Looking at midstless up close makes me realize just how terrifying they truly are. The one on the right has long arms but short rear legs. It reminds me of how Kiichi used to describe the Sento monkey he raised as a teenager. The beast on the left appears to take a shape that is more comparable to a human. It has two legs and four arms, not to mention it's twice as tall as me. The one on the left is going to be a challenge, by the looks of it.

Suddenly the monkey begins to rush me, propelling itself forward on its lanky arms at an alarming speed. I can't dodge this one with my pace. I'll have to block the blow. Then, at the last second, the monkey spins around and blindsides me with a punch from an unexpected angle.

*BOOM*

I slide backward a few feet, somehow remaining on my feet. The beast looks confused, as it should. That punch should have sent me flying much further than it did. It should have at least incapacitated me instantly, but my weight allowed me to take the blow. The monkey looks much warier of me now, less sure of its actions than before. I must isolate one of the two midstless to make it a balanced fight. Looking around, I don't see the large one anywhere. Don't tell me he went to deal with Kiichi from behind! I have to stop-

*URK*

The large one had somehow made it behind me and lifted me by the waist! He doesn't seem to have too much trouble lifting me despite my weight. I probably don't have to worry about them chasing after Kiichi, seeing as they have a Cosmic delicacy right in front of them.

The beast lifts me high and drops me. He punches me in the back before I can attempt to react, sending me straight towards the monkey.

*BOOM* *ACK!*

That one hurt a lot. My vision is blurry, but this is a good chance! Soaring straight towards the monkey, I ready my leg to launch my first attack. The monkey looks to be readying an attack, but it will come too slow. My knee meets the monkey's face just as he is preparing to unleash a swing. I hear a mighty boom and dread that my leg might have just broken. Looking down at the monkey, I see him lose balance from my top-heavy attack and fly backward into a tree. I must take advantage of this break. This may be the only opening I get!

Sprinting towards the monkey to finish the job, I realize the ground is shaking a lot more than it usually does when I run. I realize the reason behind the tremors too late. I feel the giant beast's fist hit my back again. It's the second blow I've taken to the back.

*CRACK ... BOOM*

I hit the mountain face, leaving it cracked from the impact. The first blow must have damaged my hearing a bit, or I would have heard it coming. There's no time to dwell on the past. I need to get up.

*Thump, Thump, Thump...*

The large beast is coming to finish the job. Blood is leaking into my right eye from the impact. I must have hit my head hard because I can't move at all. This might be it for me. I have no time to recover. One more blow like that really will seal it.

I start to cough up blood as I watch the large one looming over me, now blocking off the sun, which has become quite low in the sky. I think I'm seeing double... no. The monkey is coming too. Wait... Why is the monkey moving so fast?

*WHACK*

The large one stumbles forward into the wall next to me. What just happened? My vision may be blurry, but it looked like the monkey hit him. Why? Now that I think about it, the large one launched me straight at the monkey earlier. Was that not a coincidence? It might be because they want to keep me all to themselves. Kiichi has told me that Cosmics cause midstless to act out of character.

The giant beast stands up and lets out a shout. He looks serious. On another topic, I'm beginning to regain feeling in my limbs, so I might be able to move soon.

Before I know it, the two beasts are engaged in ground-shaking combat. The large one is clearly winning, but that means I'll have to face him when their fight is over. I can't count on Kiichi to come help me. Although he's strong, it will take him a good while to dispatch that many midstless. I must dispose of the victorious one just when they finish combat, but what can I do? The only blow I landed was because of the speed given to me by the blow to my back. I'm too slow to land an attack on either of these beasts. How can I become faster? I don't have months to train myself. I have a maximum of two minutes to get myself ready.

Now that I think about it, Kiichi told me about the most basic midst technique, though I've never used it myself. He said that it took him a week or two to get down, but I will have to learn it in a couple of minutes. What did he say again...?

Years earlier:

Adachi: "Kiichi, how can I become strong like you?"

Kiichi: "Well, being a Cosmic means that you have a naturally vast pool of midst. If you just apply yourself and train your midst for a little while, you can do what I do too!"

Adachi: "What exactly can I do with midst? I've never seen you do anything with it."

Kiichi: "You have seen me use it, actually. I use it every day, though it's probably not healthy to rely on it that often. The most basic midst technique is physical enhancement, which infuses your muscles with midst energy and allows them to do more than they would regularly. However, bear in mind that physical enhancement has its limits. If you don't train your muscles properly, then physical enhancement can't do much for you."

Adachi: "I'm not sure I get it, Kiichi... can you rephrase it?"

Kiichi: "Well, let's say I could rate your strength on a scale of 1-100. If your right arm has a strength of 5 and you channel all your midst into it, it might be able to become a 20. However, if your arm has a strength of 10, your midst might be able to turn it into 40! By raising your arm's strength naturally by 5, you increase its maximum by an extra 20. That's why training without physical enhancement is so important. Does it make sense now?"

Adachi: "Yeah, I guess that makes sense. But does that mean that I can only imbue one part of me with midst at a time?"

Kiichi: "No, you can spread your midst concentration out into your whole body, but it won't be as effective. Let's say each of your limbs is a 5, and you put midst into all four of them. Each limb might become a 7 or an 8, which is a significant downgrade from 20, wouldn't you say? That's why most of the best midst users only infuse the limbs they need to use with maximum efficiency."

Adachi: "Cool! That makes sense, but it sounds like a lot of work."

Kiichi: "Hahaha, that it does, that it does. I'll show you how to do it anyway, and you can try if you feel like it. It goes a bit like this…"

Present time:

The way Kiichi used to do it... breath in, breath out, and visualize a river flowing from your center, straight into your limbs. I can sense it, even if only slightly. I can feel the energy beginning to fill both my legs like water fills a basin. It feels warm and cool at the same time. What an odd feeling.

Meanwhile, the battle between midstless is coming to an end. First, the large one slams the other into the ground with outstanding force. Then, stepping on his back and holding both the monkey's arms behind him, he pulls with all his might.

*RIP* *GROAAAAAH*

The monkey's arms are both removed simultaneously, and his blood gushes out like a water fountain at first, then slowly loses pressure into a light trickle. He's certainly dead now. He lays motionless, and the large one stands victorious, just as I had predicted.

As the large one turns around to take his prize, he finds me standing up and ready. He looks fairly beat up, and with this extra power in my legs, I may be able to beat him.

Adachi: "BRING IT FOUR-ARMS!!"

The beast and I begin running towards each other. Let the battle commence.