The Musketeers #1

The creaking of old, beaten wood steps echoed in the dark cellar. Alexander and Vincent lead Artrhu into the storage unit, filled to the brim with provisions and Alcohol. 

"Nice place you got here," Arthur remarked, inhaling the heavy smell of aging alcohol. "We agreed beforehand that you two were going to train me. This surely isn't the training center is it?" he asked.

Alexander laughed heartily, echoing in the cellar; Vincent and Arthur plugged their ears. "Pardon the loudmouth, he's always been like that."

Arthur nodded empathetically for Vincent, who had to deal with this longer than he had. "Word on the street said that there were three musketeers, whose the third?"

Vincent held the sword decoration mounted on the wall and twisted the hilt. Arthur looked around the cellar, clearly hearing gears turning and the sliding of heavy objects.

The entire south wall opened up, kicking up a handful of dust.

"A secret passage, did not expect that at all," Arthur said, a little bit surprised. 

Both of the old men stopped in their tracks. Alexander turned to Arthur. "She's... a tad eccentric, even for you kid."

"Eccentric is a tad insulting, I'd prefer unique-- at least that has a nicer ring to it." A rough, feminine voice rang out in the empty room, proving that it was large.

Vincent reached into the wall and pulled a lever. Electricity whirred and turned on all the lights.

Arthur gasped, taking in the large space, the size of two gymnasiums put together. 

"No wonder the stairs down were so long, they needed those stairs to access a large room like this."

"Fun fact, the whole block is directly above us." The lady said, standing in the middle of a ring of sorts, smoking a large cigarette.

Arthur observed her briefly. She had bountiful proportions and was wearing a long black cloak over her entire left side. 

She had some sort of heavy clothing, probably in place of armor for mages, and her hair was tied in a long ponytail that ran down to her legs.

"I've never seen her before, then again, I've never seen Vincent in the game either." 

The three men entered the large gymnasium full of equipment ranging from a firing range, boxing ring, a gym, and even a rock climbing wall integrated into a living space.

"I'm guessing you're the third musketeer," Arthur said, noticing her left eye covered with an eyepatch.

She waved her hand with a lazy expression. "Im retired kid, considering I'm the same age as those old fools."

Arthur tilted his head in shock, "Same age?! Ma'am, you don't look like a day over twenty." he said in unbelief. "There is no way she's in her eighties-- I call bullshit."

She laughed at Arthur's compliment, chuckling into her right hand. "Oh my, I didn't know Vincent and Alexander picked up a gigolo for a disciple." She laughed. 

Wiping away the tear from her right eye, she looked at Vincent. "You picked an interesting boy, mouse."

"That he is, Sabine," Vincent murmured.

"So she's Sabine," Arthur noted. 

Vincent approached the lady and wrapped his arm around her waist and pressed his lips in for a kiss. Alexander groaned, rolling his eyes. "Don't make out in front of the kid."

"Nah, I'm good." Arthur chuckled, waving away Alexnder's concern. "You're scheduled to train me anyways."

Both men turned away from the heating event and entered the boxing ring. Arthur shed and hung the cloak on the rope border.

"So what first, Old man?" Arthur asked, rolling up his sleeves.

Alexander threw his clothing off the ring, leaving only himself in his pants and heavy shoes. 

Arthur would feel his intent just from his serious gaze alone. "Well... I hope I don't disappoint." he shrugged, entering a battle stance by keeping his fists up to his eyebrows and his elbows out.

"Standing at six foot seven, and three hundred pounds of pure muscle hidden under leather thick skin so roughed and calloused-- Alexander the Great, heavy-weight fist brawler and crime boss."

The breaths Alexander took and exhaled, look like smoke as they exited his body-- like a train and its engine.

psshhh...

Alexander smiled. "His stance is not half bad. Ears out for any sound, wide field of view, firm core, and strong arms that have seen exercise."

Alexander stepped forward with a heavy right step, thundering and shaking the ring, but Arthur stood firm.

tilting his right shoulder forward, Alexander threw a half-assed jab still full of power and speed at Arthur.

"This situation feels familiar in a way..." Arthur thought, sidestepping to the left to dodge. 

"Not bad!" alexander praised, noticing the flawless dodge and the unbroken stance. he stepped forward again, but this time he threw a two-punch combo.

swiish! whiish!

Alexander threw a right hook, which Arthur dodged by weaving underneath the swing, and a left punch aimed at Arthur's chest.

Arthur only smiled at Alexander, picturing an old memory from when he was still Kim. Alexander briefly looked like another fellow conscripted soldier in the Korean army.

"Ah! I remember now! that bastard named...."

stepping forward with his left foot, Arthur put his all into a liver knuckle punch, a punch Alexander felt.

pow!

"Augh..." Alexander groaned, feeling the impact on the sensitive organ. Arthur jumped back to dodge the incoming elbow.

"The fucker's name was Seol Jung un. He looked exactly like Alexander, but despite all that muscle and attitude, he was humbled with a deadly knuckle punch to the liver."

"He still had some fight in him but I doubt an eighty-year-old man that just recovered serious injuries could," he muttered.

"W-What..?" Alexander coarsely asked, clutching his hurt side. "You said something?"

"You must've misheard me." Arthur grinned. "My turn."

Dashing forward, he makes a break for Alexander's downed right wing. "Just like the sergeant," he said, reminiscing on a memory of his previous life.

Replaying a core memory, Arthur pictured the scene, the rough training ground, and the grueling heat. The Sergent charged forward with a coiled left arm, ready to speed through, and collided with its target.

Seol Jung un threw a desperately left hook, only for the Sergeant to deflect it with a right palm.

Alexander responded to Arthur's charge by throwing a strong left hook, only for him to deflect it with a right palm. the left punch followed up--

pow!

The left fist collided with Alexander's right cheek, pushing his head back slightly. "What power-"

The sergeant threw in a roundhouse kick to Seol Jun un's temple, promptly knocking him out.

Arthur pivoted on his left leg and twisted his hip, swinging his right leg for a roundhouse kick.

pam!

"You're way too impatient--" Alexander chuckled, finally recovering from the liver punch. In his right hand was Arthur's foot, stuck in an iron grip. "--your instincts, technique, and attitude are flawless but! you're too green if you think you can take me on."

Arthur felt the change in grip strength. "O-Oi!" he gasped. Alexander holds the leg tight and threw Arthur out of the ring, like a weightless doll. 

"You crazy old man!" he yelled midair. "this is bad, if I land incorrectly, I could break my neck."

Curling into a ball, Arthur shifts his center of balance forward, causing him to spin backward following the flow of momentum and land on his feet.

"a-ahck!" Arthur groaned as he fell backward. "I'm not a ragdoll asshole!" he complained.

Vincent and Sabine watched the exchange from start to finish. "The boy has the skills, that's for sure," he said, but Sabine kept her peace.

She kept her eyes on him the whole time, and during that brief exchange of blows, the movement of magic inside his body was perfect. "Could it be... I must know!"

"Hey, you! Arthur was it?!" She yelled out, garnering the attention of all the men in the room. 

Arthur got up and pats the dirt off his pant. "yeah, what's it to you?"

She leaned on her right leg and huffed. "You got grit, boy," Sabine smirked, smiling widely. "But fist fighting isn't the only talent you got, isn't that right? Specialist."

Arthur's eyes widen slightly at her. "Did she-- No, Playing hard to get seems like the smarter option."

"I have no clue what a specialist is," he replied, lazily picking his ear.

"Playing dumb now, are we?" Sabine huffed, removing the cigarette from her mouth. "I like playing games, not being played. [ Fire Ball ]"

Vincent stepped back from his lover and looked above her to see her magic circle conjured and complete. A fireball, the size of a large watermelon, emerged from the spell and burned with compressed intensity, like a small sun.

 "Darling! are you out of your mind!?" Vincent demanded. 

In the face of the threatening magic spell, Arthur just watched her lazily. She was serious and immovable, any man could see it in her eye that was so full of vigor.

"Augh...." He groaned. "A man can't keep a secret around here can he?" Arthur gave up. "I'm warming up to her already."

Vincent turned from his lover to his disciple, who burned ablaze with an outburst of flames.

"Merde! Alexander help me stop this madness! The hideout will be destroyed!"

"I don't want to burn alive, you do what you want, Vincent." The large man motioned lazily. "That brat did a number one me, ruthless punk. Ouch.." Alexander complained.

The flames that burned uncontrollably around Arthur subsided into a layer of armor. "Give me your best shot!"