Starsuckers (Amara/INV)

It was a slow process. Recovering the expansive and complete arsenal she had developed in Heaven, alongside the wear on her soul to fade... both were roadblocks to getting any stronger. Creating powerful gear required entirely new approaches with what materials she could scrounge in the material plane. Beyond that, having to enchant them all over again and sync the tools to her own Ki was an arduous task. It was no wonder why Amara hadn't managed much progress on that front, with her primary focus being on re-creating the independent blaster. The new firearm-esque designs looked sleek and would function flawlessly in theory, with a practical test planned for the pistol variety out on the wastes.

It came pre-loaded with two Ki charge cartridges, with further shots an excellent time to test out her other new toy: quantum hardlight. A ball of magically sealed particles that could be summoned and shaped to mimic the form of any vital tools she required in the field. For now, it'd only serve to increase the 'free' shots her blaster design could pull off, but that's all it needed to do. Though it seems she wasn't the only person with the wastes in mind for a suitable proving ground. Streaks of orangish light, dim against the daylit sky but still quite noticeable, called out to her. They were a brave soul to be training in the face of the accords.

"Wonderful weather we're having!" Her voice rang out across the hollow, rocky grounds. Perched atop an overhang some distance from Jackie, the two could only see each other as vaguely colored blobs; still, the hybrid lacing her voice with some Ki to carry it far enough to reach. "Bit of a shame you're spending it alone all the way out here." The woman's battle power was low, but with how proficient she seemed in USING Ki, that number seemed suspiciously off. Quickly proven to be true by the sudden spike in power to a VERY hefty eighty-thousand-ish, the woman did little other than smirk. Amara didn't really care one way or another - people suppressed themselves to get around the accords as a common thing these days. 

"Ah neat, you prefer telepathy over thrown voices then? I'll admit it's typically more useful, but most folks tend to freak out when they start actually hearing voices in their heads." Rather than grasp the connection established by Jackie as those without skill could do, Amara opted to respond by directly beaming her own line back to the monk instead. "Judging by the flagrant training, you're either a massive villain with disregard for common law or just another Hero trying to keep their skills sharp amid the harsh lockdown." Seeing as they've already lowered the veil on power (even if unintentionally for her), Amara went ahead and followed suit. Admittedly this Earthen stranger was a good foot up on her entirely, a somewhat depressing reminder that Amara still lacked the proper ability to gain power right now.

"Name's Celosia," Amara lied easily, bounding over in a few powerful jumps. "And for all YOU know, I could be into that. Don't discount it!" She continued the conversation with her actual voice once more, blissfully unaware that Jackie was unable to do the same. "Stupid adult jokes aside, I came out here for some practice of my own. Not the same kind as you seem to be embroiled in, afraid that my body put a hard cap on how high my battle power can grow at the moment." When would it ever lift? Good question! Amara had no idea as this sort of injury wasn't commonplace, to begin with. Mayhaps if Erebos ever did the same thing with HIS phase-type ability, they could compare notes.

"...Isn't that what most of them do anyway? Last I checked, most of the super-powerful ones get stopped because they can't help but make public displays. Doesn't help with those new accords floating around that keep a lot of the stronger hero-types out of the cities more often than not." Despite Amara's shift to a normal voice once in range, Jackie continued her use of telepathy. Unlike certain white-haired rabble-rousers, the skill didn't really bother her whatsoever. "Guardian, huh? Sounds all mystical and the like." Whatever perceived slight her status as such was a very curious matter, but one that Amara wouldn't immediately try and pry into. "Well, if something isn't performing well, give it some time to refine, and stuff will be right as rain in no time."

"Practice in a sense that most people wouldn't understand without prior explanation. That and the typical 'get stronger' stuff won't work on me at the moment. It's not a mental block keeping me down so much as a VERY real and physical one... hard to explain. Long story short, I burned my body out by using ALL the Ki it had at once to dodge a pretty nasty lethal attack. Saved me the physical issues in terms of keeping my life, but it makes going full power for long periods of time strenuous. So until that fixes itself up again, I've defaulted to trying to perfect my auxiliary gear some more."

With a flash, a very sizeable handgun-shaped object formed in Amara's outstretched hand, fingers curling around the grip with a comfortable familiarity. "Yeah, I know, weapon. Different from any standard type of boomstick you've seen before though, I can promise ya that." Beyond needing Ki charges to function freely, Amara's line of personal weapons could also function by drawing the necessary energy straight from her body. It usually wasn't necessary given the electric blasts and sword, but such an ability could come in handy from time to time.

"From personal experience, one tends to bleed into the other. Don't suppose you've ever heard of a guy named Yangcong, but he's the poster child for exactly what I mean." Insane, brutish, dazzling, and a warped intent born from good desires that ultimately plunged Plant back into the horrors of war. "Though some people like to start arguing semantics and grayscale on what truly makes someone a 'villain' at that point... I tend to just go with my heart on stuff and stick to it. With some healthy mix-ins from rational brain juice along the way, of course." All the brightly lit neon signs pointed to Jackie as an aspiring Hero, though Amara's inexperience with Earth meant she had no idea who the monk could possibly be.

"Yeah, that's the general plan, like I said. You talk to a lot of folks who need motivational nudges in that sorta direction?" Amara offered a small smile, thankful nonetheless for the stranger's slightly misguided attempts to be inspiring. The hybrid may hold grave doubt in her abilities from time to time, but she never considered something genuinely impossible. "Hm?" Jackie had a similar power of creation, though it appeared to be limited to more straightforward tools, either by lack of practice or flexibility. A big ol' stick was nothing to laugh at lest it bashes one's skull in, but Amara took some semblance of pride in her ability to create complex stuff on the fly, thanks to her unique Hardlight ability.

"Might as well try testing it against someone else for once... just be warned that it'll still sting like Hell. All my stuff has non-lethal modes, but that doesn't remove the pain!" And painful it'd be. Her weapons were made with actual life-or-death battles in mind, and while Amara LIKED to not have to kill folks, subduing them with airsoft replicas didn't seem to be the smartest move around. "Though, like I said, might not be able to go FULL full power. Saving that for emergencies until my body decides to stop dragging its' proverbial feet and fix itself." With a flourish, she spun the handgun around on her finger, catching it as a solid bolt of blue energy summarily tore the top off a rock spire.

"...That was less to show off and more to double-check to see if it was in proper working order. Lucky for me, it IS." Magical Hardlight replicas of recently designed energy weapons with specific codecs were very finicky, as one may assume them to be. "Won't be my first rodeo fighting someone stronger either, if you're unable to fight at a suppressed level." She'd been doing it her whole life, after all. From the Budokai, to Yangcong, to Kowlin and his associate. She'd always been on the backfoot.

"Yeah, as lovely as that is, I'm not in any particular need of ancient guardian wisdom at the moment. At least none that you seem able to provide! The whole Ki block thing will abate given enough time, and I've already gone around giving enough longwinded speeches lately to know when to take the own self-help advice tumbling from these ol' lips." Jackie took a much more active role, it seemed. While Amara mostly came across people who needed help by happenstance, the Earthling made it her full-time job. Commendable, if not the tiniest bit sad. "That's an important responsibility you got there, Jackster. And I'm totally certain I won't have to remind you to practice self-care and lean on allies when applicable, right?"

Amara liked Earth, but her own primary 'guard' goals in mind were linked to Plant. The war might be over, but that planet was far from the peaceful, united future she envisioned. "I don't doubt your durability, but it's generally in poor practice to start shooting someone without express permission first, in my experience. See now that you've gone ahead and puffed yourself up like a happy peacock, there's no doubt about it!" With that being said, the choice of having Jackie fight unrestrained or on her level was a difficult one.

"See, if you remained stronger, it'd definitely be a strong proving grounds if these pieces were able to actually harm you at all, but on the flip side... well, you're here for training too, right? Can't see that much use out of fighting a fight you KNOW you can win if the goal is to test yourself. Ultimately I'd have to say to suppress, but the choice is yours." It felt kind of odd to be standing next to someone who, by all rights, outclassed her in raw might by a fair margin once more. Sure it wasn't a new experience, but Jackie being a FRIENDLY force rather than one trying to fight or kill her was a nice change of pace in it all.

Amara squinted suspiciously at the simple shake of Jackie's head. "Mmm." The disapproving murmur was very audible and was more of a subtle way to let the woman know her indirect confirmation wasn't really being bought. Still, they were practically strangers, and Amara wasn't going to push a serious emotional and mental talk like that with a woman that didn't even know her name five minutes ago. That'd be shelved, for now, Amara re-focusing as Jackie forcibly suppressed her power to be a direct match for her own. "Alright then. Guess we oughta start?" The informal invitation to make the first move was extended Amara's way, the hybrid sighing slightly. She was more of a reactionary fighter than anything, so taking the initiative was still something of a discomfort.

With a final flourish, Amara leaped backward into a high arc, leveling the blaster with Jackie's chest and squeezing off a small starting shot to test the waters. That minor interruption would be used to buy a precious few seconds, Amara's hands weaving back and forth as a few small pools of Hardlight began to form on the ground. Right now, it was nothing but shapeless mass. Amara could reshape the multiple pockets of matter into whatever the situation demanded at the slightest whim! The dismissal of the staff hadn't gone unnoticed either, with the Tuffle unsure of what it implied - was Jackie not proficient with a staff, or did she simply wish to hone her hand-to-hand more instead?