"Concentrate, Little Lady!" Rand Shouted as Merc tried to connect a slashing kick to Mentokka's head. Rand shook his head, as he saw the two trained with each other.

"What was wrong with her?" Rand thought to himself. "Merc knows that a side thrust kick was the proper move to attempt."

She seem to be faltering, as if she was out of breath or lack of interest. And to make matters worse. He could see that Mentokka notice that Merc was not up to her game, so she wasn't giving it her all either. Rand sighed and called out for the two to stop fighting.

Rand said nothing as he walked over to where the girls were standing. "Tosh?" he called out to his nephew. "Continue with Mentokka. Merc walk with me, please." Mentokka was about to say something, but Rand was already walking along the stream that he trained them. She followed quietly behind him.

They walked for about a minute. Rand wanted them to be out of eye and ear shot of the others. Rand knew that this was going to happen. The impasse in there relationship. He knew he had to get what ever she was feeling out in the open, or she would never reach her true potential. Not under his training, that is. And Rand wasn't going to let that happen.

"Alright, little lady," Rand said stopping, and not turning to face his student. "What's wrong?"

"I don't understand, what you mean Master." Merc said in a small voice, as if she didn't have the right to speak to him.

"You were fighting like you was sleepwalking." he said turning to face her. "I never seen you so out of focus or uninterested before. So I ask again, What is wrong?" Still Merc said nothing. She wouldn't even look him in his eyes. Rand sighed inwardly. He tried the fatherly path, and it seem only to make Merc less confident of herself. Merc looked and acted like a whipped puppy. It was time for 'Master Rand' to come out.

This would NOT do. It was time for drastic measures. Even though the thought made him slightly sick to his stomach. Rand walked up to her and slapped her across her face......Hard!

The blow made her see lights before her eyes. She looked at him with wide eyes. She was about to ask why he did that, when Rand slapped her once again. "It's about time for you to wake up, Little Lady, Defend Yourself!"

The first time they fought, Rand stayed on the defense, but now, Rand was on the attack. He was about to get her out of her funk, even if he had to punch and kick it out of her.

Merc was back on her heels as Rand threw punches and kick at her. She barely had time to block and avoid his countless blows, much less think about what Rand was doing. Suddenly Rand stopped his attack, and looked at his student and grin that damnable grin that Merc hated so much.

"Well! You still know how to defend yourself, I'm impressed." Rand said, removing his fighting robe to reveal his bare chest. "It's been a while since I cut loose on a student. Ended up nearly beating Mentokka with in an inch of her life til she learned something. Time for you to show me what your made of....The Way of the Fist!" With that, Rand charged!

Merc instantly knew what he meant by that. 'The Way of the Fist' was the saying Master Kasumi always said, when she trained her. Trained her hard. Even now she could see the seriousness in those brown eyes of his. Merc lead with a straight right to Rand's face. But Rand side stepped the attack and grabbed her fist by the wrist. He jerked her arm forward and drove his knee into her midsection, that drove the air out of her. She slumped to her knees.

"Your making this all too easy." Rand said, looking down at fallen Merc. "I've had a peasant girl give me more of a effort in the hay then what your doing." Merc tried to get to her feet, but Rand kicked her back to the ground.

"I'd call you 'Giant Women'.... But your not worthy of the title. Maybe I should call you......Little Girl?" Rand said, kneeling next to her. Suddenly Merc snapped her head up to see fire in the red head's eyes. The one thing that she hate being called.....Or in this case not being called. "But Mentokka wouldn't like that."

The two rose at the same time. But Rand grabbed her by her blouse and flipped her into the flowing stream. Rand was on top of her as soon as her head came out of the water. He grabbed her by her hair and plunged her face under the water. Merc struggle for several seconds as Rand pulled her face back out of the water.

"Head and Heart, Merc!" Rand shouted into her face. "It's all about Head and Heart!" He shoved her under once again. then pulled her back up once again. "Must I Drown you for you to understand this? Your to damn good to be acting this way." He pushed her under the water again. He held her longer this time. This time she really struggled to free herself, but Rand held tight.

Merc felt her consciousness begin to slip away, as his words echoed inside of her. Then suddenly something beyond her fear of drowning. Something clicked in her. {Head and Heart} It was these two things that controlled her. It was this that would take control the two battling styles in her. The Ninja and the Fighter fought each other to be the superior style insider her. But in truth, it was Merc who was the superior one of the two. And instantly she forced the two styles to obey her. Even though she was drowning, Merc suddenly had several means of escaping Rand's grasp. She ended up do the most difficult one.

Suddenly Rand saw and felt Merc's fist come up out of the water and caught his on the side of the head. The blow sent him off of her and land further into the stream.

Rand quickly got to his feet and looked to see Merc already on her feet, popping her shoulder back into place.

"The Art of Dislocation." Rand thought to himself. That was the only way she could connect. She's Finally learning.

But it was the look on her face that told him all he needed to know. A hard, calmness of determination, Rand knew if he was anyone else at this moment, he'd give the idea of running some serious thought. But this is what he wanted to bring out in her. He just hoped she didn't end up killing him in the process.

Merc couldn't believe that she connected. "I hit him!" she thought to herself. "I finally hit him." She was filled with moves and counter-moves that Rand would most likely use on her.
"It can't be this easy!"

Keeping an eye on Merc, Rand slowly walked out of the water. "Don't like playing the 'Water Nymph' any longer." Merc smile and followed him. The two walked several feet from the water's edge. He spread his feet slightly and dropped into a fighting crouch. Merc smiled and went into her own fighting stance.

Right there Rand noticed something different about her. It was her confidence. She was bubbling with it. She leaped at him. She was incredibly fast. He stepped to his right and kicked at her as she flew past. He caught her on her hip and knocked her sideways, but not off her feet. Merc circled, looking for an opening. Suddenly, she took a long, sliding step and punched.

Rand back peddled, but her fist hit him in the belly hard. She followed up with an elbow but he dived away, rolled and turned, came up with his hands lifted, as she darted after him.

He lost contact with his magic. That gut shot must of broke his concentration. She slapped him next to his ear and he went down. Rand thought, if he didn't do something fast, she might end up killing him.

"Uncle Rand, use your magic!" It was Mentokka. He sensed her near but she was out of view. He wanted to only use his fighting skills. But he was at the point of getting hurt by her. Right now, anything goes.

He rose to one knee and cast, Mentokka's 'Flash and Bang' spell. Even though he taught Mentokka this spell. He is the one that mastered it. The spell lasted for a few seconds. Not long enough to make lose her equilibrium. But long enough to slightly lose her balance, to give him the time to get to his feet and shake off the effects of Merc ear slap.

The two of them stopped for several seconds, and looked at each other.

"You see how easy it is, Little Lady." Rand said. A grin breaking across his face. "Head and Heart. A whole new world has just opened up to you."

Merc couldn't say anything. Her eyes looked upon Rand, with love and respect. "This is what he wanted me to learn....... But I was so stupid to have feelings of doubt. Because he's a man? These were not my feelings........they were my Mothers feelings. It was her hatred of men that I carried inside me all this time.... I feel Reborn!"

Rand and Merc went at each other in a frenzy. Throwing countless punches and kicks where the two also countered just about every shot the two of them threw. There speed nearly cheated the eye. This lasted for several minutes until Mentokka cast the 'Flash and Bang' spell on the two of them. But they were so into a fighting fever, they hardly noticed it only to pause for several seconds. That was all they needed.

"Now, Tosh! Now!" Mentokka shouted, as she and Tosh tackled the two of them. Tosh grabbing Rand and Mentokka hitting Merc.. The four of them landing into the stream. The four of them rose there heads out of the water and looked at eact other.

"I told you it would work, Tosh." Mentokka said wringing her hair of the excess water. Most of it onto Tosh's face. "When two big dogs are fighting, you need someone with a bucket of water to stop them.......Better then your idea." Tosh looked at her sister with a dead pan expression.

" A bucket of water on 'Them' sis! I still think we should of let them kill each other." Tosh said, wiping the water off his face and flicked into Mentokka's face. Rand and Merc looked at Tosh with a shocked look.

Suddenly, the four of them started laughing. Rand walked though the water and took Merc in his arms. Tosh and Mentokka knew right away something special happened between the two of them. they looked at each other and smiled.

Rand whispered how proud he was of her. And Merc thanking his Master for opening up a whole new world for her.

And what a world it would be her......... and all of them.