School work and more training

You huff and puff on the way back to school, glad that the bike is at least a seven speed. That said… “Why,” pant, “a,” puff, “bike?”

“Because exercise is good for you,” the ring chuckles, “sure, your super form can toss cars around and run for days… but you won't be up to doing that form full time for a long time. Even when you are… well, they're not common, but there are ways to revert a transformation… a curse that uses up your soul's strength, perhaps… and you'll want to be at least fit enough to run away long enough to figure out how to recover. Also… you'll live longer if your heart's in the right shape. Don't worry, I used it too, as you, last night. You're going to live.”

“Is,” huff, “that,” puff, “a good,” grunt, “thing?”

“Yes. Now pedal!” The ring laughs, “We can't have you be late for class…”

You do eventually get there, the ring prodding you onwards the whole way, with enough time to catch your breath, grab your stuff, and get to work… where he has you look up the local laws on vigilantism when you don't have anything better to do (which works out to about an hour or two of your shift: The library is pretty quiet). Then it's lunch, your classes, moving out of the dorm… then super exercise.

Super Exercise is straightforward. You go somewhere private, strip, activate the titanium ring, and then do dull things until the Dragon Ring says stop… at which point, you turn it off, try to ignore the mild case of light-headedness, get dressed, and go rest… takes about an hour the first day.

After the inane exercises, while you're resting, the Ring speaks up, “By the way… we'll need to sign you up for some self-defense classes,” he pauses, “Has Krav Maga developed yet?”

You blink a few times, “I wouldn't know. But… I have super powers; why would I need self defense classes?”

“A couple of reasons,” the ring forms his avatar in your vision just to have fingers to count on… starting with his thumb for some weird reason, "First, you can't stay in super form forever. You need to be able to conserve your strength when a trump card isn't needed.” He adds his pointer finger on that hand, “Second, if your only options are ‘run away’ and ‘punch a hole in the bad guy's chest’ you have a problem when you need someone restrained: Drunk and Disorderly probably shouldn't carry a **** sentence, mind control happens, sometimes you need to interrogate a thug, and so on. In such circumstances, a nonlethal approach is best, and for that, you need to know how to put someone down without serious injuries.” Middle finger is next, “Plus, of course, you're not the only one with powers. If you end up facing off against someone as strong and tough as yourself… it's going to be much better if you know the mechanics of how to fight rather than relying strictly on your powers.”

As he starts to add another finger, you interrupt, “Okay, I get it. I need some PE credits anyway, I'll hit it up next semester.”

“It's going to need a long term commitment, not just one semester,” the ring shrugs, “I'm hiring a personal trainer for you; details to be determined.”

You groan, still feeling the weight of recent transformations.

The days turn into weeks, and eventually you do find yourself quitting the library job: The ring covers your expenses just fine, and the longer you work with him, the more time he ends up needing for various aspects of your training: Martial Arts (and yes, Krav Maga is around, and the personal trainer is _mean_ - he apparently does private lessons, which is odd), studying, and super powers practice. At night, your body guest works on the RV or jewelry he keeps in your purse, and you change campgrounds every month, like clockwork, a slightly farther one each time.

By the end of the semester, you find the ride isn't bothering you, and you're not dizzy at the end of a transformation session. In fact, you're itching to do more, “Hey, can I do a patrol?”

“What are the rules about it?” The ring chuckles in your head. Of course: What's a teacher without an occasional test?

“Technically, vigilantism is illegal. In practice, to make it not vigilantism, all I need to do is visit a police station, give a quick oath, carry a radio and body cam - which they'll issue - keep the dispatcher up to date, follow instructions as given, and avoid killing or maiming anyone.”

“Right. And why is that?”

Definitely a test, “Because if a guy gets beat up, it's important for society to know if he deserved it, and particularly harsh sentences are for the courts.”

“Expand on that, please.”

“Well, like… we can't just trust that Uber Man is a good guy and that everyone he punches deserves a punch to the face. I mean, he is, and they do, but if we just trust that, there's a problem if he's not. Like…” you consider, “...suppose he interrupts a ****, kills the aggressor, and neither he nor the woman report it, she just running away and trying to forget it ever happened, he just moving on to the next rescue.”

“Reasonable scenario, keep going,” the Ring encourages you.

“Suppose instead Uber Man happens to hate white guys, and just kills a guy in an alley for the color of his skin.” You take a breath, “When the police find the body, they can't tell which scenario they have on their hands: A racist murderer running around loose, or one less ****. The video and the radio give them something to check.”

“Good enough way to explain it,” the Ring confirms, “so why don't the police just impress all the supers? Get everyone registered and do mandatory service?”

You laugh at that, “Been tried, many times, by different tin pot dictators. It ends explosively every time, and now the International Organization of Ultras keeps an eye out for any hint of plans to enslave supers. They tolerate a powers section on a criminal profile, but anything more than that…” you shake your head, “...well, nobody wants to be on the wrong side of the IOU.”

“Right,” he sounds… proud? “So: what's the answer to your question?”