Hoping and Hopeless [INV/Jackie]

He sat for a while, slumped on the frozen ground. His eyes stared aimlessly into the greyish ice. Choh’s muscles ached tremendously from their sudden exertion. It’d been a while, too long maybe, since he’d last pushed himself like this. He felt the destructive effect that the style had on his body much more profoundly than he was used to. That faintly worried him—A small part anyways. A quiet part, concerned with making sure he didn't completely waste all his years of struggle and hardship.

Choh’s head whipped around, sensing a… shift, nearby. He didn't quite know how to describe it. A scent on the wind maybe? A raising of hairs all along his skin. What he did know, was that something was coming. Something weak? No… strong. Fairly so anyways, not quite on Choh’s level. He relaxed slightly at that; For some reason, most of his (non-drunk) encounters lately have been with incredibly powerful individuals. “Though, why anybody would be all the way out here? I’ve no clue,” He thought aloud, feeling the presence nearly upon him.

A young woman with hair resembling bright flames dropped out of seemingly nowhere, giving him a small wave after a moment of study. Choh awkwardly twisted himself around so that he could sit facing her, deciding to give his own small wave. She seemed to be handling the bleak temperatures easily, he noted. She also seemed slightly familiar, though, Choh couldn't quite pin down why. Maybe he’d seen her somewhere. Probably not, though.

Hearing her question snapped him out of his thoughts. He pondered for a bit before answering. “Eh… No. I think I was just throwing a tantrum. Maybe exercising, one of those two. Can’t decide,” He shrugged, speaking quickly, his voice deep and somewhat croaky. “I uh, don't train too much nowadays…” After a moment, he cleared his throat. “And uhh, what about you? You wander across arctic wastelands often?” 


PL: 6,826

WC: 321

Notes: Fire head person meet bubblegum head person

Choh sat quietly as the redhead spoke. Based on what she’d said initially, he assumed that she was probably out here for some training of her own. It made sense, given that there was almost nothing else to do out here in the icy wilderness. What happened next though sort of stumped him. Crossing her arms, she chastised him.

Taken aback, he tilted his head as she spoke. Did he let some bitterness seep into his voice earlier? Did he sound whiny maybe? Hopefully not, he didn't mean to. “I mean… I’m not that strong. I AM strong, but I don’t think many people would envy me much… With a bit of time and effort, anyone can do that, nowadays,” he pointed at the nearby ravine he’d created with his thumb. “Even you… Uh, no offense,” He finished quickly.

That last part though… Choh hesitated for a moment, not wanting to dredge up any old memories. But for some reason—Maybe he was just tired of holding it in—He relented. “Uh… Yeah, yeah I guess that’s accurate. You might think it childish of me, but I wanted to be like them at one point,” He said quietly, slowly, voice gaining in confidence with every word; A growing fire in his eyes. “No, I wanted to be greater.” He stated, poised.

That flicker of a once, bright dream began to fade as he went on. “...But I've hit my limits. My body will go no further, despite my efforts. Certainly, nowhere closer to those aliens anyways,” He said that last part with a sense of finality as he stared glumly over at Jackie. “Uh, also, sorry for rambling,” He mumbled.

PL: 6,826

WC: 278

Notes: I rewrote this like three times. Could not decide how to properly respond.

Choh stared quietly as Jackie spoke. She seemed to understand, though, it wasn't too surprising; Most fighters could probably sympathize with what he’d just said. And hearing that she’d been watching the tournament brought a fair smile to his face. He doubted she would have remembered him, considering he lost in the elimination rounds against Cheri. Especially not with how he looked now. He nodded along as she went on—She was trying to cheer him up, he thought. Or maybe she truly believed what she was saying? Choh couldn't tell. He had wanted to believe that also, a long time ago.

Turning his own words against him, Choh let his smile widen a tiny bit, before shrinking away in the face of Jackie’s growing power. ‘Oppressive’ was the first word that came to mind. He tensed up, mind flashing back to the many times he’d stood before that same, overwhelming strength. His heart started racing, and his breath quickened. Instinctively, he leaned away, placing one hand behind him as he watched the flames surround her. Then, just as quickly as they’d appeared, the strange flames dissipated into thin air, and a warm feeling surrounded Choh.

He sat there, awe-stricken. There were a number of reasons—Fear, shock, and fascination among them—But there were a few, more subtle ones also. The implication of their talk meant that she likely had reached this strength in the last two years. An impossible feat, he’d thought. And this strength… His Dragon Sense should have sensed the difference between them, but she’d somehow hidden it. He wanted to speak over her, asking—”How?!” or something like that. But after his initial shock faded, he clamped his mouth shut and listened.

A different angle and motivation huh? He thought solemnly. A voice inside kept trying to ‘deny’ her. To deny that any of what she said was possible. To tell her “I’ve tried that all before, It didn't work then, and it won't work now,”

A dark part of him that was well and done with trying any longer.

It’d nearly won out for a moment. Choh had defaulted to letting that voice win for a while now… But, despite his mind’s protest, his body seemed eager. It relaxed in her warmth as she spoke, leaning forward. These past few months had been miserable, he quietly admitted—Now that he wasn't drunk enough to deny it. That voice still nagged at him, but he shoved it aside.

He didn't know why, maybe he’d accidentally let himself be convinced. Maybe he’d go right back to getting drunk after today. Maybe he’d regret this decision. He doubted he could really push past his physical limits... But for today, he let himself hope.

“First lesson?” Choh asked, cracking a smile. “Wise words, Master Jack’. I’ll take them to heart… hopefully,” He chuckled, speaking somewhat jovially now. He let the silence hang for a moment, resting his hands on his knees. “... Thank you, also,” He spoke fairly quickly, not wanting to seem too sappy. “I’ve got a lot of issues to work on, But… I’ll try to take your advice on this.” He let his words hang for a moment, before continuing.

Now that that's out of the way…

“... By the way… I wanted to ask… Earlier you set yourself on fire… Uh, why?” It’d been on his mind since a while ago, and he was still confused. “Was that magic? Were you trying to impress me? What was the point?” He remembered that her strength had risen sharply after she’d done it. Maybe it was some sort of magic ritual. She’d had to remove a secret seal or something?—Like those old folk stories with the demons. He eyed her warily as he waited for a response.

PL: 6,826

WC: 626

Notes: Maybe a tad abrupt, But i'll have some dang hope

The two paused for what seemed a long time, Jackie's brows only furrowing further and her face growing more confused. He sat there, head tilted until she finally asked if he had been referring to her ki. “Is that what it was?” He said, puzzled. Still seeming confused, she asked if he knew anything about Ki. He promptly responded— “Well, I know about it… But I always thought it was like, a gimmick? Same thing as magic,” Well… sort of. There had been a time when he’d seriously pursued Ki in order to hopefully break past his physical limit. But it hadn't worked out. He could never grasp what those handbooks were trying to say and never produced any results. It all felt so… strange? And so he’d simply abandoned the idea.

She started to step around him, saying something about how trained he’d been. “Hey now!” He said loudly, “I think I’ve been quite well trained, thank you!” He huffed, speaking with mock offense. “And why’s Ki so important anyways?” He muttered, “Surely it’s not that big a deal,” He wondered aloud. She then replied that it was the reason that most humans were strong. “Oh… Huh?”

Jackie seemed to be surprised at how strong he was without Ki. Is that just the assumption nowadays? He wondered. If what she said was true, then maybe it made sense why he was so… weak, for lack of a better term. Despite his years of effort. Could he and his teacher have been going about it all wrong? He was skeptical. He did reach incredible heights of power without it… But he’d also stopped growing eventually. And Jackies earlier demonstration certainly lent credence to her argument.

Still… He stifled any excitement he might have had, despite Jackie saying that this might be the reason for his lack of growth. He couldn't simply ignore a year of hard, wasted effort. This could very well be a repeat. “...Maybe you’re right,” He said after a beat of silence. “I’ve tried crazier things before…” Chomei told her, slowly standing up and brushing a layer of snow off of his white trousers. He looked over at her and hesitated. Did he really want to risk putting himself through so much all over again?

Looking at her, and feeling a faint warmth, he let a quiet sigh escape and resigned himself. “Think you could give me some tips, Jack? I uh... sorta have zero clue how any of this stuff works.”


PL: 6,826

WC: 415

Notes: Beginnings


Choh felt the slight shift in tension as she spoke, her ‘danger’ levels seeming to plummet from their previous height. They rested solidly at about his level now, he noted. “... I suppose that makes sense,” He said awkwardly, feeling self-conscious now. He hadn't had a real fight, like, a REAL fight, in well over a year. He assumed that's what was happening anyway. He’d heard plenty of talk about gauging and testing back with his old monk teacher, and that usually meant fighting. His body had weakened significantly since he’d last reached his limits. His overly large muscles had in fact, shrunken this past year—A fact which caused him untold dismay. He doubted he could put on any meaningful display, being so wildly out of practice.

Still… Despite how he might complain—He’d made up his mind, at least for today. Atleast it'll be good excercise, he thought sullenly. Sighing, he looked over at Jackie, who was staring at him warmly. She spoke briefly about strength and spirit, maybe to give him one last nudge of motivation, and he slowly trudged a few meters away. Breathing deeply, in and out, he closed his eyes. He cited an old mantra in his mind—One he’d often used when training as a child. It was a short, simple sentence, yet it never failed to fill him with inexorable courage. I am the dragon.

Exhaling loudly, his body began to redden, a bright sheen reflecting off of his many rounded edges. The air around him seemed to warm, and a soft steam rose atop the snow beneath him. “hhHAAAH!” With an explosive roar, his muscles expanded, and the reddening effect of his skin deepened. The winds blew away from him in great, warm tempests, and the ground rumbled in anticipation of what was to come. He turned around, gaze boring into Jackies. After a moment, the quakes and tempests died down, and he quickly spoke up. “I don’t know how long I can keep this up… haven't tried it out in nearly a year, But I'm gonna give this all I’ve got,” He smiled, settling into the traditional Dragon Style stance.

He waited a short while, giving Jackie plenty of time to adjust her strength if she felt like it. But regardless, after half a minute, his body tensed, and he lunged forward. He thundered across the shaky ground, cracks spreading wherever he stepped. Appearing before Jackie, his hand rose high, flexed to appear like a claw. Rotating his body quickly, he swiped downward at his newfound mentor with as much power as he could muster.

PL: 20478 (Boiling Blood x3 Active)

WC: 432

KP:(4/6) [L-OFF] Dragon Swipe used! 40% 8191 PL Attack headed for Jackie. -2KP.

MP:(2/6) Passive Gain +1, Technique Used +1.

Notes: Lets have a good spar!

In a brilliant flash, their two attacks collided, pushing them away from one another. Choh stamped his right foot forward to stop himself from sliding further, taking a quick breath of cool air. She’d intercepted his attack masterfully, her arm embroiled in wispy flames. Maybe Ki? He wondered, leering at the flames. Maybe he’d be able to learn more about Ki simply from their exchanges. It wasnt likely, but it was something he might as well keep in mind.

His gaze traveled to her hand, which seemed to be beckoning in a taunting manner. He smiled, Alright… let's try something fancy. Quickly widening his stance, both hands flexed, he rotated his body, building momentum as he started to surge back forward. His lumbering pace quickly picked up, and he was soon upon her once again. This time, however, just as he began to swing his arm, he kicked the ice beneath him, blasting it into a thick white mist. He ‘soared’ into the air a few dozen meters, his body twisting from the strength of his swing. And then, just as his body turned to face Jackie beneath him, he kicked again. He launched himself with the sheer power of this attack, rocketing quickly back down toward Jackie.

Even as he approached, he felt that his execution had been ‘wrong’. It had felt sluggish—A year past, he’d have already been back on the ground fighting Jackie. The ground suddenly widened, Jackie came into view clearly and he refocused. He spun lightly, trying to time his final rotation for when he had finally reached the orange-haired warrior. Finally reaching her after what seemed far too long, he swung once again, hoping his momentum might give him some leverage this time round.

PL: 20478 (Boiling Blood x3 Active)

WC: 290

KP:(2/6) [L-OFF] Dragon Swipe used! 50% 10239 PL Attack headed for Jackie. -2KP.

MP:(0/6) 2MP used for +10%.

Notes: Lets have a good spar!... Two!