Duel with Devil
Then I did the ‘Migi-Sansen-dachi’ karate stance.
“Wow, I didn’t know you've just started learning Karate. OK. Here it comes!”
Saying so, his fist rushed to my face. So my body reacted willfully and blocked the punch with ‘Uchi-Uke’. Then his arm was flicked to the outside with tremendous speed. Then he looked a little pale but still reddish in anger since he was a bit of a bad ass. Then he tried to kick my guts. So my body reacted willfully once again and blocked the kick with ‘Gedan-Barai’. Then his leg was flicked to the outside and he turned three and a half times like a figure skater and fell over.
Nevertheless, he stood up once again and tried a left low blow to my guts. But I blocked it with ‘Gedan-Barai’ once again and my body reacted and I threw a straight left punch and it stopped just in front of his face.
Devil, looked at my fist, became weak with surprise and sat down on the ground. Then he looked up at me vacantly for a while, stood up and said sourly,
“You are off the hook for today. But remember, you still owe me! Hey guys, we are going! Let’s get off this dumb Octopus!”
Then I went back to Doc’s laboratory. He was doing a chemical experiment wearing Karate wear, holding a test tube and a flask.
“Well, I’m a physicist. But it’s not so bad to do a chemical experiment once in a while.”
“Hey Doc, I didn’t beat him. I just blocked his punches and kicks. Then he ran away. But before that, he told me I have to pay him or else!”
“He is just a poor looser. When you do a karate stance he will immediately run away.”
“Oh, really?”
“Precisely!”
“Well I was able to throw a straight left punch that I’d never done.”
“Maybe your body remembered it.”
“My body remembered, so what?”
“Well, Dr. Gestalt taught you. But remember the defense-only policy.”
“I got it.”
“Then get in the Machine. You’ll be seventeen again.”
“Won’t I forget how to do Karate?
“You’re going to be taught by Dr. Gestalt.”
“But what if I run into Devil before that, what should I do?”
“Don’t worry. Just do the Karate stance and he’ll run away.”
“Is it true?”
“Of course yes. And I think you are great, since you didn’t beat him.”
“Well, I threw a straight left but it stopped in front of his face.”
“Yes. It’s the defense-only policy!”
After that I spent an uneventful summer vacation. Devil had not tried to bully me since then, as Doc said. But he found a new target and begun to haunt the guy. Of course I wanted to help him somehow. But I wasn’t learning Karate at the Dojo at that time and I wasn’t strong enough to help him. I hoped Dr. Gestalt would soon be back from Himalayas.
