Bounty Run

After having completed his various tasks across the planet for the day, Nero made his way to one of the few lakes in the Maima fields, where he sat himself under the shade of some ajisa trees near the edge of the lake and began meditating.

The man had a lot to think through. Ever since the Guru passed away, everything seemed to grow more and more complicated. Nero was concerned for his family and how they felt about recent events, but he would always be there to provide what he could for them.

There was also the matter of certain individuals turning to radical and crazy actions, causing further problems. Nero would have to make note to get into contact with several people to make sure that they were doing alright— Tabor in particular considering the delicate nature of the Namekian’s plan to mediate between two clashing parties...

Nero also hoped that among many others; Tambo, Pracross, Ollo, Acous, and Aulos were doing alright— plus that Saiyan fellow Nasu that Nero recently met as well; he was a bit odd, but nice enough.

Enjoying the calm and serene atmosphere, Nero worked through his worries piece by piece, all the while taking his surroundings into account via his enhanced senses. Soon enough he had nothing but passing thoughts remaining until he sensed someone... Familiar... ish? He couldn’t quite describe the feeling he had about it, but it certainly piqued his interest. He would wait patiently however since he wanted to both think through what he was observing and to see if whoever it was would pass by of their own accord.

Nero kept to his calm meditation, still content with simply being where he was. The soft wind through the trees, the flow of the water nearby, the beats of insect wings— he took all of it in, observing the world around him with auditory senses alone for some time; for a while all he did was hear and listen. Eventually he was satisfied with where he had gotten to with his meditation, so he brought himself back out of the intense trance, but he never moved from where he was and kept his eyes closed.

He was curious about the oddly familiar individual he had sensed before; so he reached out with his energy sensing abilities, and detected that the person that piqued his interest earlier was in fact still in the area and seemingly coming this way. It became easier and easier to sense them as they wandered, but eventually Nero could just as easily hear them.

Nero mentally quirked a brow as he listened. It was someone with a confident heavy stride with the thump of what Nero could only assume was leather boots; he could also hear the swish of a tail not unlike his own and the jingling of chains; this person holstered something, a weapon no doubt. Regardless, Nero knew that someone was in his presence and he was growing more and more certain of having sensed their energy at least once... Maybe twice? This was the same energy that he had momentarily sensed on Earth before coming home! Now this was certainly interesting.

The new arrival finally spoke after letting out a sigh; they had a feminine inflection to their voice but they were no doubt wearing some head gear with an audio filter, which could easily throw those with untrained ears for a loop. “I know where to find him, yes.” Nero stood up gracefully like he was following the breeze itself, slowly walking to the edge of the lake, gesturing to it as if to show the newcomer something as he leaned forward slightly to 'look' into it himself despite his eyes being closed. If the newcomer followed his direction and looked into the lake, Nero would chuckle. “He’s the owner of that handsome reflection of mine~!” He then began to giggle like a cheeky monkey. “Hahahahaeheheheheeee~! Sorry, sorry, I saw the opportunity to have a bit of fun. I’m Nero. Can I help you?”

Nero grinned, so this person had a sense of humor, nice! “Well alrighty then, good to know that one was a hit I suppose.” Listening to this person talk a bit more, Nero could pick out the feminine inflection in their voice a bit more; and the gears in his head began to turn again. It would take a bit of time for him to make a good guess on who this was without straight up looking at them, but he also found it interesting if he tried to deduce things from hearing alone; more of a solid personal challenge he could give himself. Goodness knows an individual of Saiyan blood can seek challenges in the strangest of things and Nero was a perfect example of this.

“Well, I’m curious, what do you need from me?” Nero asked, casually leaning on a nearby tree while patiently waiting for this newcomer to speak up, still keeping an ear out about his surroundings. He listened to the whip of what was absolutely at least similar to Saiyan tail followed by unholstering two weapons that were soon spun; a dual wielder? It didn’t sound like a blunt weapon, but it didn’t make the same whooshing noise a pair of swords would, so Nero’s next best guess was; “Oho~ Axes, hm?” He raised his brows, curious if he was correct, and he didn’t seem all too bothered by the claims made by this person before him.

“I’d say I’m quite fun, yes.” Nero added, making the motion of idly inspecting his nails as if his eyes were open— more than likely for comedic effect. “You could ask me. You never know, I might do something you won’t expect. But that’s up to you... Buuuuuuut~” He tapped his chin before rolling his shoulders, and within that motion he had twirled his staff around over his back, around his hips and then behind his neck as he held his arms forward over it in a quirky yet ready stance.

“It sounds like you’d like to throw down just on principle. I know the swish of an excited fight-ready tail when I hear it. So you know what, sure, let’s have a fun fight before you come with me to a local juice bar and get the details on the doofus that decided to put a hit on me. It’s a shame for whoever sent you, you sound nice.” The wind whirled through the trees when Nero paused. “Yanno, because I haven’t seen you, but whatever, you probably look as nice as you sound.” He added, as if it was a completely normal compliment adjacent thing for him to say. What an odd man.

Apparently this person wanted Nero to open his eyes... Well, he had other ideas. “Aw, where’s the fun in that?” Nero smiled, but it was a calm and welcoming sort of smile. “See, it’s the anticipation of the truth that I find fascinating— I’m sure it's a bit strange to hear, but it’s like a challenge of patience!” His tone of voice was devoid of mocking, it was more like introspective whimsy. Though, what was ordinary to him could be taken as cryptic and annoying.

Nero shook his head at the mention of him potentially mocking this newcomer. “I assure you that is not the case. I mean no disrespect; it’s just my preferred method of training.” He was adamant in his statement, and chose to give an example, holding up a finger to draw attention. “You’ve got something on that alters your voice; I can’t see it, obviously, but can hear it and for all I know it’s a ventilator to protect you from allergies... Or it’s some headwear that you just like to wear, and that’s fine. I don’t know, and I won’t pretend to know unless I eventually see it, or if you tell me what it is.” He shrugged slightly, hoping this was a sufficient example.

“See, you’re free to not tell me without sufficient reason or convincing as well. Like I said, I’m good with a challenge. If anything I thrive on facing one.” Nero simply stated before raising his brows, if anyone was confident of anything it was this stranger. “Hmmmm. We’ll see how far that record and moxie gets you.” Nero playfully ‘winked’ without opening either of his eyes. Sure, it made sense that this bounty hunter may have seen and dealt with a lot, but Nero was a particularly unique individual in his own right.

If anyone was mocking anyone, Nero figured it was this bounty hunter; pointing out his staff in a way that sounded oddly condescending under the annoyance of their tone. Once more, Nero firmly reiterated his earlier sentiment. “Again, no. I’m sure you're capable in a fight, but if you think it’ll be easy because of my choice of weapon, the consequences of that assumption will be on you to handle.”

Nero fluidly and gracefully adjusted his stance to stretch a few times before returning to his initial ‘casual but ready’ pose. “I’d rather be forward than backward, I’ll have you know.” He smirked. “That’s a shame, the juice there is good; it’s quite a reward in itself.”

Now, his focus shifted, he was listening alright. Ever since he was young his hearing was something else, but now having lived on Namek with every opportunity present to hone said hearing, it was more than something else. Differentiating the sounds around him, he was ready to fight. Listening to the whistling of the axes through the air he guessed their trajectory, and stepped forward once to make sure he wasn’t in it by some small chance. “Sure, but we can’t guess everything wrong either.” He replied, listening for the slightest change in the clinking of the ethereal chains that were created on his assailant’s axes. “Put bluntly and simply; I was being literal. Even filtered, you have a nice voice. I’m a professional listener, so trust me, I’d know.”

The chance to prove that claim would show itself almost immediately, Nero could hear the cracking of the tree trunks fractions before others would be able to, and it was his intuition that said they were going to be brought down on him, so he dashed forward once he heard his opponent do the same, bringing his staff in front of him with a firm grip. He wasn’t going to be knocked flat as a result of his reaction, but he was pushed downward somewhat so he had to widen his stance a little.

“Besides, I don’t think the way someone looks says much about them in truth.” With that, the fluidity and graceful flow of Nero’s body and motion abruptly ceased, replaced by the direct opposite; a state of chaos and purposeful swiftness as he attempted to use his tail as a spring upward and drive his knees into his attacker’s abdomen then shift back only to rush forward just as quickly to try and kick them in the abdomen moments after to send them backwards.

Nero twirled his staff a few times before once again settling in a more lively stance. “It doesn’t matter as much as the rest of them does.”

“Think of it however you like, it doesn’t bother me.” Nero wasn’t one to judge how someone challenged themselves if it was reasonable for them to do. What he wanted out of himself and how he chose to seek it was up to him, and if someone else thought it was weird, that was their opinion. “At the very least we try to challenge ourselves, hm?”

Tapping his chin, Nero thought over the stranger’s counterpoint, it made sense; they wore it because they ‘had to’— whatever the reason. “Have to, want to, in the end there is a reason for both. I’m not going to say wearing whatever you’ve got on your head is wrong, because... Yanno, that’s needlessly rude. Plus, as I said, I don’t know the reason, I just know there is one.” Ultimately, neither reason from either side was bad as far as Nero was concerned.

“Yeah, moxie, that’s what I said.” Nero replied calmly, while also understanding how what he said may come off as derisive. “To be clear, I don’t see it as a bad thing.” Given that Nero was of Saiyan descent, it was instinctual to find a personality trait such as moxie at least worth his time. However, since he was also of Garouan descent it was instinctual to make sure said personality trait held true and wasn’t just made of empty bluster. “I didn’t exaaactly make a promise of that nature, but it sounds like you’re particularly interested.”

There was a moment of silence, it seemed Nero’s antics had momentarily stumped the bounty hunter. Nero raised an eyebrow curiously, only to smile once she regained some of her composure. “That works for me, since I’m sure we can come to an agreement of sorts that is mutually beneficial. Hmm.” In a moment of thought, Nero idly scratched his chin with his tail. “How about this; should I impress you in this match, we talk— nice and proper. Does that sound fair?” This was of course banking on the chance that this bounty hunter was the type to negotiate in this scenario, and Nero was confident that they were given the encounter so far.

Regarding the comment on his attacker’s voice, Nero shrugged. “Call it a hunch if that works for you, but trust me, I know what I’m on about.” He could have explained further, though he figured now was not the time to do so.

Nero didn’t immediately respond to his opponent whilst fighting, and instead waited until they were reassessing each other. “Sure, but scars can mean a multitude of things as well, and are only part of a story too.” Nero motioned to the right side of his head then generally himself— he had scars, and wasn’t exactly hiding the majority of them. “For example, these are only part of mine.”

A more Saiyan way to look at understanding someone was a bit more blunt and old fashioned, but it had merit, Nero wasn’t about to deny it. “Fighting someone or sparring with them is another way to understand them too. You know what I mean.”

Since they were in fact fighting, the liveliness of Nero’s fighting stance suddenly ramped up in intensity; his movements were a blend of various aspects of nature; the grace of a gentle breeze, the flow of running water and the mischief of a dancing monkey. Nero wanted to make this fight interesting. He rushed forward at the bounty hunter, and when he was approximately two steps away from them, he suddenly jumped upward, quickly putting his staff in the grip of his tail as he started to spin forward in mid air in an attempt to land an aerial axe kick while simultaneously twirling his staff in his tail before suddenly bringing it upwards to try and thwack his opponent.

Nero could hear the confusion in her tone, he imagined she wasn’t used to people like him, not only as bounties as she so claimed but in general. It didn’t bother him though, much like it didn’t really bother him that she showed up to begin with. “Again, think of that what you like, all I was doing was meditating. I can always do that again another time. Meeting someone for the first time? I can only do that once.”

Though he could not see her expression, definitely heard her grumble. “Is that a bad thing?” Nero shrugged. “I’m not most people, that’s all there is to it.” That said, his assertion that he would be doing something unexpected was promised enough apparently. Nero could work with that, if nothing else he already kind of made good on said promise, but it wouldn’t hurt to make it more bluntly obvious. “Isn’t wanting an interesting fight something you’re interested in?” He asked this genuinely, trying to understand why she was sounding annoyed.

Nero wasn’t banking on getting her to agree to his challenge, but he was pleasantly surprised. “Someone’s confident.” He bluntly stated before his straight face crumbled as he snorted and snickered. “Actually it’s more like we both are— and you know what, this’ll be fun!”

Twirling his staff around in his tail after he thwacked her helmet, he used the leg that had been blocked by her to kick off of her arm and leap over her and just a hair away from her twirling axes. “Wolf move, actually, but you wouldn’t get what that means yet.” He said, wiggling his ears, having actually heard her proper voice. “Also, I was right.” Nero quickly brought up his hands above his head, collecting some energy before quickly shooting a condensed beam towards Zhalla. “Also-also, no I have many more tricks than those~!”

“Yeah. Basically.” Nero responded plainly, Gladiator made sense, that was pretty much what first impressions were ideally used for. The thing with Nero is that he wanted to be able to ‘give a shit’ about anyone until given a reason not to. Was he going to elaborate and explain that? Well, no. Not yet. He wanted to be a little mischievous, he was getting pumped to fight after all!

Nero’s mannerisms were even further befuddling the bounty hunter, she tried to get her focus on the fight that was about to happen, but she tripped on her words. Nero, of course, heard that clearly. “Oh, interested in this cheeky fella here? Already? Now who’s forward, huh?” He snickered, it was safe to say that he was enjoying himself. “You’ll have to catch me to hold me~!” Nero added, sticking out his tongue a little.

“Hey, maybe I’ll tell you about it if you impress me.” Nero focused, listening to the spin of her weapons, if she moved, he would too, staying a hair away from the danger zone. It would become increasingly clear that Nero was a man who did his best to make no wasted movement, and be as unpredictable as he could manage while showing dedicated finesse.

“Sorry, I heard all the proof I needed, them’s the rules.” He sure was adamant in his assertion, but since Gladiator asked, Nero supposed he could at least answer in some way. “It’s strong and there is untapped brightness in it. Simple.” Simple? Yeah, to himself maybe.

Nero heard the crackle of energy surge through the axes, it tore through his Swift Masenko of course, he could feel the difference between the two attacks. Nero grabbed his staff and spun it around in front of him. The axe and his staff would collide, the energy vibration went through Nero, and the pressure pushed him back a bit. It rattled him slightly, but it ultimately excited him. “Any more where that came from? I’m sure you can hit harder than that!” He did appreciate a challenge after all, he said so earlier quite clearly.