JiuGo: Shadow Of Nero (eBook)

JT Tenacity (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023 | 1. Auflage
172 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-3185-3 (ISBN)

Infos

A shadow is cast over the peaceful town of Greystains when an explosion at the Factory throws life into chaos. Marcus joins jiu-jitsu class with no idea of how hard it would be, how much he would suck and how much he would love it. Alana discovers the power of her true voice and finds a hidden treasure that will change her fate. Maro must reclaim his power to battle his own kind to save JiuGo's life. JiuGo goes on a dangerous mission in search of answers when his father goes missing, which leaves him changed forever. They must all unite and use their unique skills and abilities to save the town from the dark force that controls it, before it's too late.

Textauszug

Chapter 2:
Game Theory

The day Marcus walked into Miss Michelle’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu class was a shock to everyone except JiuGo.

Miss Michelle was on high alert at the sight of the hulking young man, having witnessed his many cruel acts at school. Suspecting he was there to cause trouble she was not her usual warm and welcoming self.

“What do you want here, Marcus?” Miss Michelle asked. “Only people who want to learn and be nice to each other can train here. Do you understand?”

Miss Michelle and Marcus were both Brazilian; Marcus’s father was from the far north, and Miss Michelle was from the south.

“I heard that this is where, uh, there are some Joo-Jitsoo classes or something like that?”

JiuGo ran over to welcome him.

“Oh hey, Marky Mark. You’ve come to learn the gentle art.” He laughed a little too hard and tried to high-five Marcus, who left him hanging.

Miss Michelle looked surprised at JiuGo’s friendly attitude towards Marcus, knowing the boys’ histories.

“What am I supposed to do? I feel stoopid. You all have pyjamas on. What am I supposed to wear?”

JiuGo turned to Miss Michelle and shrugged his shoulders.

“Maybe there’s a spare one for you. Not sure if we have one in juggernaut size. Ha-ha!”

There was no laughter from Marcus.

“So you want to learn jiu-jitsu, hey, big boy?” Miss Michelle said. “First thing, no shoes on the tatami. And to show respect, bow before coming onto the tatami.”

Miss Michelle was cautious but always prepared to include new people in her class. She was concerned for the wellbeing of her other students; there had never been a student that size before, with the exception of Mr Murasaki.

“Oh, I think we have an old judo gi donated by Mr Murasaki that should fit.”

It was huge, almost like a dressing gown made of tough, woven cotton, and hung over the pull-up bar in the corner. Miss Michelle yanked it down, creating a dust avalanche, and handed it to Marcus.

“Here you are. Try this and look through the lost property box for a belt.”

She pointed to a box in the far corner of the room. She was reluctant for him to join, but her instincts told her that something was different about Marcus now. He seemed more awkward, more innocent.

“Stoopid Joo-Jitsoo,” he muttered to himself. He approached the mess and tangle of the lost property box.

“Ew, yuck!” Marcus gagged. It stank like dirty feet, tuna cans, and bad milk. He held his nose and plunged his arm into the dusty mess, digging around for a belt. He found a tattered old white belt with a tinge of pink to it. He paused at the edge of the mats, he tossed the oversized jacket over his shirt and fixed the belt into a knot and kicked off his shoes.

“What do I do now?” His belt was tied wrong, and the old gi looked loose and messy.

JiuGo stopped his drills and motioned for him to bow.

Marcus looked doubtful but tried to mimic JiuGo.

“All this martial arts BS! You don’t hafta bow at boxing class. It’s all mystic crap,” he muttered to himself.

Miss Michelle looked around the room. Everyone was paired up, and the only people left were Mr Murasaki, a human tank, and Adam Tallman, who was six-foot-six but had no strength, like a wet noodle. The class was divided into two main groups: kids and adults. None of the athletic, popular kids did jiu-jitsu; they played football. That’s why Marcus presented a problem for her.

“With me, Marcinho. I will teach you a private lesson. Today, you’re going to learn to fall safely.” She signalled to Mr Murasaki to lead the class and took Marcus aside.

Marcus’s face screwed up in a mixture of disbelief and disgust.

Miss Michelle was not going to tolerate his insolence. “Listen here, kid. You must learn this to stay safe on the mat. You will soon see why.”

Marcus shrugged and tried to follow along. Miss Michelle demonstrated perfect break falls with gymnastic form, landing lightly each time. But for Marcus, they were heavy falls! Thud! Thud! Thud! Marcus’s face flushed with embarrassment, and his back and butt were now tender. He grew more and more impatient.

“What is the point of all this crap?”

“If you don’t learn to fall, you won’t be able to stand, okay?”

“When do I get to learn to choke someone?”

“You wanna choke somebody, do you? Try to choke me. I invite you to try.”

The whole class stopped and turned to watch.

“What? Nah, I don’t wanna hurt you, miss.”

Miss Michelle motioned for him to attack her.

“I think you’re scared of me, Marcus. Come on, try your best. I dare you.”

The magic words had been spoken. Miss Michelle stood confidently, hands on hips and a relaxed posture.

Marcus glanced over at JiuGo, who smiled and nodded enthusiastically.

“Come on, Marky. Bet you can’t even do it.”

Marcus cringed at JiuGo calling him by that stupid name. He felt the class’s attention focused upon him like a magnifying glass channelling the sun to burn an ant. He started to feel resentful and edgy. His anger was increasing. Marcus looked at the little woman and shrugged. Then he lunged at her, two hands reaching towards her throat.

In a flash, Miss Michelle performed a drop shoulder throw. Boom! Marcus landed hard on the mat, sending reverberations through the floor. He stared up at the ceiling, winded and confused.

Miss Michelle stood over him and smiled, offering him a friendly hand up. With hidden strength, she pulled Marcus to his feet.

He turned to see who was watching, but everyone had gone back to what they were doing, paying him no attention at all.

“How did you do that?” he asked breathlessly, looking at Miss Michelle with newfound respect.

“Oh, it’s easy. It just takes years of practice.” Miss Michelle smiled knowingly.

“Let’s do more break falls, and then I will show you how to defend the choke.”

Marcus screwed up his face and followed along gingerly. After twenty minutes of awkward falling, Miss Michelle sat Marcus down to take him through some choke defence. She moved behind him and took his back; wrapping her legs around his hips, pulling her chest tight to his shoulder blades, and clasped her arms over his chest, locking her hands like a seatbelt.

Marcus grunted impatiently and tried to wriggle around to get a little more comfortable. “Now what? What do I do?” He felt uncomfortable having someone so close to him.

“Try to get me off your back.” Miss Michelle stated.

Marcus tried to push her feet from around his hips, put as soon as he lowered his hands, she wrapped her right arm around his neck and, slowly but surely, began to squeeze, cutting off the oxygen to his brain.

“Just say stop by tapping with your hand on my leg or arm, and let me know that you give up.”

Marcus hesitated, not wanting to seem weak, but then involuntarily gagged. “Geeerk!” This was followed by loud choking coughs.

Miss Michelle released the choke.

“You need to tap earlier, big boy.” She let him catch his breath and reset the position.

“Now, this time, defend your neck, try to grab my arms, and protect your ability to breathe. Are you ready? Slap my hands. Now, bump my fist to show me you’re ready to begin. You must do this before you start the drills or rolling to let your partner know it’s go-time.”

Reluctantly, Marcus carried out this jiu-jitsu formality, then quickly grabbed her left arm with both of his large hands. Miss Michelle, with her free right arm, proceeded to choke him.

He gagged and coughed again.

“This sucks miss.”

“The other arm is the choking arm. Reach and defend this first as soon as you can.” She was firm but not scolding.

This was the most physical touch Marcus had experienced in years. It was unfamiliar to him, yet he craved it. The pair repeated the drill until Marcus successfully defended the choke by restraining both of Miss Michelle’s arms.

“Now, you need to get out of this position. Find a way out.” Her voice was now more cheerful, less serious.

He rolled around, struggling, trying to stand up to his feet, but as he moved to step up, Miss Michelle transitioned to an armbar submission, surprising Marcus and locking his elbow into sudden extension.

“Youch!” he cried.

She let go and sprang to her feet.

“Now you gotta learn how to defend the arm bar, but that’s for next week.” She smiled and then motioned for the class to line up.

They bowed to one another and shook hands. Being the...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 21.12.2023
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Kinder- / Jugendbuch
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3509-3185-3 / 9798350931853