had chosen to teach him, to train with him, to make him better.
"Alright," he said, rolling his shoulders. "Both of you. Let's see what I've learned."
What followed was the most intense 10 minutes of training Steve had experienced since the war.
The dark one came at him with relentless aggression, forcing him to defend. The grey one flanked, looking for openings, teaching him to be aware of multiple threats. And Steve had to adapt on the fly, shifting between styles, knowing when to block and when to redirect, when to strike and when to flow.
He got hit. A lot. But he also started landing hits. And more importantly, he started thinking differently about combat.
It wasn't just about being strong or fast. It was about reading the situation, understanding the opponent, choosing the right response for the right moment.
Finally, after a particularly intense exchange where Steve actually managed to counter the dark one's charge with something resembling the grey one's flow technique, both Urshifu stepped back and bowed.
The session was over.
Steve bowed back, his body aching but his mind clearer than it had been in weeks.
"Thank you," he said. "Both of you. I'm learning more from you than I learned in months of military training."
The grey Urshifu approached, placed one paw on Steve's chest, over his heart.
The dark Urshifu came over too, placing its paw on Steve's shoulder.
Steve felt something warm in his chest. These creatures understood him. Understood what it meant to be a warrior, to have power and choose to use it carefully.
"We're going to be a good team," Steve said softly. "Aren't we?"
Both Urshifu nodded.
And in that moment, in a small gym in Queens, a new partnership was forged—one that would change how Steve Rogers thought about combat, about strength, about what it meant to be a soldier in a world that was getting stranger by the day.