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"So, I guess that means I should trust Sensei Silver," thought Tory, absentmindedly as she sparred with a fellow cobra. She was genuinely surprised when she asked Sensei Kreese for advice, as to if she could trust Silver that he'd said such a firm yes.

I didn't think Sensei Kreese really trusted anyone. It's one of the things I like most about him.

Of course, he did mention that they'd been old friends, but she knew he wasn't the type of person to let sentimental attachments get in the way of victory. One thing she was sure of, regardless of if Silver could be trusted, was that Kreese hadn't agreed to bribe the referee.

Otherwise, he would've just been open about it when I asked him during my fight with Samantha LaRusso.

It was a real testament to how good of a fighter Tory was when she could lay out her opponent with a single kick to the face. Granted, that was nothing new for her considering she'd been laying out the guys in the dojo since her first training session with Miguel Diaz.

"Eyes open, Ryan. At least, if you don't want to get hit, that is," Instructed Tory, sarcastically as she easily ducked right to avoid his weak attempt at a punch.

"Sorry, it's just my first day and I'm kinda nervous," admitted Ryan, smiling sheepishly.

Is he seriously throwing himself a pity party right now?

"Do you think that changes anything? On my first day, I challenged the All-Valley champ to a fight," stated Tory, sharply.

"Well, that's because you're a great fighter whereas I'm barely able to jog a lap without getting exhausted," joked Ryan.

Just from his gentle smile and lean shape, she could tell he had a long way to go if he wanted to be a cobra, but his act of kissing up to her definitely was not helping his case.

If he doesn't want to actually learn anything, he should join Miyagi-Do.

"Then why are you even here?" remarked Tory as her fist collided with his shoulder.

He rolled his shoulder in pain, gritting his teeth roughly against one another.

These are the kind of students Sensei Silver wants in his dojo?

"Timeout," panted Ryan, reaching down to the matted floors for his water bottle.

Tory kicked it out of his hand and grabbed his left arm, forcing his face against the ground.

"Never turn your back on the enemy!" shouted Tory, firmly.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry!" cried Ryan, attempting to shake Tory's hand off his arm with no success.

Tory let his arm drop to the ground, his hand slamming against the floor as she rolled her eyes.

"Another weak one?" confirmed Terry, his face wearing a look of disappointment as he walked past the moaning Ryan.

"Yep, and believe it or not, he's only the third worst of the bunch I've had to deal with this week," scoffed Tory, agitatedly.

Which is just another reason why I hate that Robby isn't here to help me train these idiots.

"There are pluses and minuses to becoming a Sensei, unfortunately, Mz. Nichols," commented Terry, knowingly.

It was beyond Tory why Silver would promote any teenager to Sensei status (or sensei in training, or whatever title he's so-called gifting us), let alone herself. Considering he didn't even trust that she could win the All-Valley tournament.

"So, are you excited for the event tomorrow tonight?" asked Terry, eagerly rubbing his hands together.

"Yeah, I guess. Snobby rich parties aren't really my thing," said Tory as she retied her sandy blonde hair behind her head.

"Well, I think this evening's events will be much more interesting," smiled Terry.

Tory stared at him, curiously. She always hated how hard it was to read his facial expressions, not because she cared about what he was planning, but because it removed her control over the situation.

For the most part, I think it's safe to assume that they're all just evil smirks.

"We'll see," shrugged Tory, unconvinced.

"Fair enough," agreed Terry as they walked over to the newly installed training station located towards the back of the dojo.

The metal doors glistened in their silver metallic glory as she pushed them open, revealing the expertly decorated room that lay hidden behind their guarded doors. The walls were covered in slick black wallpaper that gave the entire atmosphere of the room a foreboding feel. Long, velvet banners draped flamboyantly off the walls, a fierce yellow cobra residing in their centers. Various training tools were stationed in labeled areas. One spot consisted of a ringed-off fighting area for sparring.

Against the opposite wall, four punching bags hung from the ceiling, sturdy chains sustaining the impact of its user's attacks.

That one will be especially useful for me.

The section furthest from the door was devoted to Sensei Barnes' boxing gear, since it was pretty much assumed that any student who was going to be boxing would benefit from the ring's contained space. The only part of Silver's set-up that surprised Tory was a human-shaped metal dummy that currently stood in the middle of the room, its fake arms extended out straight. Five wooden boards had been tied to various parts of the dummy's body, most notably, the head and neck.

"Ready for your next lesson?" confirmed Terry, folding his hands behind his back as he came to a stop beside the unknown contraption.

"Yes, Sensei," answered Tory, her voice echoing within the otherwise soundless room.

Why would he spare his precious time to train me alone?

"What you are about to learn will allow you to come out of every fight a winner. That is, if you follow the steps carefully," Terry started, readying himself in front of the dummy.

Tory had never seen him in a fight, nor did she want to, but the positioning of his feet and angle of his arms looked very poor compared to the ones he "encouraged" his students to use.

I find it hard to believe that he became such a glorified Sensei using skills like that.

"Knowing your excellent perception, you've probably noticed that I'm not in a fighting stance, correct?" asked Terry without removing his eye contact from the dummy.

She just nodded, listening to his words carefully.

"That's because if you do what I teach, there won't be a fight," finished Terry.

I wonder if he ever gets tired of carrying around the heavy weight of his ego?

"The first rule is actually a very simple law of nature. If a man, or should I say, a woman in your case, can't stand, they can't fight," stated Terry.

With one swift kick, he split the wooden board in place of the rack's knee in two. Small bits of wood fell onto Tory feet as she watched her Sensei's expression quickly change from over-confident to outright scary.

"Okay, I see how that could be useful," admitted Tory, masking her nerves with astonishment.

"That's one of the reasons why I'm showing this to you, Ms. Nichols," said Terry, an arrogant smile slowly returning to his face.

I'm starting to actually wish I followed Robby's example and just ditched this guy earlier.

"Second rule, man can't breathe, he can't fight," continued Terry, pacing around the dummy as he spoke.

"But that would be counted as an illegal move, Sensei," reminded Tory as she willed herself to ignore the anger building inside her from her illegal tournament win.

She made sure as she stated these words to keep her shoulders and back straight, as a way to show her Sensei respect.

I'm all for hurting the enemy, but is that really necessary?

"If this was a tournament, you would be correct. But this lesson I'm teaching you, all the lessons that I teach, for that matter, don't just apply to a match," explained Terry.

"Yes, Sensei," responded Tory, understandingly.

Terry nodded before demonstrating the next attack on the training dummy. The wooden board splintered into three pieces this time, leaving its bare metal neck exposed.

"Now, just to clarify, you don't have to break your opponent's neck. Merely, make them feel enough pain to think you did."

"I understand, Sensei," stated Tory, nodding for him to tell her the last step of his new lesson.

Would she really be willing to hurt someone that badly? Even if she was fighting Samantha LaRusso.

"Ah, I bet you already are mentally planning who you're going to use this method on now," smirked Terry, reading her distant expression.

"Yeah, I have a couple ideas," lied Tory, half-smiling.

"Perfectly understandable. The last student who I taught this to had the same powerful look in their eyes as you do now," said Terry, practically glowing with excitement.

"Who was the last person you taught this to?" asked Tory.

I'm one-hundred percent guaranteed I don't want to know the answer.

"Little boy, Danny LaRusso," answered Terry, grinning knowingly at his student.

"Are you kidding me? There's no way any of the LaRussos are tough enough to handle Cobra Kai's teachings," laughed Tory, incredulously.

Except, maybe Amanda. But I still doubt it.

"I thought the same thing at first, too, until Sensei Kreese showed up at my mansion and tried handing me the keys to the dojo all because of that boy and old man Miyagi," scoffed Terry, bitterly.

"Sensei Kreese gave up?"

I never would've marked him as a quitter, even before I really got to know him.

"Unfortunately, I have to say yes. After Johnny Lawrence's loss at the All-Valley tournament, Kreese really hit rock bottom, so to speak. He came to my house, practically begging like a sick puppy to help him get revenge on a teenage boy and his Sensei. Of course, I said yes, even if it was partially due to cocaine. I immediately got to work on this grand plan to use Mike Barnes to destroy Danny Boy's confidence, both before and after the tournament. Making that twerp miserable would have killed the old man's spirit, too. Only, he was braver than I'd first anticipated, and somehow, he won against Barnes. In the end, we lost the tournament and our titles, getting Cobra Kai banned from competing again. But most of all, I lost my purpose," explained Terry, distantly as they sat next to one another on the lined gray mats.

And I thought he was crazy before...

"Then, how did Sensei Kreese convince you to come back? After everything you two went through," questioned Tory, confused.

She was careful to refrain from saying anything that would involve his loss.

"The full story is much too long to tell now, but simply put, loyalty," replied Terry, honestly.

Yeah, you sure seem loyal to the guy who you got thrown in jail.

"I most certainly did not make it easy for him, though. No, he had to fight tooth and nail to get me to come," laughed Terry, proudly.

"Well, at least, you made the right choice in the end," commented Tory.

"Indeed. Now, I think that's enough story-telling for one day. Plus, you still have one more step to learn," announced Terry, pushing himself to his feet (Tory following in similar fashion afterwards).

"The final rule of this lesson is if a man can't see, he can't fight," finished Terry, gesturing towards the dummy's eyes.

"This one you already seem to have done nicely, but it nevers hurts to learn other fighter's tactics on how to perform a move, especially one as useful as this one," stated Terry.

No, I'm not doing this again. Not after what happened at the tournament with the LaRussos.

"Hah-saw!" shouted Terry as his right arm shot forward, striking the dummy in both eyes, simultaneously.

The wooden board obliviated on impact, sending small bits of its remains floating in the ice cold air.

Tory stared at Terry in amazement, taken aback by the level of damage he caused with a single blow to the face.

"So, you like it?" asked Terry, already knowing what her response would be.

"Who wouldn't?" retorted Tory as she noticed the last shred of wood falling to the ground, her hands shaking slightly at her sides.

"That, my girl, is what you call the Quicksilver method."