Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

Brian and Carlo both used their own machetes yet the way they slashed the tatami mats produced different results.

One lacked technique while the other lacked force. However, it was safe to say they lacked in both departments with a small deviation.

In Brian's case, he easily chopped the tatami mat in half but it didn't stay in place, and even if he managed to perform a double-cut by quickly brandishing his weapon, all it did was make a small cut and send the upper half of the tatami mat flying.

In Carlo's case, he went a little too steep with his angles and once he slashed down, he didn't manage to chop the tatami mat in half. It just looked like a broken tree trunk where the upper half was just hanging by a small bit.

They didn't immediately react as they just looked at their results with a pensive expression. Some of the people watching were giving the same expression as well but the majority wanted to test themselves immediately.

Brian turned to me while inspecting his machete, "Can I try again?"

I shook my head as I smiled, "I told ya, you only get one try."

"How about the bamboo? Can I--"

I cut him off, "That's for later. Who wanted to--"

Carlo raised his hand before cutting me off, "C-Can I know why I--"

"You're fucking tall."

"What?"

"You're tall. Well, that's one of the reasons."

Carlo grew curious, "Can you please elaborate? I swear I could easily chop off the arms of a normal deadhead. I even helped to butcher a cow once and I never had any trouble."

I smiled as I made him sit down, "Okay, the most basic and easiest slash of all is a downward-diagonal slash coming from the side of your dominant arm towards the other. However, the fucking sweet spot is coming down at an angle between 30-50 degrees. What you did was close to 80 and it brought you some problems among other things."

"Other things?"

"Aside from your height and the angle your machete came in, it's using poor edge alignment and just lacking a bit of force."

"Huh?"

"Yours is way off. If you slash at a certain angle, make sure to follow through with it and make sure the fucking edge is… you know… aligned. If it deviates in any way, it could lead to--"

Brian cut me off, "Wait, am I doing it subconsciously then?"

I shook my head slightly, "You also did it wrong but--"

"But what? I cut it off, right?"

"You're never gonna make me finish talking, eh?"

"Ah..."

"Anyway, what I'm trying to say is… in Carlo's case, if he got the angle a little less steep, he could've cut the tatami mat in half. Or, if he applied a bit more force, he could've succeeded as well. However, our goal is to efficiently use our tools, not overexert each time we try to kill a single deadhead. Is everyone still following?"

Everyone in my class nodded and I turned to my two pupils.

Brian scratched his head, "Y-Yeah... But what did I do wrong?"

"Hmm, let's step away from theory for a short moment and check out something more… tangible. Place your machetes side by side and shine a light on them. Check each nook and cranny then you'll see a little bit of difference."

It took a moment to get everything set up but I even pulled out a camera to zoom in on their blades. Furthermore, I set my unused machete on the side to compare with the other two. They were the same make and brand and everyone leaned over to get a much better look.

The two blades definitely had some wear and tear but everyone was looking at the wrong part of the machete… except for Kaley. It was actually a trick question and she read me like a book. However, she didn't raise her hand and continued to watch what everyone would say or do first.

Brian was the first one to answer, "They're used a lot?"

"They're both used. Nope. You need to be more specific."

Carlo followed, "They need replacement?"

"What? No. Anyone? Kaley?"

"W-What? Me?"

As soon as I called her out, everyone just turned to her. She tried to make herself as small as possible but she got more attention when Ashley and the rest just noticed her wearing a ring. They weren't aware of what happened that time and another rain of congratulations came.

I eventually waved them off, "Okay, okay! We'll do that more later. Kaley, I think you know the answer. Care to share what you discovered?"

"D-Do I?"

I chuckled, "We wouldn't know until you say it, right? C'mon, trust yourself sometimes."

"F-Fine… It's… It's the h-handles..."

A few commented as they turned back to the machetes, "Handles? What?"

Kaley shrunk down, "I-It's wrong? Did I--"

I let out a bright smile, "Ding! Ding! Ding! No, you're right!"

Everyone else wore complex expressions while a few couldn't believe the answer.

Brian lifted his machete, "I still can't see it… the handles? They're just plastic--"

I cut him off, "Exactly. They're just plastic. It would be difficult to spot it on the blades since they're so rigid and tough so you look for the part where it's soft. Check the area where the handle meets the blade. The plastic handle is getting pushed forward on your blade while it's getting twisted on Carlo's."

As soon as I said that, another round of inspection occurred and they nodded pensively right after.

"Since you're prone to use a lot of force, it compensated the lack of proper edge alignment in your attacks. In doing so, most of the stress gets placed on the part of the handle where the webbing between your thumb and index finger meets. In Carlo's case, I'd assume or guarantee that most of his strikes on a deadhead involved a lot of hacks and pulls since he couldn't follow the cut right through. Doing that with a longsword or a blade that is a little more flexible will cause the blade to bend, but with his machete, it warped the plastic handle to twist instead."

Everyone else was still taking all the information in when I lifted my machete and performed the same attack on a used tatami mat. Each slash just flowed like a river and it was like a replay of what I did with my kitchen knife.

With that said, the two tried to correct their swings and they actually made a bit of improvement just from the small explanation I gave. However, they just got rushed by everyone else that wanted to try the exercise for themselves. They emerged from the mob filled with footprints but they were staring at their machetes like they were in a trance.

I just chuckled as I crouched down behind them, "Even if we could achieve the same result with a different method, it doesn't always mean that it's okay to keep doing you, eh?"

Carlo shook his head, "We could cut it-- I barely cut mine off but there's actually a lot that goes in a single swing..."

Brian was nodding slowly, "Yeah..."

"At least you're learning. Well, after you made significant progress on that one, there are several more basic swings to go through. Here's a tip, a diagonal slash starting from the bottom, opposite of your dominant arm, going up to your dominant arm is the next easiest. Practice that next if you have the time. Oh, the sweet spots are still the angles I said earlier. You could always deviate a few degrees but it's best to stay right in the middle."

"Sure..." they nodded simultaneously.

I gave them a few more tips from the things I learned myself and they listened attentively for once. They were always one of many that learned with their bodies or have to be shown directly for anything to left an imprint on their heads. This time, they listened to every word I said and they even asked valid questions.

As the rest of the class tested themselves, they didn't even try to attempt the triple-cut with their tatami mats. Instead, they started cutting them with the first of the three cuts from the top-most part, significantly increasing their number of attempts.

With that said, they didn't go wild as I thought they would because they would turn to me for advice with each cut. The first part of my class went for longer than I thought it would but I was happy to increase our soldier's battle prowess just by merely opening my mouth. However, what they needed right now couldn't be more obvious.

Tatiana sneaked her way behind me, "Hey, you better leave some of those for me when I get better. At least a 100 would be nice..."

I chuckled, "Those tatami mats?"

"Yup. I could try with my left but I know I'm not that good using it yet."

"Don't worry, they're just made of rice straw and some cloth. Things we have plenty of because of our deal with the farmers in Bulacan and the amount of stuff we have on stock. I know how to make them myself but I'd leave it to a few people with good hands."

Tatiana nodded but she leaned much closer and whispered, "So… when are we gonna have se-- Ow! Can't you see I'm injured?!"

"Yes, I can see that. And the answer to your question is when you're not injured. You said it yourself before, the only way to do it is rIgoRouslY~"

Tatiana pouted as she drooped her head low, "I fucking hate you... One of these days~"

I just chuckled as she slumped down next to me, "Sure~ Sure~"