Post by Blume on Oct 23, 2021 11:35:10 GMT -5
Training was a new experience for Blume, but she felt as though she was getting much stronger. In other words, she was achieving the desired result of her training. In due time, defeating Maxis would move from being a simple dream, to a potential reality. With the proper amount of determination, and what she learned from both Jackie and Russ, her progress thus far had been swift.
Her day was like any other on Mount Five Elements, taxing and strenuous. The young woman would manage push-up after push-up for an entire hour, before then practicing backflips withing a similar length of time. Her physical shape was improving, if only slightly, and the development of her new transformation technique was on the way. There was still much progress to be made, but the foundation had been laid for her to become a great warrior.
As with many mountainous regions across the galaxy, this chain of strange magical mountains was located in the far north. She remembered bits and pieces of her childhood there, attending school at Central City, making long drives from out of town every morning. She never actually lived in Central City, but a small village about ten miles outside of it. Many of the northern tribesfolk, like her mother, wanted to be independent of cities and the resources they offered. They preferred the quaintness of small towns to the hustle and bustle of city life, it was something Blume didn’t exactly understand, but thought about every now and then.
The people of Blume’s hometown never saw her return home, not that she had much memory of them. Even still, if they cared for her mother, then the people there most likely cared for herself as well. Perhaps she had some surviving family that flew under the radar? Maybe there were a select few who still mourned her loss…
The warrior trained for hours, and remembered home as she did. Questions popped into her mind. Who was she exactly? What was her life really like before? Many things gnawed at her brain, like an itch she couldn’t scratch. “Maybe… I should go home.” She would wonder to herself. Of course, she would not simply drop her entire lifestyle, but paying he old home a visit wasn’t a bad idea… Right?
Looking over her shoulder towards a large expanse of tundra, Blume would begin to devise a path through the plains to where she remembered her home being. With some hesitation, she would begin flying in that direction. The air just seemed to grow progressively colder as she approached a small settlement from the sky.
In a short time, she would soon arrive at a small village with a sign that identified the place as “Jingle Village”. The town contained many globe-shaped homes, large buildings, and shops. Some distance away, on a hill which overlooked the town, appeared to be a mineshaft of some kind. This was certainly the place; Blume was beginning to remember it all.
She would land outside of the lightly snow-covered town with a soft smile on her face. For the first time in a long time, she felt joy. The joy of returning home. Many villagers would look at her with blank or confused stares. A young woman with pointed ears was not a common sight after all. It just so happened; this was also an excellent identifying mark. An older man wearing a smock and wielding a cleaver would step out of his home for a brief moment. It was obvious he was a chef of some kind, but he would give the most shocked reaction to seeing Blume. The man would shake and stutter, before finally beginning to spit out the words “B-blume? Y-you’re… It’s really you. We thought you were kidnapped at the hospital when your mother passed.”
The hybrid did not remember the man’s name, but somehow knew he could be trusted. Her memory was not as long as she hoped. “Yes. It’s me. I found my way home, after some time away.” The butcher would slam his cleaver down into a wooden chair before running out into the village’s main street. He would wave his arms around frantically “Everyone! Blume Rosewood is back! Come out quick!”
On that decree, dozens of folks would flock outside and surround Blume. Each one was muttering something different. The butcher would be the last to approach, but had the loudest voice. He would manage to speak above the rest and explain “We’ve been worried sick about you… And to be honest, the town has been in shambles since your family left…” The hybrid would give a confused look. What did her or her family have to do with the village’s stability?
That question would soon be answered as a massively large black bear zoan-man would march directly up to the crowd. He would let out an angry grunt before shouting “What’s going on here people!? You men, get back to work. That damn silver isn’t going to mine itself. As for the rest of you! We have rules against excessive public gatherings, we’re not some cheery holiday town anymore! Get back to your lives and show the world we can be a productive member of earth’s government!”
The butcher would whisper before walking off, “That’s our chieftain, Woa-he-big. He’s said to be a world-class martial artist, and a real hard ass… We can talk about that more later though. Just keep calm and try not to upset him yet.” Blume would give a short nod before the crowd had been dispersed. The only remaining people would be herself and the bear-man in front of her.
The man would introduce himself gruffly, “I am Chieftain Woa-he-big, and I already know you must be Blume Rosewood. I know why you’re here, and the answer is NO!” The hybrid would be taken aback by the man’s random accusations and statements. She didn’t even realize why she was here, not yet at least. The man would continue, “You and your family lost the title of Chiefs when you abandoned this town as a teenager. You may be your mother’s only heir, but you were nowhere to be found after her death.” There would be dead silence from the woman, as she completely forgot that she had previously been a member of the governing family. Something happened with her memory, why couldn’t she remember all these people? When she was with them, she craved joy and freedom, not power and dominance. The hybrid’s happy times had been clouded by nothingness. She would respond with a slight temper, “I didn’t abandon this place by choice! Who put you in charge anyway!?” The large zoan would angrily snort before explaining “I was the largest and strongest in the village at the time. Without an heir, I was leader by default… I don’t plan on letting that change either.”
So, it seemed she actually had some authority in the world, some position of power. Unfortunately, it had been taken away. Maybe there was something she could do to get it back...
Several hours later, after visiting the residents of the village, all told her the same story. Each person she encountered reaffirmed that she was the daughter of Kiki Rosewood, and the former chieftain's granddaughter. The Zoan who took over as chieftain did so through force, keeping the villagers in line with some kind of secret police. All accounts just pointed to them being men with guns, easy prey to someone with Blume's strength. All she needed to do was defeat these armed thugs, and then she could remove Woa-he-big from power. If she were to challenge the Zoan directly, then the thugs may take hostages.
There was one area of the town she had yet to explore, the mine shaft some ways away. According to the villagers, the structure only appeared there recently, after a local found a silver ore deposit while hunting. The chieftain told them all he could make the town rich if they mined it all for him, but they had yet to see any returns on that promise... It was all very mysterious. Certainly enough mystery to warrant the search of the mines... As night fell, the hybrid would quietly sneak into the mine shaft. The area was neither manned, nor guarded. The village was remote enough to where there was little to no chance of the mine being robbed. Besides, getting the silver out of there required many expensive tools.
Walking inside, she would notice many lit candles that illuminated the walls, until eventually coming to a very large room filled with unmined deposits. There was a single table, with a lead safe locked up tight under it. This was where the chieftain acted as a foreman. Without much hesitation, a bolt of energy would be fired from the young woman's fighter tip, and melt away the safe's door. Inside was a large notebook and a pink badge resembling the eye of a reptile... Maybe a snake? She would quickly pick up the book and begin reading. It was a log of shipments and transfers. Trucks were coming to and from a place called "Central City", where all the silver was being sent... All the money was traded by check, all written out to 'Woa-he-big' and not "Jingle Village".
Things were slowly coming together as Blume realized their zoan chieftain was taking an extremely large cut of the profits, if not all the profits. The strangest part was, the ore was begin given directly to the city's treasury!? That part of the log couldn't be accurate right? Was the city itself profiting off this lone village? Did the government not already tax this place? Confused and enlightened at the same time, she would gently return the badge to the safe and close it's door. If all went well, she would reveal the transport logs to the villagers tomorrow, and the zoan would have to resign... maybe.
As she turned to leave however, two large men, dressed in classic mob attire would approach her. "Where ya off to so fast dearie? We came to talk to ya..." The larger of the two man spoke. The second would quickly include, "Yeah, why ya snoopin' in the bosses' mine?" The woman would simply shake her head in frustration. It would soon turn to a smirk however, as she would respond "His mine? This mine belongs to the town, Unless someone else is making money off it..." The first of the two men lit up a cigarette with his left hand, and took out a glock with his right. "That's none of your business kid. Scram now, and we might not bump ya off."
those were brave words... Instead of speaking further, the hybrid would simply extend her arms. Within a matter of seconds, each man would be a pile of ashes, casualties of Blume's energy blasts. These bafoons must have been the 'secret police' some of the villagers mentioned earlier... She really needed to teach these people how to defend themselves.
The next morning would come much sooner than she realized, and the people of Jingle village awoke to being their usual activities. Of course, there would be one difference. The Hybrid would be standing in the middle of the settlement, holding the chieftain's log book. "People of Jingle Village! I have discovered proof of Woa-He-Big's treachery! This book details his dealings with the silver mine, and they aren't for the good of the village... He's taking every penny for himself, and splitting the profits with some sort of gang! No doubt where his 'secret police' came from!"
The male Zoan would burst through the crowd with a fierce look of rage, "BAH! LIAR! I am this town's chieftain! I am it's law! The silver is sent to me because I deserve the fruits of my labor!" The butcher would then respond, "But it's not YOUR labor, it's OUR labor! And our people haven't seen a single zeni of the profits!" Many of the other citizens would begin muttering to each other, many growing angry with their current chieftain.
Without skipping a beat, Blume decided the best way to handle things was through her way, deadly force. "Woa-He-Big! I challenge you to single combat for title of Village chieftain!" The beast-man would just laugh at her, overly confident in his abilities. "HAHAHhahaaa... You thing you can beat me tiny!? Just try and take me on!"
Before a single person could blink, the hybrid would disappear from sight, and reappear behind the zoan man. She would grab one of his legs and begin spinning around with great force! In a mighty throwing motion, she would launch Woa-He-Big across the sky, and possibly into the stratosphere. The crowd became silent for a moment... But there a massive burst of applause and cheers would erupt from the villagers! Finally, Blume had found her roots. She was destined to become chieftain of Jingle Village...
Her day was like any other on Mount Five Elements, taxing and strenuous. The young woman would manage push-up after push-up for an entire hour, before then practicing backflips withing a similar length of time. Her physical shape was improving, if only slightly, and the development of her new transformation technique was on the way. There was still much progress to be made, but the foundation had been laid for her to become a great warrior.
As with many mountainous regions across the galaxy, this chain of strange magical mountains was located in the far north. She remembered bits and pieces of her childhood there, attending school at Central City, making long drives from out of town every morning. She never actually lived in Central City, but a small village about ten miles outside of it. Many of the northern tribesfolk, like her mother, wanted to be independent of cities and the resources they offered. They preferred the quaintness of small towns to the hustle and bustle of city life, it was something Blume didn’t exactly understand, but thought about every now and then.
The people of Blume’s hometown never saw her return home, not that she had much memory of them. Even still, if they cared for her mother, then the people there most likely cared for herself as well. Perhaps she had some surviving family that flew under the radar? Maybe there were a select few who still mourned her loss…
The warrior trained for hours, and remembered home as she did. Questions popped into her mind. Who was she exactly? What was her life really like before? Many things gnawed at her brain, like an itch she couldn’t scratch. “Maybe… I should go home.” She would wonder to herself. Of course, she would not simply drop her entire lifestyle, but paying he old home a visit wasn’t a bad idea… Right?
Looking over her shoulder towards a large expanse of tundra, Blume would begin to devise a path through the plains to where she remembered her home being. With some hesitation, she would begin flying in that direction. The air just seemed to grow progressively colder as she approached a small settlement from the sky.
In a short time, she would soon arrive at a small village with a sign that identified the place as “Jingle Village”. The town contained many globe-shaped homes, large buildings, and shops. Some distance away, on a hill which overlooked the town, appeared to be a mineshaft of some kind. This was certainly the place; Blume was beginning to remember it all.
She would land outside of the lightly snow-covered town with a soft smile on her face. For the first time in a long time, she felt joy. The joy of returning home. Many villagers would look at her with blank or confused stares. A young woman with pointed ears was not a common sight after all. It just so happened; this was also an excellent identifying mark. An older man wearing a smock and wielding a cleaver would step out of his home for a brief moment. It was obvious he was a chef of some kind, but he would give the most shocked reaction to seeing Blume. The man would shake and stutter, before finally beginning to spit out the words “B-blume? Y-you’re… It’s really you. We thought you were kidnapped at the hospital when your mother passed.”
The hybrid did not remember the man’s name, but somehow knew he could be trusted. Her memory was not as long as she hoped. “Yes. It’s me. I found my way home, after some time away.” The butcher would slam his cleaver down into a wooden chair before running out into the village’s main street. He would wave his arms around frantically “Everyone! Blume Rosewood is back! Come out quick!”
On that decree, dozens of folks would flock outside and surround Blume. Each one was muttering something different. The butcher would be the last to approach, but had the loudest voice. He would manage to speak above the rest and explain “We’ve been worried sick about you… And to be honest, the town has been in shambles since your family left…” The hybrid would give a confused look. What did her or her family have to do with the village’s stability?
That question would soon be answered as a massively large black bear zoan-man would march directly up to the crowd. He would let out an angry grunt before shouting “What’s going on here people!? You men, get back to work. That damn silver isn’t going to mine itself. As for the rest of you! We have rules against excessive public gatherings, we’re not some cheery holiday town anymore! Get back to your lives and show the world we can be a productive member of earth’s government!”
The butcher would whisper before walking off, “That’s our chieftain, Woa-he-big. He’s said to be a world-class martial artist, and a real hard ass… We can talk about that more later though. Just keep calm and try not to upset him yet.” Blume would give a short nod before the crowd had been dispersed. The only remaining people would be herself and the bear-man in front of her.
The man would introduce himself gruffly, “I am Chieftain Woa-he-big, and I already know you must be Blume Rosewood. I know why you’re here, and the answer is NO!” The hybrid would be taken aback by the man’s random accusations and statements. She didn’t even realize why she was here, not yet at least. The man would continue, “You and your family lost the title of Chiefs when you abandoned this town as a teenager. You may be your mother’s only heir, but you were nowhere to be found after her death.” There would be dead silence from the woman, as she completely forgot that she had previously been a member of the governing family. Something happened with her memory, why couldn’t she remember all these people? When she was with them, she craved joy and freedom, not power and dominance. The hybrid’s happy times had been clouded by nothingness. She would respond with a slight temper, “I didn’t abandon this place by choice! Who put you in charge anyway!?” The large zoan would angrily snort before explaining “I was the largest and strongest in the village at the time. Without an heir, I was leader by default… I don’t plan on letting that change either.”
So, it seemed she actually had some authority in the world, some position of power. Unfortunately, it had been taken away. Maybe there was something she could do to get it back...
Several hours later, after visiting the residents of the village, all told her the same story. Each person she encountered reaffirmed that she was the daughter of Kiki Rosewood, and the former chieftain's granddaughter. The Zoan who took over as chieftain did so through force, keeping the villagers in line with some kind of secret police. All accounts just pointed to them being men with guns, easy prey to someone with Blume's strength. All she needed to do was defeat these armed thugs, and then she could remove Woa-he-big from power. If she were to challenge the Zoan directly, then the thugs may take hostages.
There was one area of the town she had yet to explore, the mine shaft some ways away. According to the villagers, the structure only appeared there recently, after a local found a silver ore deposit while hunting. The chieftain told them all he could make the town rich if they mined it all for him, but they had yet to see any returns on that promise... It was all very mysterious. Certainly enough mystery to warrant the search of the mines... As night fell, the hybrid would quietly sneak into the mine shaft. The area was neither manned, nor guarded. The village was remote enough to where there was little to no chance of the mine being robbed. Besides, getting the silver out of there required many expensive tools.
Walking inside, she would notice many lit candles that illuminated the walls, until eventually coming to a very large room filled with unmined deposits. There was a single table, with a lead safe locked up tight under it. This was where the chieftain acted as a foreman. Without much hesitation, a bolt of energy would be fired from the young woman's fighter tip, and melt away the safe's door. Inside was a large notebook and a pink badge resembling the eye of a reptile... Maybe a snake? She would quickly pick up the book and begin reading. It was a log of shipments and transfers. Trucks were coming to and from a place called "Central City", where all the silver was being sent... All the money was traded by check, all written out to 'Woa-he-big' and not "Jingle Village".
Things were slowly coming together as Blume realized their zoan chieftain was taking an extremely large cut of the profits, if not all the profits. The strangest part was, the ore was begin given directly to the city's treasury!? That part of the log couldn't be accurate right? Was the city itself profiting off this lone village? Did the government not already tax this place? Confused and enlightened at the same time, she would gently return the badge to the safe and close it's door. If all went well, she would reveal the transport logs to the villagers tomorrow, and the zoan would have to resign... maybe.
As she turned to leave however, two large men, dressed in classic mob attire would approach her. "Where ya off to so fast dearie? We came to talk to ya..." The larger of the two man spoke. The second would quickly include, "Yeah, why ya snoopin' in the bosses' mine?" The woman would simply shake her head in frustration. It would soon turn to a smirk however, as she would respond "His mine? This mine belongs to the town, Unless someone else is making money off it..." The first of the two men lit up a cigarette with his left hand, and took out a glock with his right. "That's none of your business kid. Scram now, and we might not bump ya off."
those were brave words... Instead of speaking further, the hybrid would simply extend her arms. Within a matter of seconds, each man would be a pile of ashes, casualties of Blume's energy blasts. These bafoons must have been the 'secret police' some of the villagers mentioned earlier... She really needed to teach these people how to defend themselves.
The next morning would come much sooner than she realized, and the people of Jingle village awoke to being their usual activities. Of course, there would be one difference. The Hybrid would be standing in the middle of the settlement, holding the chieftain's log book. "People of Jingle Village! I have discovered proof of Woa-He-Big's treachery! This book details his dealings with the silver mine, and they aren't for the good of the village... He's taking every penny for himself, and splitting the profits with some sort of gang! No doubt where his 'secret police' came from!"
The male Zoan would burst through the crowd with a fierce look of rage, "BAH! LIAR! I am this town's chieftain! I am it's law! The silver is sent to me because I deserve the fruits of my labor!" The butcher would then respond, "But it's not YOUR labor, it's OUR labor! And our people haven't seen a single zeni of the profits!" Many of the other citizens would begin muttering to each other, many growing angry with their current chieftain.
Without skipping a beat, Blume decided the best way to handle things was through her way, deadly force. "Woa-He-Big! I challenge you to single combat for title of Village chieftain!" The beast-man would just laugh at her, overly confident in his abilities. "HAHAHhahaaa... You thing you can beat me tiny!? Just try and take me on!"
Before a single person could blink, the hybrid would disappear from sight, and reappear behind the zoan man. She would grab one of his legs and begin spinning around with great force! In a mighty throwing motion, she would launch Woa-He-Big across the sky, and possibly into the stratosphere. The crowd became silent for a moment... But there a massive burst of applause and cheers would erupt from the villagers! Finally, Blume had found her roots. She was destined to become chieftain of Jingle Village...
TWC: 2,161