Ghost Monkey, стр. 33
"I don't know if I can," Sugriva whispered. It physically hurt when the voice spoke. He feared attacking Divyan on the spot. The general would have no choice but to kill him for the outburst.
"It is your dharma. Come."
Sugriva followed the hawk dutifully, down the trees, through the streets, to the training compound. It was on the outskirts of Jaya, keeping Sugriva far from people.
A large man stepped out, his skin orange with black bands. A tiger. Divyan presented the man. "This is your opponent. Stay in control. Breathe."
Sugriva sat back, and the tiger charged. He shifted into a janaav, the half tiger and half man clawing through the air. Sugriva shifted into a monkey and used his tail to spring between the tiger's legs.
Sugriva laughed as he shifted into a man. "You are an oaf. How will you challenge me?"
"Says the crazy monkey who can't shift into a proper janaav." With that, the tiger took a stone from the ground and threw it, striking Sugriva between the eyes.
The world went red. Sugriva bared his fangs he lunged. Divyan and a dozen others stepped in, striking Sugriva multiple times before he succumbed.
Similar incidents continued for months, until Sugriva could have a half dozen bouts without losing his composure. Every day Divyan was beside Sugriva, whether he was in the hospital or on the training grounds. Every day the hawk general lifted Sugriva up in esteem, even when the monkey wanted to quit. Instead, he desired the approval of Divyan, a father he never had. A father he couldn't have.
Temperatures dropped, and the days were chilly. Sugriva wore a jacket, instead of his normal vest. "General, I'm here to spar."
"Not today," Divyan said. "Follow me." They went through the courtyard into some back rooms, until they reached the general's personal room. It was lavish, as was befitting Divyan's path. Fine woods were used to depict battles Divyan led or fought personally in. The center had a training circle lined in silver. Hawk statues littered the parameter.
There was a boy in the circle. He was a teenager, with a long and defined nose. His hair took on the brown of a hawk.
"Today," Divyan said, going to a weapon rack. "You will teach my boy, Amu, in the use of the bow staff." He picked up two staffs and handed one to the boy and one to Sugriva. "The staff is your specialty, based on the battle reports before you lost your mind.”
No guards stood by to intervene, and Sugriva's guts sunk. He said, "This is a bad idea. I’ll hurt the kid."
The boy seemed aware of this. His lips blanched and his body quivered. Divyan went to Amu and put a hand on his son’s shoulder. "Sugriva, train him slowly. Do down strikes first. Then up strikes. You get the idea. Today there is no need for contact. A warrior needs to memorize motions before they can fight an opponent."
The monkey nodded and stood in front of the boy. "Mirror me." Sugriva did down strikes. He corrected Amu's posture with sharp thwacks of his staff, and the boy winced. It was meditative. It gave purpose. And the voice had no power over the simple exercises.
Simple strikes turned into simple katas, then complicated katas, and finally they performed paired katas, Sugriva and Amu swinging their staffs and dancing with each other. The chill air went into the rainy season, and they trained to the tears of water spirits. Then it became hot and humid. Finally, fall parted the cloudy skies, so they were beautiful and blue beyond the jungle canopy. After completing, more or less successfully, the most strenuous kata Sugriva knew, both collapsed, panting. "You're good," Sugriva said.
Amu smiled. "I have a good teacher."
Divyan came out as the two relaxed. He said, "I think you taught the boy all you can with casual training, Sugriva. Now, spar with him. Go slow. Let him get used to someone jabbing and swiping at him."
A pit formed in Sugriva's stomach, but he obeyed. Amu paled as he stood with his staff in hand.
Now is your chance, the chaos called.
"Come," Sugriva said, ignoring the voice. He motioned the boy to attack. He did and Sugriva parried the strike. "You wind up too much." Another strike. "Too slow." Another. "Remember to snap at the waist. Even if that hit me it wouldn't hurt." The training continued until the sun set.
When the training was complete, and both sat and drank, General Divyan said, "Sugriva, join us for dinner tonight. I would like you to meet my family, now that you trained my boy. It is only right."
Chapter FourteenThe Scorned Ghost Monkey
Age of Men 810
Up the trees, in the tallest canopies, large tree limbs grew together to create nests. The nests were imperfect orbs dotted with holes. Four spheres formed Divyan's home around a thick tree. Sugriva climbed up and found a port in the bottom of the lowest structure. There was a ladder, but in monkey form he didn't need it. He crawled in with Divyan behind him. The general was a hawk, but when he burst through the opening and stopped his ascent, he turned into a man.
Brilliantly colored jute rugs adorned the floor. Wood seats were carved into the walls, with weapon racks between each of them. Hawks squawked and people shouted orders, as the entire complex was alive. A woman came out, gorgeous and severe in her features. She was adorned in a robe made of feathers from a variety of birds, likely prey from hunts. Sugriva heard of the custom, but it was a ceremonial custom warriors didn't participate in it.
"My husband, welcome." She kissed him in a way which made Sugriva blush. Then the woman said, "Oh, I didn't see we had company. Where are my manners?" She laughed. "They must have flown out. Please, come