It was a good thing she wasn't really expecting him to compete. As much as that fire in her burned to have a sort of back and forth it was unfair to expect someone equal or even below her in strength to ever match her speed. She'd only met people way about her weight class get close or succeed in pinning her down. Maybe if she was as full of herself as she put on she'd stop and try showing off her skills every little chance she got. But she'd settle on short waves, peace signs, and smirks she doubts most of the crowd watching would catch.
And even as the guy was getting a face full of bugs, they'd be upon the outskirts of the city. The outgoing highways thinned into the wilderness until sparser and more winding roads were what remained. The treelines scatter into the rolling hills the East were known for. The girl would direct the pair past one of these roads and towards the base of a large rolling hill overlooking much of East. Finishing her jog with a little spin in place. Her body curled up into a ball as she sped to the top and got herself a spot smack dab on the crest of said hill. Her ball form would bounce a few times before she unfurled and stretched.
"Hah! That's what we're talking about!" She'd turn to see just how far behind he was, waiting with all the patience of a single parent waiting on the happy meals for all their kids. That foot tapped the ground again as she smiled.
"Here should do! A little less posing and you'd not be far off!"
Post by Jessie Watts on Dec 26, 2022 16:26:14 GMT -5
His running companion looked to be having the time of their life, but standing at the bottom of the hill, Jessie was wiping his visor clean as if he has managed to find the largest swarm of bugs he could find. He couldn't fly, or at least he hasn't put in much effort to learn, usually resorting to fairly large leaps or simply taking his van anywhere he had to be. This type of sprinting was all well and good, but it was far from his forte either.
"Not really much for sprinting or racing, whatever that was. Reminds me I need to get a better face guard, but I'll probably forget before the day ends, again."
It was true that he did do a bit too much showing off to start, but not knowing where they were going didn't make for much of a real race. Speed wasn't his thing anyways, though neither was power when it came down to it, but more technique.
"I'm not much of a runner. I prefer more of a stand in place vibe. Anyways, never been out here. Seems quiet enough that no one should be around."
Taking a long look as he did a full spin, he turned back with hands on his hips, standing up a bit more straight.
"Yeah, this should do nicely. So, where do we start?"
Bugs. Huh. You know, that wasn't even something that ever crossed her mind. Did she just... never hit a bug in her life of running around? Where did they go, just vanishing as she went along? Disintegrated from the speed at which she pushed herself? Striker had a pretty serious second of thought run across her face as she frowned and tilted her face to herself.
'HUH.' She'd eventually shake herself free of the invasive thought and looked back up at Jessie. Not many were really the 'running' type, but strong people typically had speed behind them too. Even he seemed to prove that by not simply keeping up, but by following her at all. The little green alien took a look around with him and scratched her own chin.
"That is a good question." Striker famously doesn't really 'train'. She has exercises to stay fit and limber, but train? That implies she knew technique on any level. Heck, Jessie probably had her beat on that part. She was always more for the fun and spectacle of it all. The fact it sometimes paid too was a bonus. Then, it hit her. Or, well, maybe will hit her. She smirks and nods her head. Hopping backward and stretching her arms over her head in preparation.
"Got it! I need to see how strong you are now, and how much you know fighting-wise. I have a rough gauge of speed already. So try something on me. Anything you think can hurt me. I'll try not to jump away out of habit." She offered tongue and cheek, expecting him to be hesitant at least at first. Oh well, it'd be a fun surprise if it DIDN'T end up that way. She doubts she'll go very far even if he hit the hardest he could.
Post by Jessie Watts on Jan 6, 2023 3:36:02 GMT -5
His eyes were hidden by the visor covering part of his face, but they were partially blurred as his brow furrowed and his eyelids closed in a look of confusion. The idea that they wanted him to take a shot at them just to test his strength was surprising.
"Are you uh, sure about that? Not sure how good an idea it is to just take a shot at you like that, but, if that's what you want."
It was clear from the frown on his face from what could be seen, and his pensive body language that he wasn't sure, at least at first. He got into a position that looked as if he was ready, pulled his right arm above his head, and in an instant it looked like the edge of his outstretched hand was catching fire, but then it went out as he began to low it.
"I don't know you that well but really, I'm not looking to hurt you so, how about we try something a bit different. Let's not call it holding back but, blame my lack of, well flashy techniques. I haven't been at this whole thing that long."
Taking off the moment he stopped talking he jumped just a few feet in front of Striker and gave a flourishing front flip to jump over them, trying to give a hard kick to their back before landing and striking a pose with his hands up in the air in the shape of a V.
Light Attack || For The Fans An attack meant to be flashy and allow for posing. This takes the form of melee attacks usually such as a kick then striking a pose, or a punch and doing the same, as ki blasts don't always show up well on cell phone cameras.
Striker was pretty direct with her methods, seeing nothing wrong with trying to get a good understanding the quickest way possible. Even if Jessie looked uncomfortable doing it, the fauxbian remained stood with a smirk on her face. Continuing to coax him into action with a simple inward flex of her fingers.
"It sounded like a good idea to me... But do whatever you want!" She watched him pull back what first looked like a fiery blast from his palm. Only for him to resort to something much more physical, just her style. True to her word too, she'd stand her ground and tighten up her stance as he lurched forth. Even if that twitch in her feet wanted her to leap before he could even get close. No, instead, she'd forma fist with on hand and snap with the next as Jessie leapt over her. A sudden blue shield of force and energy surrounded her as the kick tried hitting her back.
"Hah!" Where he had hit, a major crack was left in the shimmering barrier. Nearly buckling under the force from that single hit. Turning back to watch him pose, she gave both him and this fact a quick look over with a satisfied nod. The barrier would slip away by itself, dissipating top to bottom until nothing but sparks fell to the ground.
"See? That wasn't so bad! Heck, that even put a dent in my move. I've not met a human who could do that, so I'd say you're well above what I was expecting. I need you to trust me a bit here if we're going to get anywhere training like this, okay? I'm a tough girl. Judging by that hit, I'll know when to pull my punches AND avoid your strikes. Now... Try it again. I won't be meeting you halfway this time, I want you to try your best to hit me." She pointed a thumb into her chest again, suddenly relaxing her more standard stance for something lighter on her feet. A small bobbing motion is present as she prepares herself.
Striker throws up a Static Bubble Shield (2KP 40% | 8,000) to contest the incoming For The Fans (7,996). Her win, she avoids damage.
Post by Nervan & Friends on Jan 10, 2023 3:02:18 GMT -5
|| Nervan’s PL: 12,000 ||
Nature was all well and good, and many worlds had vast differences between them in terms of their flora, fauna and overall environment. Earth was no exception, it held its own uniqueness among the cosmos.
Civilization as well as nature had its place, and just like nature many worlds had vast differences between them in terms of their civilization. Again, Earth was no exception.
After having viewed more bountiful places of nature, the wandering anomaly had chosen to seek out civilization on Earth during this visit. Has anything changed since they were last here? Probably not. One thing Earth had for it was a strange consistency among chaos.
Shuffling through the streets of East City, some of the locals took no notice of this odd presence, desensitized to it all due to recent happenings. Others, however, took to panic and simply ran off. The wanderer didn’t care one bit what their choices were, they had not been bugged or bothered by these denizens of Earth directly just yet, so there was no reason to regard them with anything beyond acknowledgement of their existence.
Cutting through a local park, a piece of paper flapping in the wind ended up whacking them in the face, effectively sticking to it due to how the wind was blowing. Still, they walked on, seemingly not reacting. In truth, they were reading it.
How quaint, they thought. A “Hero for Hire”. A unique concept, they had a close friend that might get a kick out of how silly it sounded. Passing by some locals while the flyer was still flapping wildly on their face, the anomaly overheard these locals talking about a guy that matched the description of the one on the poster leaving to the outskirts of the city with some small green thing. Well, that was convenient.
So, onward they walked at a casual pace while looking like they were just standing still and scooting forward. Eventually, they had found the source of the poster, as well as that green thing those other people mentioned. Strange that they would say ‘thing’, when it was quite obviously just another person!
Finally peeling the flyer off from their face, the wanderer simply watched the exchange between the other two in complete silence.
Post by Jessie Watts on Jan 10, 2023 12:01:27 GMT -5
He stayed with his pose held tight, clearly more practiced than the move he had just attempted. Finally standing up straight and dropping his arms he gave a genuine bow and began dusting off his pants.
"Wish I could take credit, but it's mostly my friend here."
Throwing his thumb towards his chest again and poking himself a few times with it as he looked to stand a bit more proudly after the fact.
"I'm still trying to get used to all of this, truth be told. The technique is mine, but the real power is theirs. Hard to practice and come up with all these techniques then have to put them to use in a real fight. I can't expect them to stay powered up like this all the time, even if they try and tell me it's otherwise, I can tell he gets tired like all the rest of us."
At her words about trust, he took that thumb that was against his chest and stuck it out with a thumbs up and a heavy nod. Trust he could manage with no trouble, and he figured he had to start with something he couldn't try and pass off as worse than it seemed, besides his posing of course.
"Hey, uh."
Using his head to motion off to the side, he had taken notice, just barely of someone moving closer. It was more the noise of the paper that was picked up by his other half that had drawn attention as otherwise Jesse would have been oblivious, but not it was a bit odd finding someone just standing there.
"Think we have an audience."
Cupping his hands to his face, he yelled far louder than was necessary at someone that wasn't far enough way to justify it, especially given there were no other noises.
Jessie was unsure still, but that was more to due with his friend being the actual power there. Which, while unnamed, Striker couldn't really in good graces say it was all their doing. The small green fuzzball tapped her chin and squinted between the suit and the man behind the visor with a wag of her other finger.
"No no no. I wouldn't say mostly. You both work as a unit, right? Come on. Don't be so humble, you both are doing great. Nobody was breaking records the first time they tried something. Now come on, try again-" Just as he seemed to pause and take notice of it, so did Striker. A purple, gaunt, little elf-looking critter had wanded upon them. Staring intently at their work here. The green alien herself dropped her arms to cross over themselves again just under her chest and stare this thing down.
"Uh.. huh. I see that." Whether this thing knew it or not, it was around disturbing her business. Or, well, her training for a potential investment. And that rubbed her the wrong way. Striker took a few steps forwards and looked up at it, craning her head to the side.
"Yeah, are you lost or something? Cause I can show you the way around that city real quick if that's what you want. We're... a bit out of the way for a reason, you know." It was perhaps the more polite way to try and shoo someone away. Striker didn't have much patience for random variables out of her control like this. Or anything out of her control really.
Post by Nervan & Friends on Jan 16, 2023 4:33:27 GMT -5
|| Nervan’s PL: 12,000 ||
Still in silence, the stranger observed the interaction of the other two further. There was talk about technique and working as a unit, though this was only stuff that was overheard, there was no invested attempt to fully eavesdrop made by the new arrival.
Eventually both would turn to face the anomaly, and the one in blue decided to call out to the anomaly as if they were further away than they actually were. Strange, but it didn’t cause any sort of visible reaction. The green individual on the other hand was a bit more normal about their vocalization volume, and more or less posed a similar line of questioning.
“Lost?” The wanderer began, without so much as a twitch of movement in any way— their expression remained blank and eternally staring forward, even their mouth didn’t open as they spoke in a chorus of compounded voices. Was this sonic projection or masterful ventriloquism? The answer was unclear. “We are not lost. Far from it. We are precisely where we mean to be.” They explained, holding out the paper, one of the ‘hero for hire’ fliers. “Whilst walking through the city, one of these landed on our face. We found it interesting, and began investigating, leading us here.”
The stranger looked toward the Fauxbian as they were the one that seemingly voiced more annoyance. “We do not intend to cause any trouble, we are simply curious.” They then looked to what they could only guess was an Earthling, or maybe a Terran, as they were also quite similar to each other. “A ‘Hero for Hire’ is a novel concept to us, we would like to know more, if you are willing to share.”
Post by Jessie Watts on Jan 16, 2023 17:18:40 GMT -5
Instead of responding to Striker he just stared at the newcomer, to a degree that might have seemed rude given he was hunched over and everything. Even though only the lower part of his face was visible, his posture, the way he was turning now, and his partially slack jaw were obvious signs of brain off stare. He was here to train to fight not to be respectful after all, so he wasn't really thinking how ridiculous he might have looked, and his visor saving what little self-respect he had.
For as dumb as he looked, he was picking up on the subtleties of speech they were using, mostly because they were similar to his own, such as speaking as we. He understood well enough what that could entail, but it was unlikely to be under the same circumstance.
"We are precisely where we mean to be as well. Funny how that works. We as in, we, not we as in me and-"
Throwing his thumb to his chest at the first we, then throwing a thumb pointing over at Striker at his paused.
"I mean I'm sure they meant to be here as well. We are out here training."
Again, despite part of his face hidden, the way it lit up was more than obvious enough by his body language, as his hands made fists that rested on his hips, standing up straight.
"Oh ho ho. Someone actually stopped to read my flyer. Yes, that's me and that's my flyer".
After a moment he started standing taller, puffing out his chest, mimicking the picture on the flyer.
"Well what do you wanna know? I'm a hero, and I'm for hire. Give me a job, pay me to do it."
Okay. This might be the new weirdest thing Striker had encountered. Symbiont suits were one thing, strange mutant bugs and talking magic girls another still. But this? When the 'puppet' of a creature started 'talking' to the pair, Striker instantly pulled back her annoyance into a spin of confusion. Physically leaning back away from the creature with raised brows. It spoke as a collective, even more, jarring than the simple duality of man and clothing or girl and sword.
"What. Yeah, we're out here training." But this one wanted in on the supposed concept of 'heroes of hire'. And to Striker, it felt like this creature was trying to take the wind out from under her. The fauxbian leaned back in and squinted at Nervan. Thumbing her chin. She was in no right mind to just tell the guy to bugger off with Jessie and his friend cooperatively agreeing to spill the beans. Which means he'd be taking an immediate pause on this exercise. This squint would come up to judge Jessie a little before she waved it away.
"It's basically mercenary work, but you're picky about making sure your jobs help and save people. I guess. That's how it sounded at least." Honestly, Striker herself wasn't THAT far removed. She didn't like the finality of death or taking things with the explicit purpose of death and destruction. She liked fighting, money, and the possibility that sometimes her actions lead to a better outcome for someone or some people. She was just being stubborn that someone else was not around poking at her potential pupil.
WC: 265 TWC: 3731
Last Edit: Jan 16, 2023 22:42:51 GMT -5 by Striker
Post by Nervan & Friends on Jan 17, 2023 6:56:24 GMT -5
|| Nervan’s PL: 12,000 ||
Nervan stood in silence, not speaking up about or seemingly registering the supposed slack jawed befuddlement of the man wearing that rather interesting suit or even the Fauxbian’s recoiling in surprise or disgust. It was entirely possible that Nervan was perfectly used to such reactions, or just otherwise didn’t really care for them. Perhaps they were more aware of how they looked than they let on?
“Training.” Nervan repeated. “We understand. A close friend of ours has a habit of doing that often. We wonder how much importance the two of you put into it by comparison.” Hm, a strange statement of curiosity, not many people would phrase it that way. “Apologies for stalling your training all the same.” Well, at least they were trying to be polite.
Once the man began to pose, Nervan looked at the poster, then between the poster and the man himself. “We are curious— what is the purpose of posing here? We have heard that in some warrior cultures it empowers a fighter. Is this true for you?”
The Fauxbian had additional input, and it was logical— a ‘Hero for Hire’ could easily be likened to a mercenary with a stricter moral code, but Nervan was sure there was more to it still. That said, the Fauxbian made it sound like she had some direct experience. “Well, how do you feel about it yourself?” Nervan felt as though it would be rude to not include them directly, for all they knew, this person was also another ‘Hero for Hire’. “If your intent is to train with them, then surely you see some worth in it. Is that correct?”
Post by Jessie Watts on Jan 21, 2023 20:11:13 GMT -5
In the middle of his pose he raised his arms with a shrug.
"People seem to like seeing it, so I do it. Flamboyance, showmanship, that sort of thing."
He returned back to his pose for a moment, finally sliding back to a mostly normal standing position as he looked over at Striker.
"Something like that, with the mercenary work, or close enough."
Striking a different pose he lifted his arms with a flex, his arms looking to bulge perhaps a bit more than they normally would with the help of his partner, making him look more muscular than he truly was under the outfit.
"I don't know if it literally makes me stronger, but it gets me hype. Honestly it's all like my mom used to say; if you are gonna do something make sure you stand out when you do it, and don't do it for free."
There was an emphasis in his words on the end of his sentence much like his mother used to repeat often. She wasn't a greedy person, but it was a part of their culture, and one that he found didn't necessarily transition all that well to Earth in some ways, and far too well in others. Once more he was lazily dropping back into standing normally, slipping into crossed arms and turned towards Striker.
"Well Well, Jessie, your mom is very smart." Agreed! Well, Jessie knew the answers already. Posing like that was cool, if extra. Striker would do similar with a crowd or band behind her. As much as she wanted to speak on that though, the man had it down already. Hype, energy. The feel. The fauxbian pointed a thumb at herself and grinned.
"I think it's pretty cool. I do a lot of merc work myself, and I tend to be picky when it comes to who or what gets hurt by it. I wouldn't call myself a 'hero for hire' or anything like that though. Think I already went over it with Jessie how the label doesn't fit so neatly for me. But... I think he has some talent that could use some hyping up!" Given the room to speak, she'd throw up a devil horns hand gesture at the two, pointing over to Jssie with her other hand as she mimicked a sort of cool pose with her tongue out.
"I can't fault a guy for having some cool poses. The crowd loves those. It doesn't literally do anything but get the blood pumping. The hype, as he said. Adrenaline. It's all a mental state. That keeps your head clear and mind focused on the fight. Because you are the show!" Not related as much to their training, she wanted to express for the showmanship side how important it could be for onlookers. Striker was also part performer, so her advice would go beyond that of just civil merc duty like Jessie here, but it might be worth considering. Maybe if she just answered the other thing's questions it would not impede them for too long.
WC: 285 TWC: 3753
Last Edit: Jan 21, 2023 21:32:04 GMT -5 by Striker
Post by Nervan & Friends on Jan 23, 2023 6:21:38 GMT -5
|| Nervan’s PL: 12,000 ||
So for now it sounded less like a very literal boost in power, rather a boost in mental fortitude and will. One could argue that was its own power up, and it sounded equally as important, at least to this hero for hire. The guy did these poses because people liked to see them, though Nervan got the sense that this man also just liked doing them in general. Why else would he just start posing like he did if he didn’t like to do it?
“Did your mother take up this sort of job as well? Is that what got you into it?” Nervan inquired, glancing at the poster again to see if there were any prices or rates on it. Maybe some future plans could make use of this man’s talents.
Same with the Fauxbian actually, given what she had said shortly after— she gave off the implication that she was a bit more morally flexible. “Do you have a sort of business card or posters of your own, perhaps?” If nothing else, Nervan could compare prices of hiring or rates between the two.
The idea of recognition, of fame, was odd. It wasn’t something that Nervan really concerned themselves with, but they could see the merits to it. Nervan idly held their chin in thought. Soon enough, they looked back to the other two. “Would it be possible to join in on this training of yours? We wish to understand the principles of which you speak, and a friend of ours often says that those who fight will understand each other better once their fists clash. We want to see if that is indeed true, or if it holds some merit.” Maybe a big ask for someone that looked half dead, but who knows what sort of oomph they could have!
Apr 6, 2024 1:21:15 GMT -5
Lottus: Friendly reminder for new folks to check the rules regarding art claims - AI Art is not accepted on Sparking for character sheets.
Apr 17, 2024 14:43:28 GMT -5
Lottus: Hey folks, got a new phone, but verification is preventing me from downloading Discord for now
Apr 17, 2024 14:43:57 GMT -5
Lottus: I won't be available until I get home from work!
Apr 17, 2024 14:44:58 GMT -5
Lottus: Feel free to dm me if needed!
Apr 17, 2024 21:13:47 GMT -5
Dingo: I'll post what you've said here up in the discord so it doesn't get missed!
Apr 18, 2024 19:19:20 GMT -5
Yakito: I am the #1 Tenrec hater (Striker will be struck)