A few near by passengers were rather put off and grossed out by the bizarre nature of an alien girl taking out her brain in a fashion that looked like an extraction of jello. Anakia however not so disturbed thankfully, which was nice. Granted Hruby would of done it anyway but the reception was still better then expected. "Something like that" and then came some info on the friend and where she was from. The alien pulled her knees in close and head tilted a bit, eagerly listening to it all. In class she often came off as uncaring and uninterested, but her grades were decent. This was because one of the nicer tests of the labs was on teaching the alien seeing how absorbent on knowledge she was. She could have been a even better student just didn't want to be. This was new however and it had the foul mouthed slime intrigued.
"Different how, could you show me that shit maybe?" Anything that kept her from worry about James was welcome. Different tech no exception to that thought. "What's the traditions? Why's your clan less fond of tech?" There was also talk of space or lack there of, it sounded like a flat earther. The alien giggled at the thought and then continued to make it rain questions. "So theres a night sky, but nothing up there? Are you sure? And you mentioned just one continent, so like does the sphere just have water everywhere else or is it a different shape maybe? Oh ---- is it a pyramid planet? That'd be cool I think." Her tangerine eyes briefly seemed to space off trying to imagine what this other world could be like.
Then there was the topic of her lord and that was kind of sad. At least the alien, who only now was really understanding relationships and emotions in a decent capacity thought so. "Well. Like have you asked how he did? I mean ---- if he was dragged here by an ass brained beetle that might come to also drag him back. His knight assassin chick should ----ing know." She teased of course but she did think herself right. "Might also do good to remind him I think Ana would say." Hruby herself wasn't so sure on that end, she didn't need a reminder where she was from. That was hard to forget though, most planets didn't have a rainbow of goo based lifeforms around. "He shouldn't forget it though, that bit I know." For all she could remember she also knew she was missing a lot and those pieces weren't coming back. "You shouldn't forget either" her head shaking briefly in protest.
"Ah..." The gelatinous girl bounced from one topic to another in rapid succession, evidently fueled by curiosity and a vague hyperactivity. Not... quite. But Anakia did tend to be a lot more thoughtful and conservative. Hruby was... hm. Perhaps adapting another aspect of her absent boyfriend, in the rush to motion without consideration. Anakia picked apart the conversational threads a little bit, deciding what to answer. "I can't really show you. The portals are closed, and I can't open them. As far as I know, they have to be opened by someone on the other side. I don't have any evidence that there's a portal from the Outer World that can be opened into the Realm, although maybe the Outsider knows something. I haven't asked. It's... almost one of those things I don't want to know, if that makes sense. If traveling back were simple, it would... change the nature of my obligations." Perhaps Hruby wasn't quite as familiar with Anakia's method of speech. She changed it a little, trying for what the other student would interpret as clarity. Fluent in idiot. "Meaning there would be more people bossing me around. Or... different people bossing me around. Right now, I feel that the status quo is satisfactory."
"My clan is..." Anakia hesitated, then decided to go with more neutrality and less detail. "Decisions were made. Generations ago, not recently. But, those decisions led to the near-annihilation of my clan, and the perception that they had lost their honor. Many things changed, over time. We learned to become what we are now - assassins and bodyguards. Through the years, we have reclaimed our honor. Our traditions help us preserve it, and help us preserve ourselves. We may have regained our prestige, but the professions we have chosen are not known for their security, and we have not regained our numbers."
She contemplated the back of the tray table, distant for a moment, fiddling with the latchwork device as a necessary distraction. "Were I back in the Realm... well. I'm old enough that I would be expected to be trying to bear children with the Nightcrawler's spark." Her nose wrinkled a little bit, one of those rare expressions that actually touched the surface of her usually neutral features, displaying what Anakia rather thought of that idea. "So. There are some things that I am... content to choose not to know." Her gaze dropped, quiet. "And content not to remind others of, as well."
Vilgot raised an eyebrow at the man at the mention of magic, and his fellows were roaring displeasure when they heard the accusation of a lack of immortality. They jeered in a playful manner, and insisted on Vilgot to prove the warrior wrong.
"Vilgot has faced down cannons before!"
"You have nothing on him!"
"Even your lightning cannot kill him!"
The Swede finally caved in to the pressure of his peers and crossed his arms in front of the golden-haired axeman.
"You heard them, and you've seen what I am capable of. If I am not immortal, then prove it! I wager any price on my survival!"
Dungeons Dorian could handle. He’d had some perfectly lovely times in dungeons before. But this? This was some kind of…Dorian didn’t know, but it seemed designed for company. It was a touch garish, with lots of red and gold, but Dorian loved garish. If the circumstances were different he’d curl up here with a good book. And cocaine. He liked snorting cocaine off books, it made him feel cultured. A favorite was The Importance of Being Earnest.
Dorian’s favorite demon (even mentally the sarcasm was almost palpable) was walking towards the fireplace with Dorian’s portrait. Dorian’s face went white, and he scrambled towards the beast. But no matter how fast he ran, he could not seem to gain any distance. He could only watch in horror as his portrait was hung above the fire. The heat was immediate and intense, but not yet to the point of pain. It did make him sweat rather dreadfully though. He wiped his face with his sleeve.
“Ezra,” Ezra said, finally answering Dorian’s question. “Call me…Ezra.” The voice came even though Ezra stood totally, and unnervingly motionless. Ezra…raze in anagram. And that’s certainly what Ezra did…raze Dorian’s life to the ground.
“I want him,” said Ezra, pointing at a portrait next to Dorian. Dorian examined it. It was certainly not as well done as Dorian’s portrait, but it was very pretty. Dorian certainly would not argue about getting acquainted with the man, though almost certainly not in the circumstances he was about to meet him.
“Ali Bashir. He is a sweet boy. My sweet boy” Ezra said, and giggled, a sound which would have sent a shiver down Dorian’s spine if he wasn’t so damned warm. “But he has been... naaauuuughttty", Ezra continued, "Bring him back to me".
Dorian sure wouldn’t want to be Bashir.
"Crush his bones... tear at his flesh... pluck the eyes from his sockets" Not really Dorian’s style. “BUT DO NOT KILL HIM! DO - NOT!” Dorian’s heart almost stopped at the awful cry. The noise was horrible, the screeching of a hungry black hole, death rattles through a megaphone. And then Ezra started to cry. Dorian didn’t even know how to react at this point. He had given up trying to make sense of it all. And so he clung to one thing: He had orders. He could get his portrait back. That’s all that mattered.
“Bring him back to me", said Ezra, "And I will return your painting, and free you from this bind".
Dorian bowed as sarcastically as it is possible to bow. “Your wish is my command,” he said. Should be a piece of cake, black forest cake to be precise. Dorian could demolish black forest cake. Except Dorian was a little concerned about his directive not to kill. His abilities were largely fatal, though if he was allowed to…what was it?...‘crush his bones’ he could probably age him up a little. He sighed. Who was he kidding, he knew full well that wouldn’t go over well. This was all on his natural charms now.
Here
“I’m going to leave now to get him…I am not running away. I am not breaking our bargain. I’m going now.”
Dorian went up to the portrait of Ali Bashir. He stepped into the frame, vanishing into the depths. When he stepped out, he should be wherever Bashir was. If this worked. He hadn’t had much practice, and it was always possible that Bashir somehow had some way of making Dorian’s life horribly difficult.
If he got there, this is what would unfold:
Dorian appeared out of empty air crashing down to the ground. He stood up, brushed himself off, and looked for Bashir. “Hello…you no doubt have many questions for me, but there’s no time. My name is Dorian Gray, and you must come with me…the lives of millions depend on it!” Actually only one life depended on it, but Dorian knew his life was obviously worth the same as millions, so he wasn’t lying too much. He wiped his face with his sleeve again. He was so unbearably hot.
She took a moment to enjoy a stick of bubble gum as she took a few moments to compile the recordings of her HUD of what'd transpired. Took some extra time to highlight the finest moments or worst. Intriguing as it was to study the armor how it moved and functioned helping him be the best in the field he could be seemed more important. Find the points where she held back and point those out, find the ones where his showmanship had almost put him at risk. She did her best to highlight as well where his better moves were. All the compiled data she could manage she'd try to provide for him as well.
His arsenal had grown again and again through the situation. Adaptability through levels showcased in a manner that she honestly wished she could have studied and gotten to know even more. It really was the kind of technological marvel the nerd was all about. She might have even a year ago chosen to have such instead of what she did now. Now of course she loved what she had built on her own more. There was still some envy though and she knew her reaction to it as elated and intrigued as she was now probably would of been a complete vulnerability in the past. She'd helped probably the most intriguing guy and hero in her books grow. As sparks rained down and components of drones plummeted however she figured the session was close to over. And odds were he had more to do, she sure did. One of the downsides of just being a human was she always wanted to assist in a dozen more things on top of the half dozen she was always trying to juggle.
A perfect round though it wasn't as difficult as it could of been. More set routines then controlled opposition, npcs of a videogame rather then another player. Credit where it was do though he tore through the legion with a lot of skill. Though that dive he'd done seemed to be successful more thanks to RNJesus, a lucky roll of the dice then anything to his own credit. Blades carved through the machines with ease his speed blitz more then overwhelmed the machines and their limited flight patterns. Hand;s brought up cannons, megabuster like designs as large blasts of energy launched forward casting an energetic sound through the air and flooding the alley way with their vibrant light. The last drone falling as little besides liquidated scrap metal. She'd give a moment to manage his experience points if needed as she pulled a flash drive from slipspace and plugged it into her Pipgirl.
Once done she tossed it his way "thats all the data I could get. Tried to edit in some notes and thoughts on the matter as well. Not that you need it but I wouldn't be me if I didn't try to help." Drones moved to pick up the various scrap dropping them into slipspace so as to not let weapons or tech go to waste or be exploited. "So anything else I can do for you? Not that I'm not having fun, it's just theres always something to get to for me." She did her best to hide the fact she wanted him to want more of some kind. Was way to easy to get caught up in everything else she did.
<<You know, I'm actually surprised. You did pull it off, Victor, even if it was the stupidest thing you could have done.>> Those were the first words reverberating inside his mind as he stoically posed upon finishing the last drone, a supercilious smirk intensified across his visage, only more proof of how convinced he was that his armor could be a solution to all his problems. Shifting his gaze from the self-assumed brilliant execution of a 'perfect' to Gaige's ostensibly interested gaze, Beta cocked his head. If anything, his displays most likely built enough confidence for Beta-Tester to go after more prizes than mere experience points and upgrades, some sort of legendary loot he barely could reach beforehand.
He grabbed the flash drive midair, completely disregarding her explanations of how she felt it was quintessential for him to analyze his previous movements. Why should he? He fulfilled the quest at hand, watching it over again would be a stretch as he, most likely, would come to despise every step he took, coming up with thousands of better ways to take them down without looking like a scrub. He simpered a tad at her inquiry. "As a matter of fact there is. You see, all these people getting in trouble throughout the globe are really lucky, they have all these amazing heroes looking out for them, I'm kind of jealous..." Chuckling, he hovered a bit closer. "I need my hero as much as the next guy. So, what do you say if we end the practice? You just do me one more favor, take a few more hours off... And let me repay my debt at someplace you'd like to go."
"Mom?" a small, young voice called out, her words booming and bouncing into the endless purple-blue caverns below her. The child's figure stood at the cave entrance, silhouetted against a bright white dawn provided by the planet's seven suns. She swayed at the entrance, twisting her lips around as she leaned in to listen.
The faint echo of her mother's beautiful euphoric laughter fell upon her ears. It seems like she is in there, Pandora thought as she flitted into the first gigantic chamber of the cave. Several hallways could be made out in the dark shadows. Her mother's high noted giggles started to subside, and Pan didn't lose any remaining time in zipping around the purple tunnels to locate her. Even though her body was insulated by the Guardian's signature insulating energy field, the planet's intense heat was still able to make her feel uncomfortably hot. Surprisingly, the caverns had the opposite effect; not only was it cooling, but intensely so, as the ring registered the temperature around her rapidly dropping to four hundred degrees before zero.
"Brrr~fffrrrr," Pan started to shiver. She wanted to find her mom quick and get out of here. Her parents had dropped onto this planet to fetch something for the Order, and Pan had tagged along, since the planet's civilization, while incredibly hardy, were still primitive enough to pose less of a threat. The only trouble had been locating the damn thing. So while her dad was busy dispatching the military might that the natives had mustered, her mother broke into their so-called sacred grounds and had been rummaging around for the past forty or so hours. Dad noted that the high point of the sun was coming around soon, and that was when their people were at their strongest. Not to mention that neighboring tribes were also pouring in to provide their support. He might need mom's back up.
Rarely had the order ever sent two of its Squad Captains to a single location, but the mission was an exception. Neither Emilia nor Rodrigo had an idea what they were after, but the difficulty in obtaining it was abundantly clear. There were two factors that did not play well with them. The first was that the planet seemed as if it was sentient, or the very least it was protected by miraculous energies that seemed to have no end to it. Normally, they could just blast this piece of rock apart and find the thing they were supposed to be looking for, but the energies here prevented them from doing that. Any and all willpower directed was being deflected and dissipated into nothingness. The artefect was supposed to be an Orb of unknown origins, located deep within the endless blue caverns below the planet's surface. It was more than likely that, the source of the power of its inhabitants as well as the planet itself was died to this Orb. The Order wanted it found and delivered, and had sent two of its best Captains to the task.
After a few... external attempts, the couple led their daughter down to the surface of the planet, where they were then engaged by the natives. They weren't easy to deal with by any means. Super tough creatures and growing ever stronger as their sun continued to rise up from the horizon. Following some stolen documents of the natives, Emilia pressed on with the search while her husband stayed behind to deal with the tribesman. Holding but a rudimentary map, she had opted to enter the mysterious blue caverns in search for it, after having placed her daughter at the cave entrance, because it was supposed to be dangerous within and she did not want Pandora to suffer any harm. The surface temperatures of the planet were too hot due to its proximity to the sun, but these caves had the polar effect, it was shivering cold.
To a ring wielder though, extremes of temperatures, hot or cold was nothing. Their rings maintained their body temperatures at relative norms for individual species to be able to live anywhere in the universe. However, the deeper Emilia traversed through these caverns, to her shock, she discovered that her ring wnas actually malfunctioning, because she started feeling an inevitable cold. According to the map, she was getting closer to the Orb, so, on the bright side, Emilia knew that she was at least on the right track. A sinister laugh escaped her throat as she pushed on through the mists of the caverns whose walls illuminated in blue. It was moist, damp despite the cold. She had started suspecting that this cold was actually only being targeted at her own self.
"Mom?" a small, young voice called out, her words booming and bouncing into the endless purple-blue caverns below her.
Pandora's voice. It sounded so distant, but she heard it alright. Emilia had forgotten the extent of time she had been down there, not stopping, moving forward. Her daughters voice made her stop though. She turned back. "P-pan.... don't come... it's v-very c-cold!" She shot back, with a shivering voice that seemed to echo on and on through the caves. She was confident though that her daughter could hear her just as she had heard her. This was supposed to be good field experience for a young girl who would one day most likely become a ring wielder herself.
James looks over at him, considering his skepticism a moment before answering, "I understand your skepticism. I myself am a bit of a skeptic, but that is what my reports say. Then there is this."
He takes out a a recorder and hits play and underwater sounds start playing. Men's voices begin talking about boring stuff, then all of a sudden they are under attack. Expletives are said and then a most interesting sound happens. A sound that is obviously from some huge creature, but completely unknown.
James stops playing the tape, "That was my men's last recorded transmission. We have analyzed that sound countless times and we can't identify it."
Sarah, who has been silent up until this point, stares at the tape then walks over and picks it up, playing it again and listening to the sound. "Well, whatever it is, color me intrigued. I think it could be a Kraken, I've seen more than enough weird and spooky things to believe it could exist."
"Ah..." The gelatinous girl bounced from one topic to another in rapid succession, evidently fueled by curiosity and a vague hyperactivity. Not... quite. But Anakia did tend to be a lot more thoughtful and conservative. Hruby was... hm. Perhaps adapting another aspect of her absent boyfriend, in the rush to motion without consideration. Anakia picked apart the conversational threads a little bit, deciding what to answer. "I can't really show you. The portals are closed, and I can't open them. As far as I know, they have to be opened by someone on the other side. I don't have any evidence that there's a portal from the Outer World that can be opened into the Realm, although maybe the Outsider knows something. I haven't asked. It's... almost one of those things I don't want to know, if that makes sense. If traveling back were simple, it would... change the nature of my obligations." Perhaps Hruby wasn't quite as familiar with Anakia's method of speech. She changed it a little, trying for what the other student would interpret as clarity. Fluent in idiot. "Meaning there would be more people bossing me around. Or... different people bossing me around. Right now, I feel that the status quo is satisfactory."
"My clan is..." Anakia hesitated, then decided to go with more neutrality and less detail. "Decisions were made. Generations ago, not recently. But, those decisions led to the near-annihilation of my clan, and the perception that they had lost their honor. Many things changed, over time. We learned to become what we are now - assassins and bodyguards. Through the years, we have reclaimed our honor. Our traditions help us preserve it, and help us preserve ourselves. We may have regained our prestige, but the professions we have chosen are not known for their security, and we have not regained our numbers."
She contemplated the back of the tray table, distant for a moment, fiddling with the latchwork device as a necessary distraction. "Were I back in the Realm... well. I'm old enough that I would be expected to be trying to bear children with the Nightcrawler's spark." Her nose wrinkled a little bit, one of those rare expressions that actually touched the surface of her usually neutral features, displaying what Anakia rather thought of that idea. "So. There are some things that I am... content to choose not to know." Her gaze dropped, quiet. "And content not to remind others of, as well."
"You shouldn't go back yet I don't think." The alien remarked letting her mind drift a bit on the information given. "Of course you got people and you should see them, but I think being out here does you good. Your lord is a ----ing idiot I think he was smart at least a few times though." That was as far as she'd go on that though didn't need to stroke egos or come off as to soft. Hruby thought herself a bad ass to much kindness could taint that fact. "That and rules are good but kind of dumb" bosses and leaders just got in the way of fluid actions.
The alien glared briefly at the thought of near annihilation such people deserved a nearly drowned ass kicking. "That's sad." A dying breed and the best thing for the people now didn't sound helpful to continuing into the later. That last bit got the alien's attention in particular. It was no secret her favorite activities were physical and not all of them involved hitting people.
"Yeah definitely shouldn't go back then. You should only do that with who you want and for the reasons you two want. Trust me don't settle for the other ways" she'd known it as worse, her species liked it enough to not get to lost in the troubles of it. She knew how other sentient lifeforms were about such events however and it needed to be handled with care. Was a shame though, odds were the assassin wasn't going to find another of her kind around for some time. A lonely thing "soooooo that got awkward some, good shit. Any other questions, I need the distraction."
The Tenekentic Queen's presence pulled the attention of nearly everyone, people dying to take pictures, some just wanting to claw at her for her family's role in the destruction of Spain. Though she wasn't alive for the conflict, the Catalan Countess was a spokesperson for the Liafador family and brand--she had to take it.
While she acts on her own accord, her shadow accompanied Kaiden on the other side of the club as he phished for clues. Though it couldn't speak, Cat's shadow was able to relay Kaiden's findings back to her via a personal quantum link the two shared,
"Frank Dyson huh" Cat said with her eyes panning toward the stairs. "He knows you're here, but he doesn't know we're together. I mean working together, like partners. Not like together, together. You get what I mean" She said stumbling on her words.
"I'll go upstairs and work my Liafador magic, don't worry I won't screw him" Cat said pushing past the masses en route towards the stairs. With her shadow currently detached, she needed to be careful most of her powers worked at a base form, not powerful enough to actually fight someone. With the heels she had on movement was restricted, and her form-fitting dress didn't make the situation any better.
The ancient alien folded his arms and squint smugly, his golden hair falling to one side as he surveyed this 'immortal' man.
The Time Keeper could have tried injuring this mortal by cutting his head off or slicing him limb from limb. But no, murder was not his pastime and he wasn't here to prove himself... Albeit proving this oaf as lying (even to himself) was very tempting. His smirk grew wider.
"Meet me back here, mortal. In three hundred years."
He removed a dagger from his pocket and stabbed it into the ground, sending a little spark of electricity into it prior to kicking it in deep into the muddy floor to hide it. He then took out a second knife from his pocket, handing it to the infantryman. "These daggers are intertwined. I've primed it to break for three hundred years, but once my magic has worn off it will pull itself back to it's counterpart, hold onto your dagger and it will bring you back here."
He did not believe it would actually work. He'd return in three hundred years to reclaim both daggers alone.
"I shall see you soon," he winked. "Not."
And in a flash he was gone.... Or rather, had gone... Back... To the future?
Vilgot took the dagger and smiled. An impromptu challenge, but one he could accomplish nonetheless. Days turned into years. King Charles died and the Great Northern War was lost for the Swedish Empire. Vilgot mourned the loss just as any proud Swede would have, even more so when soldiers he knew during the war committed acts of suicide that he could not predict.
The 19th Century dawned and the Royal Heavy Grenadiers were disbanded. Feeling a sense of loss greater than he had imagined, a pulling urge of uselessness, Vilgot decided to put up his armor and age away into obscurity. It was at the edge of death that he crawled through his attic, searching restlessly for something, until he found that armor he knew so well. He decided to put it on for old time's sake, and marveled at the power it still held in its steel. He returned to his younger self, surprising his wife and children, who saw it as a blessing from God.
Yet this blessing did nothing for his wife, nor any wife after. His children, too, were faced with the same fate of death that the armor protected him from. Vilgot's faith began to crumble as the 20th Century broke into being, and the world went to war.
In the trenches of Passchendaele, to the mountains of Italy, Vilgot ignored his nation's neutrality during the Great War and fought with the strength of a lion. He wore the armor his ancestors had passed down to him, but it had changed shape. Rather, Vilgot understood it to always look as it had done. Such was the will of the armor itself, to anchor its wearer in time and keep them safe from everything - including the truth.
The Lion from the North, an epithet he wore in honor of his former ruler King Charles, fought to secure a safe future for the world. He kept an eye on the politics in war-torn Germany as a man named Hitler rose to power. Once again, he ignored his nation's neutrality in the matter and fought with the courage of a wild animal.
His armor remained a constant reminder of his heritage, even if it did always seem a bit unfamiliar at times. He swore that there was a visor sometimes, and a full breastplate. He often blamed it on his time spent alive, which would continue to wind down again and again as he took the armor itself off. He knew that it was binding him to this world, that much he could understand. After the last brick in Berlin was overtaken by Allied forces, Vilgot began to comprehend something.
His armor did possess the ability to change, though he could not remember what it changed from after the fact. He decided to make for himself a more suitable attire for the coming century, as he had only one left to live before he would meet with the blonde axe-wielder again. He wore the armor as a mere belt buckle now, and forgot completely about what had protected him previously throughout his dangerous battles and near-death experiences. It had anchored him this long, with all unnecessary memories of its shape dwindling down to the bottom of the dark nests of time.
And so, Vilgot Linderoth lived another sixty years, challenging himself and learning all he could before the appointed date. Then, one day, his drawer began to rattle in the middle of the night. He had retired to New York City, to a penthouse apartment where he continued to make a fortune from his various ventures across his seemingly endless lifespan. Antiques preserved from the 18th and 19th Centuries, sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars, stocks masterfully inflated over the course of learning from the mistakes of the various exchange crashes firsthand. He had spent several years homeless before the World Wars, after all.
But Vilgot knew this day would come. He stood from his chair, where he had made vigil over the drawer for several hours now, and made sure to secure the belt buckle that had once been a full suit of armor around his waist. He returned to his anchored point in time, the full breadth of his youth. He grabbed the dagger by its hilt, and held it aloft, feeling the undeniable strength in its trajectory.
In a flash, he was gone, teleported to the banks of the now-frozen Neva River, where the battle three hundred years ago was fought between his Swedish comrades and the Tsardom.
He looked around, and made note of his time-traveling friend. He drew closer, finding the cold bitter but ultimately pointless as it proved no actual harm to him. He merely shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Did I keep you long?" he asked in a faux American accent, smiling.
The nerd blushed a bit at that remark, she was used to other girls looking up to her and saying she was there hero. Of engineers nerds and other such people saying such. Usually far more in emails or calls then in person. That was to say far less from likable guys in front of her, it also sounded more like a date. Which the nerd hadn't been on ever sense she'd become a hero, maybe it was to much to dare to ask. Maybe she was just to busy to notice or perhaps something else that alluded her at the time in any case such didn't happen. And one of her drones cleaning up parts briefly crashed into a wall from the nerd being distracted. Sound of which helped her snap back to reality and she was as quick as she could be to get drones put away and Mjolnir extracted.
"Going to level with you nobody has asked such sense those first drones were the go to." She was nervous some, "wouldn't even know what to really want to do." She had a good pay check and friends she still got to do a lot of what she wanted. Though admittedly things like raves and parties had lost emphasis for her. The escapism from the rest of Grim culture had passed her by some. "Want to go against a raid boss I'll take point. If your asking me out though that's on you." She concluded with a brush of her hair to tuck bangs behind her ear and be more confident then she was.
"You shouldn't go back yet I don't think." The alien remarked letting her mind drift a bit on the information given. "Of course you got people and you should see them, but I think being out here does you good. Your lord is a ----ing idiot I think he was smart at least a few times though." That was as far as she'd go on that though didn't need to stroke egos or come off as to soft. Hruby thought herself a bad ass to much kindness could taint that fact. "That and rules are good but kind of dumb" bosses and leaders just got in the way of fluid actions.
The alien glared briefly at the thought of near annihilation such people deserved a nearly drowned ass kicking. "That's sad." A dying breed and the best thing for the people now didn't sound helpful to continuing into the later. That last bit got the alien's attention in particular. It was no secret her favorite activities were physical and not all of them involved hitting people.
"Yeah definitely shouldn't go back then. You should only do that with who you want and for the reasons you two want. Trust me don't settle for the other ways" she'd known it as worse, her species liked it enough to not get to lost in the troubles of it. She knew how other sentient lifeforms were about such events however and it needed to be handled with care. Was a shame though, odds were the assassin wasn't going to find another of her kind around for some time. A lonely thing "soooooo that got awkward some, good shit. Any other questions, I need the distraction."
Anakia hinted a smile, and a nod of acknowledgement. "It got awkward, but it was distracting, as you requested. I consider it a success. How do you find it here?" she inquired, a bit more seriously, "In terms of adaptation, that is? What are some of the things that you have found challenging to adapt to, or strange to comprehend? Do you ever consider the possibility of returning to your homeland? And if you were to do so, what challenges would be present?" Another string of questions, on a slightly different topic, but Anakia was just as glad to have covered her own history in sufficiency that the conversation could be directed elsewhere.
Much of what she was... simply wasn't easy for most Outer Worlders to understand. Even Lord Outsider didn't really understand it, she felt. They'd been at odds before, over her insistence on maintaining the traditions of her heritage. He wanted her to fit in - it was what he had done, and he was good at it. He didn't understand that it wasn't what she wanted. Not if it meant changing who she had been.
Anakia wondered what Hruby's own people were like, or if the gelatinous girl even knew, or remembered. It was possible that it had been lost to her, like the name of the beetle-brained creature. It was also possible that it was something that she had never known. Hruby had said little of her origins, after all.
"Same" she remarked managing a smile wide and curious. Every pause was easy to slip back into concern. Being worried wasn't cool like she preferred to be. So conversation bounced on and so to did she. "Here as in the plane? It's terrible, it jiggles around a bit most the turbulence is covered I think by stuff. I can feel it though." She brought her hands together and then apart creating slime, she went perfectly still in appearance but one could see the bubbles in the goo move around. Course that was the joking lighter tone, she knew what the killer meant and tangerine eyes drifted out the window considering the answer.
"There's never going to be the ability to just fit in, the point is slipping ones way in. Not going to find to many other fuchsia skinned figures. More individuals made of slime. I find it easier to do my best to not give a shit though, and eventually others don't either." She was who she was, foul mouthed sex crazed and violent but entirely her own. An individual comfortable in the collective and thus could be just a student. Least that's how she saw it "adapting is fluid."
As for the other question she shrugged "I spent most my time here growing up amongst them so most shit I get. I'm kind of shit at emotions, not really used to anger or that weird feeling I get around Tank that kinda ----n alludes me. Lab dudes taught most besides that." She considered it a little more "clothing is also I think totally unnecessary. Like sure a bitch should bundle up if it's cold really but seems mostly unneeded to me. It's not like it protects much. Armor and shoes sure but rest eh" she mused on to the next bit.
"Getting home isn't possible, see for the most part we're hard to kill so long as water a and moisture is present. We also like to reproduce, my race made their planet basically a dried up rock and then began to evaporate without a means to make up their volume. I don't think I'm the last but going back would be pointless." Her tthumb and index rested under her chin as she considered the other part. Probably image and culture. The goo thing raised by say an ass brained beetle would look like a jelly ass brained beetle. And mannerisms would be trying to compare to said ass brained beetle unlike me who's humanish."
With Force Listening, he hears every word Cat says as well as her cute stumbling over her own words. It is enough to almost make him grin. "I know what you mean. I like kissing you, I mean, I like working with you." Kaiden nearly facepalms, hoping Cat didn't hear that slip up that but knows she probably did. Apparently, her personality seems to be contagious. Gah!
As Kaiden waits patiently, hoping the plan won't go off the rails, Cat might hear a voice down a hallway, "Are you allowed up here?" If she looks over, she may see a bodyguard talking to another woman who is most definitely drunk. Whews! So, he wasn't addressing her.
It takes some searching, but eventually the room is spotted and, as Kaiden predicted earlier, heavily guarded. If Cat allows herself to be seen, they won't let her by. If Cat fights, they prove adept fighters and she'd be outnumbered at least 10 to 1.
However, none of this is necessary when the Sith Lord himself comes out into the hallway. For all intents and purposes, he looks human although he is not. Rather handsome man, looking to be in his early 30's somewhere. But when he looks at Cat, the cold chill of evil may, or may not, run down her spine. There is no soul in those eyes, nothing but anger, hurt and pain. The guards themselves seem passive, but obviously afraid of him. "You." He keeps looking at her feet, then he looks at her face, "You are a curious one. Where is your shadow? Are you some kind of Vampire, here to feed or something else?" Oh crap...he noticed she doesn't have a shadow attached. He is very perceptive, but Sith Lords often are.
Frank looks at Cat with nothing but unfounded hate, "Speak."
It was quite straightforward, a sign that even if he was at his slowest he could have picked on for it was so blatantly evident it was well-nigh impracticable to overlook it. Those slightly redder cheeks of hers, they brought a genuine smile to Beta-Tester's visage, as if the cobalt-armored hero could even get to the deeper layers of outstanding figures such as Gaige herself, someone once unreachable who he had ultimately accepted would be nothing more than a mere neet's crush. Perhaps the wet dream of every nerd throughout the globe, and there she was, even if attempting her hardest to not look the part, only a girl blushing whilst being asked out for a boy.
His heart raced for a bit.
What should he invite her to? He never was very good with dates, always going to places he could barely enjoy for the sake of the other person, always endeavoring to pass on a positive image of himself even though, in reality, he was quite indifferent himself. However, this was different, almost a dream coming through. He doubted she would settle for walking around a mall or simply watching a fantasy movie in the cinemas. Hell, she could live greater adventures on her own. It was when he snapped his fingers, finally remembering something he really wanted to do before leaving Japan which also would interest Gaige, being the nerd she was. He smirked. "So... I heard they have this huge Gundam store around. They have most mecha designs and all that, but that's not the main point." He paused, his smile widening as Victor was genuinely excited about it. "I heard they are letting you test the alpha of their virtual reality game! Wanna go with me?"
To his utter surprise, the Time Keepers 'young' face widened in shock. This was truly unexpected! Or was it? He himself lived for longer than anybody else, why was this even so shocking? What a stupid bet. What a waste of time! The Time Keeper was quick to fold his arms, squinting. This was not human technology. No, it was alien. From 1700 to 2017? Who knew all of the ways in which history had been affected. The Master of Time had visited 1700 to defeat the alien to stop it from altering the timeline... Perhaps, this was the real reason he had arrived!
But still, there was always the distinct possibility he was just salty for losing the bet and was looking for any excuse to banish this man back to the former age and reverse all of his personal history. Was that wrong? Probably. Taking a step closer, the Time Keeper placed his hands upon his hips.
"Your accent is terrible."
He removed his hands from his hips, pointing his finger at the man. "Hope you enjoyed your trip Mr Immortal. Can't let you live another thousand years though..." He pressed a button upon a device on his wrist, a bolt of lighting smashing into Vilgot's chest. "That would be mightily irresponsible of me!"
He would have to return to three hundred years ago after that and remove the armor so he couldn't just live through the next three centuries again though. Slowly, the lighting started to spin around the man - when in fact, it was not lighting, it was temporal energy.
It was honing onto his space-time signature and would send him back any minute now.... Any.... Minute.... Now?
In times immemorial, the armor was a bastion of Vilgot and his men against Russian muskets. It changed shape, owing its wearer nothing besides that protection. Even memories of its original form were erased, replaced with its form as of the new contact with Vilgot and its new metamorphosis.
The truth was always elusive, and the plate of the armor knew it instinctively in its forging - the flesh of alien steel, and hard bone of foreign materials. The belt buckle drew in the temporal energies, sending them spiraling towards its center. It would always be a bastion for Vilgot, even if it had to break its own rules.
It snarled and snapped into old and terrific shapes, turning the clock back as it became larger and more imposing, a monstrous artifact of a distant civilization. The armor withstood the test of the Time Keeper, and Vilgot opened his eyes to see himself encased from head to toe in brilliant gold-colored battleplate. He somehow knew it to be his own, just as the armor willed him to know, and the truth swarmed over him in small bursts.
"Again. The years passed before me as water. We did this once before, or rather, you saw it happen. Temporal energy - it has no effect on this armor. Instead, your attempt to make me return to that fateful day only inspired it to show me the value of our comradery - for it is indeed my oldest friend,"
He removed the diamond the Time Keeper gave to him, the diamond made from the ashes of his rifle three hundred years ago. In the palm of his gauntlet it became many things: his trusty musket, a thunderous hammer, a bolt of white lightning, a shield to turn back evil, and many things beside.
He settled on the shield for now, and set its roots in the snow.
"I can tell you that this was no mistake. You have corrected the flow of time, and without your journey back then I surely would have died, in one way or another. I thank you."
The King of Time paused, resting a single palm upon a tree trunk and sighed.
"You truly are immortal?"
Raising his axe, the temporal thunderer created cloud coverage as a shadow case over them both, gazing down at the intriguing Vilgot with a stern gaze.
"We all die, my friend. But do not allow this thought to sully your mind," hopping away from where he was standing, the Master of Time was quick to wrap his palm around the armoured gentlemen, one of the clouds lowering as it covered them in a mist.
His eyes sparkled white and pink before a projection of the future emerged, hopefully not too much for Vilgot.
The Time Keeper cycled through the next two thousand years (and only the good bits, nothing extraordinary that would allow this man to alter time). "You have all of this to look forward, Vilgot."
"Same" she remarked managing a smile wide and curious. Every pause was easy to slip back into concern. Being worried wasn't cool like she preferred to be. So conversation bounced on and so to did she. "Here as in the plane? It's terrible, it jiggles around a bit most the turbulence is covered I think by stuff. I can feel it though." She brought her hands together and then apart creating slime, she went perfectly still in appearance but one could see the bubbles in the goo move around. Course that was the joking lighter tone, she knew what the killer meant and tangerine eyes drifted out the window considering the answer.
"There's never going to be the ability to just fit in, the point is slipping ones way in. Not going to find to many other fuchsia skinned figures. More individuals made of slime. I find it easier to do my best to not give a shit though, and eventually others don't either." She was who she was, foul mouthed sex crazed and violent but entirely her own. An individual comfortable in the collective and thus could be just a student. Least that's how she saw it "adapting is fluid."
As for the other question she shrugged "I spent most my time here growing up amongst them so most shit I get. I'm kind of shit at emotions, not really used to anger or that weird feeling I get around Tank that kinda ----n alludes me. Lab dudes taught most besides that." She considered it a little more "clothing is also I think totally unnecessary. Like sure a bitch should bundle up if it's cold really but seems mostly unneeded to me. It's not like it protects much. Armor and shoes sure but rest eh" she mused on to the next bit.
"Getting home isn't possible, see for the most part we're hard to kill so long as water a and moisture is present. We also like to reproduce, my race made their planet basically a dried up rock and then began to evaporate without a means to make up their volume. I don't think I'm the last but going back would be pointless." Her tthumb and index rested under her chin as she considered the other part. Probably image and culture. The goo thing raised by say an ass brained beetle would look like a jelly ass brained beetle. And mannerisms would be trying to compare to said ass brained beetle unlike me who's humanish."
"Oh, that's fascinating," Anakia said, genuinely intrigued, "You do adapt over time. I had... wondered." She sat back in her chair a little bit. "You've begun... hm, how to say it? Comporting yourself more in the same manner as James does, lately. Your patterns of speech, some of your gestures. They're much more similar to his now than they were when you first began at the Academy. Is that..." she paused, then stopped herself.
"Or is that something you were aware of?" she ventured, after a moment, realizing that it may not have been. "I apologize if not. I'm very... analytical." Watching how people acted, and the changes in their actions, was something Anakia had been trained to do for a long time - it was second nature to her, and she was also very observant. She spent a lot of time paying attention to her classmates, even if she did not always seek to be part of them. It helped, sometimes - in cases like earlier, when she'd been able to intuit what Hruby had actually wanted out of the convolutions of her statements. Other times, though, she acknowledged that her analytical nature sometimes came off as cold and calculating. Anakia had yet to decide if that was something that she wanted, or not.
"You are tending towards him, though," she added, gently, "So I suppose it's up to you to decide what that means to you, and how much you want it to influence your self."
@raysh_al_shaytan: (sorry for the wait... it's kinda long too >__> I wasn't sure how far to go with the post LOL)
The chill of the air hitting against her nimble body ate through her clothing, feeling like a sting against her skin as her vision began to blacken from the seemingly never ending darkness around them. The wretched smell of rotting flesh became stronger than before as the child suddenly felt semi-solid ground underneath her boots. Her body slightly sank, clay like mud covering her feet and reaching to her ankles. Her head tilted upward, where the opening of The Pit was, and all that could be seen, was a small, speck of light above them, where the moon was and no stars above her... after all... she was now underground. Moving through it was proving more difficult than she thought it was going to be, but after a few moments she was able to navigate through. Her eyes also began slowly adjusting to the darkness around her. While her vision was still obscure, she was able to make out small silhouettes of broken trees and dried up shrub that thrived in the darkness, around her, but it was her other senses that began taking over, allowing her to move around more easily. The goal was to conquer this land through forced dominance, and survive.
The air was was frigid but also thick with humidity as sweat began to collect around her brow as her feet suddenly hit against something. It was large, and gave off the nauseating smell of death. She reached down, her glove covered fingers running along the corpse of a rather large beast. It’s fur was coarse and dirty and cold to the touch even with the gloves and the paws were large, it’s nails pointed, sharp and unkempt. As her hands continued to inspect it, she felt that a large section of the creature had been partially eaten as chunks of it’s flesh was missing, but what was more intriguing, was the fur that was singed off of it’s body along with several, small but deep stab wounds. From what she could tell, the monster died from it’s stab and burn wounds and then was eaten after, but obviously the creature that began eating away at this Hellhound, left, not pleased with it’s meal. How long the monster had been dead could have been several days due to the cold of the atmosphere around her. But bigger question was… who was the person that killed the beast?
Someone else was here recently. Was there a Liafador here? They were the only ones who dared to come into this literal hell hole, well… with the exception of the Father of Assassins… and now herself. Could it be that one of the members of that family were completing the Pit in this moment?
But as she got up, she suddenly felt the ground vibrate underneath her as several bellowing howls could be heard echoing through the air from all around her. She reached behind her back, quickly unsheathing her blade as she felt the air shift around her. Before she knew it, a beast came from nowhere, pouncing on top of her as her body sank into the ice cold mud, it covering most of her body to the point of it beginning to reach to cover her eyes. Several other Hellhounds came, to attack the seemingly lone child. The hot, drool of the monster splattered against her chest as it’s razor like teeth snapped down at her, only to be stopped inches from her face by her blade being held horizontally against it’s mouth and in between its’ jaws. It’s foul breath pressed against her as it’s teeth continually snapped against her metallic blade. With a grunt she used her strength to slice her blade, cutting the lower jaw of the hellhound completely off as it landed heavily against her chest as the sword broke under the pressure of the attack. It’s blood poured upon her body as it quickly ran off, leaving the rest of it’s pack behind.
Quickly standing she gasped for air before pushing forward, the mixture of mud and blood covered her entire body, her blue eyes focused on the other hellhounds that still linger behind. Car'ra needed better footing and more room to fight as the current area was covered in shrub. The assassin ran forward, as a horde of Hellhounds could be heard rushing behind her, some even running beside her, teasing her. It was then, her eyes caught sight of a red glow from a distance. A light in the abyss? She ran towards it, her body shifting it’s weight as she leaped over a dead log. As she landed however, her foot landed on a pile of bones, causing her to lose her balance and roll off the ledge of a slope. Her body tumbled, all the way down as the air shifted from it’s bone chilling cold to a searing hot as her body slammed into something.
Breathing heavily the Knightfall-Liafador hybrid pushed herself up from the ground, realizing there was a random lake of lava next to her, which was where the light was coming from. Feeling pain pulsating throughout her body from the sudden tumble, her blue eyes shifted to see what had broken her fall, only to see a pile of fractured bones next to her. The assassins expression never changed as she looked down at the unrecognizable body with a mask that covered the fractured open skull. But curiosity hit as her eyes landed on a sword, shield and a whip that were laying around the bones. This was a warrior and most likely, a Liafador, and she knew The Devils Head would want to know of her discovery as she picked up the mask. She recognized it as she looked down upon it. That meant... Her eyes widen in shock, she knew this was Ziccarra Liafador's mask, but... that would mean this body was... hers?
She didn’t have time to continue her thought process on the current revelation as a roar was heard coming from above the ledge. Her eyes darted upward to see a beast leap down from above and her hands instinctively slipped the mask over her face, grasped onto the shield that was the closest to her and held it with both arms above her head as she knelt down. The beast slammed into it and using the momentum she flung the beast up and over her as it’s body flew back into the lava pit.
One by one several of them began to skid down the slope as Car’ra tied the whip around her waist, she then grasped the blade with one hand and hooked the shield around her forearm with the other. The began to quickly attack, one by one without resting as her body began waving back and forth through the attacks, her body shifting through the gravel like dry Earth. The weight of the shield and sword needed to be adjusted to, as they were fitted for an adult and not a child, but it was doable. The razored claws of the hellhounds were stopped by the shield as she would thrust the blade forward in a swift motion. After one would fall, another would come, which seemed like an endless sea of beasts, but like her mother and her grandmother, she moved like fluid in the chaos.
The weight of the future bore down on the Swede as he watched in enraptured amazement. Each ebbing strand of possibility washed over his mind and sight. He felt complete in its certainty, and smiled.
It was quite straightforward, a sign that even if he was at his slowest he could have picked on for it was so blatantly evident it was well-nigh impracticable to overlook it. Those slightly redder cheeks of hers, they brought a genuine smile to Beta-Tester's visage, as if the cobalt-armored hero could even get to the deeper layers of outstanding figures such as Gaige herself, someone once unreachable who he had ultimately accepted would be nothing more than a mere neet's crush. Perhaps the wet dream of every nerd throughout the globe, and there she was, even if attempting her hardest to not look the part, only a girl blushing whilst being asked out for a boy.
His heart raced for a bit.
What should he invite her to? He never was very good with dates, always going to places he could barely enjoy for the sake of the other person, always endeavoring to pass on a positive image of himself even though, in reality, he was quite indifferent himself. However, this was different, almost a dream coming through. He doubted she would settle for walking around a mall or simply watching a fantasy movie in the cinemas. Hell, she could live greater adventures on her own. It was when he snapped his fingers, finally remembering something he really wanted to do before leaving Japan which also would interest Gaige, being the nerd she was. He smirked. "So... I heard they have this huge Gundam store around. They have most mecha designs and all that, but that's not the main point." He paused, his smile widening as Victor was genuinely excited about it. "I heard they are letting you test the alpha of their virtual reality game! Wanna go with me?"
For the most part he was far more composed then her, confidence provided by a suit that was remarkable machine of a distant world. It did whoever the man before was a lot of good and allowed him to grow. There was however through her heads up display a pick up on the subtle racing of the heart. Giving the nerd hope there was in fact something there to latch on to. That maybe the mech pilot kind of wanting something that could grow to be as special as what Uma and Ali had could be found for herself as well. When just the upbeat nerd of Grim it wasn't unheard of that people had just wanted something to gain. A few boyfriends and one girlfriend of the past wanting to exploit instead.
She wasn't to worried about whatever was proposed, she practically lived the movies now but she still enjoyed them. She didn't eat a lot but she wasn't exactly a diet bound girl either and was open to going anywhere for food. He brightened some to the idea that came to mind and then the offer was made. Her fingers were quick to dance across her pipgirl bringing up the map "right there!" She remained red a bit, embarrassed some by the excitement that'd escaped her. "Ehm I mean, lead the way. Higher score on the game buys dinner." Of course she said higher because she had money and was a mech pilot she figured it'd be easier for her to pay for things. She'd surrender if persisted to of course, was just her usual nature leaking into the situation.
Despite being dressed for leisure; and appearing to be nothing but a typical woman; Cat possessed an impressive dead count. She hadn't elevated herself to destroying entire planets, but she did facilitate a large scale alien invasion for giggles. She'd placed her life together since being reborn, but the stain of her past seemingly grew faint as it pertained to other people. She could handle herself--she was a clone down to the mannerisms of Ziccarra Liafador.
Peering down the hallway, the young goddess' eyes watch the drunk woman falter around until the attention is eventually on her. Frank Dyson, the Sith Lord stood just a few feet from her bodyguards in tow. "Well, now. You're rude, I spent Two Thousand Dollars on this dress, and the first thing you notice is I have no shadow." She stalled, in actuality Cat mentally called her other half and Kaiden to the top level. The gig was up she'd been seen.
As her shadow slipped through the floors finally reporting itself to her body The Queen of Darkness' eyes curled into black orbs. "I don't do the whole damsel in distress game" Pointing her index finger up, Cat sought to manifest her dark energy in the forms of gigantic tendrils from the carpet--looking to impale as many of Frank's bodyguards as she could, but also buy enough time for Kaiden to get into position.
Rule Number 1: Come up with a plan. They did that or rather Cat did.
Rule Number 2: Stick to the plan and they did that.
Rule Number 3: Expect the plan to go off the rails like it just did.
Rule Number 4: Throw out the plan.
Rule Number 5: Improvise.
Kaiden sees Cat's shadow disappearing and knows she is summoning him. He can sense it, she is in danger. "So much for the plan." Kaiden begins working his way towards Cat's location at best possible speed.
Meanwhile, Some of Frank's bodyguards get impaled, some don't and begin fighting back by shooting bullets at her. The Sith Lord just stands there with his hands behind his back. He is ice cold, calm and collected as he watches Cat at work. Then he holds his hand out, attempting to choke her with Force Choke.
Success or not, that's when Kaiden arrives. The Sith Lord takes one look at the disguised Jedi, "Kaiden Hawke, I presume? Kill them both." He slips back into his room as the rest of the guards continue firing bullets. Kaiden can block lasers with his hands using the Force, bullets are nothing. He does the same to any fired at him before he takes out he telekinetically grabs the bodyguards and slams them hard against the wall, knocking them out. He glances briefly at Cat to see if she is okay before chasing after the Sith Lord.
But the room is empty. Kaiden narrows his eyes before closing them, sensing something in the walls. He walks over to a statuette and turns it, a secret, hidden, door opens up and Kaiden enters the passageway in pursuit of his prey.
"Yeah! Let's go!" It wasn't much of a surprising turn of events, if it had been any other lady who had his attention it most likely would, yet just witnessing Gaige's Twitch streams and overall equipment theme were enough to acknowledge anything having gargantuan robotic suits who fought was sufficiently appealing to Lizzy. Grabbing her by the hand, Vic rushed toward the location flying, assuming she could keep up with almost no problems. She was the Lizzy Leet, after all. He landed a few blocks away, his suit now retreating and revealing the boy underneath it for the first time entirely.
Unkempt hair, jaded eyes from all those sleepless nights, however alongside all those oddly negative features, a genuine simper could be seen, a spark of excitement and happiness on his eyes. Upon their arrival, a few cameras popped out of pockets, brandished by hasty hands, indubitably curious about who the boy along the infamous heroic videogame fan was, as well as attempting to get her autograph and multiple selfies.
That would eventually work in their favor, as Victor let go of her for a while, allowing her to enjoy her not unorthodox moments of fame. "Be right back." He nodded prior to disappearing amid the multitude forming around the place. A few minutes would've passed until he came back accompanied by who seemed to be one of the store's managers, as well as some security guards. "Miss Leet. We are honored that you wish to test our ideas and we would very much appreciate your input. Please, follow me, we have a testing room ready for you and, uh... Your secretary." Vic held his laughter, going back to her side. "Perks of being the heroic equivalent of a rockstar, Ms. Leet. Now, may I accompany you in your appointment?"
"Adapting is apart of what we do. Most see just the ability side of things, enough time around James and I can add explosions to the goo." She remarked letting fireworks go off in the bubble she grew between her palms. A light fireworks show a hero from Milenium moving somewhere else looked nodded and then went about his business. Flight attendant taking that as confirmation not to worry. "It also encorporates culture and mannerisms of people close however. I just hope it never extends to a point it overrides me." She remembered vaguely of stories telling of how great slime warriors went off to the stars leaving their families behind. On their return home however they had become so different that they barely recognized family or family recognized them.
"Being sorry for that is ----ing dumb. Don't even worry about it amiga" welcoming the analysis in her own strange way. "Just stick to questions more, I don't know if you know this. But being dissected and or amputated is not an enjoyable scientific process for the subject under God damn study." Her smile Cheshire and wide playfully making light of an all to real aspect of her upbringing. "Anything else come to mind to ask an alien bitch? Or maybe you'd be willing to turn some questions inward and say more about you?"
"I've said... more than enough about myself, I think," Anakia answered. "Perhaps more than I should have. Perhaps not. I suppose we shall see, in time. And as for you... I think you've answered a great deal of my questions already. Too many more and you might consider it more of a... dissection," she echoed the goo-girl's choice of words. "Instead... maybe less about the past, and more about the future? What do you intend to do with the knowledge you acquire at the Academy? Where do you plan to end up?"
Anakia was curious, largely because if she had to ask herself the same question, the answer would have been that she really had no idea. Things in her life were... satisfactory, for now, but at the same time, the life she was living right now, she felt would be right for her for now, but at some point she was going to grow beyond her current role. What sort of role she would grow into, or want to grow into... that, she was not sure about. She wondered, sometimes, if everyone else had a plan, or if the others mostly felt the same uncertainty that she did.
"Well I disagree. Your cool I'd like to know more" the alien remarked in simple counter curiosity a consuming thing for the alien. "I won't pry though, you keep that mystery to yourself if you want." She didn't mind the questions though, it was much nicer. She liked nicer, feeling like a woman and not puffy in the hands of scientific minds. Topic changed however and as she often did her thumb and index landed beneath the alien's chin as she contemplated what answer to give.
"I want to be able to glue shit together. Like there's so many bitches that are like lost ya know? Out casted for this and that, victim of one crisis or another. There's plenty of lost shitheads. I want to help em, and show that even the trash can rise to the occasion." Her tangerine eyes perhaps a bit more hopeful in her odd way of a heroic speech. "I'm not so certain on the person to be though, I'm just as confused as the people I want to be there for. While I don't got that shit figured though I do know what I am and excel at being that."
Honestly she didn't fly she hadn't made equipment for such a purpose but she did have jump jets. Precise use of such gear allowed the hero to manage a semblance of flight so long as his hand was held. A rather vibrant trail of blue fire coming behind her feet as she raced through the air. Upon letting go though near the destination she showed off a little bit. Sliding down a buildings wall thrusters subsiding as small currents escaped her fingers and feet allowing her to adhere some to the building. Sliding to the bottom with a more theatric grace then simply settling for a landing.
She wasn't on the clock right now but she was in nothing but the zero suit so she felt like playing that angle was the best. Still a hero, just wanting to do something fun while things were quiet around the city. It drew cameras, it gathered praise, and it was accompanied by ridicule. Not everyone cared for heavily armed war machines as a tool of heroics. Not everyone liked her constant work to be in association with the police and military to do her job. Some rather liked the added responsibility, some thought it made her just a corporate shell.
Lizzy though simply endured it doing her best to answer questions with an honesty over concern of the results. Whatever she could to make it clear she was a hero first, just wanted to also be able to assist beyond initial fights. Some opinions would change and some wouldn't but that was fine. Younger minds from kids to low twenties seemed to like her and she did her best to give any of them some level of attention. Focused more on the younger ones or the emotionally downtrodden first though not wanting them to get lost in the shuffle. They all mattered some needed a hero more was all. Victor left the scene messy hair and a somewhat tired form now more visible as the armor subsided, there was an upbeat element to it though. A happiness to him that made this worth it on it's own in her book even if the game ended up bad making someones day was more then worth it. She did have to correct the game developers and beta tester though.
"I don't have a secretary, it's a date." She shrugged, a laugh had escaped her at the thought of owning one a rather unconcerned smile though at her response. A secretary was embarrassing, a date not so much. "Not sure if anything serious yet though." Nothing serious would of been perhaps the better phrasing, she liked hers though, implied he had a better chance. Victor if he could find some confidence even now outside of that remarkable armor had a chance. "Do me a favor though? Make sure they get a chance to try it out as well." The nerd pointed to a young boy and his little sister, each wearing a shirt that praised the mustache of a particular gundam. Many would probably get to test the game the hero though from the excitement in there eyes knew those two probably needed it more. With that she followed into the building alongside Victor to begin the beta testing of the mecha inspired game. Lizzy of course the entire walk asking every question under the sun. From controls, to frame rates, to polygon count, and how damage was calculated. By the time they made it to a room to test said game she'd memorized everything one could likely imagine they might want to know about the game and the work placed into it.
"Well I disagree. Your cool I'd like to know more" the alien remarked in simple counter curiosity a consuming thing for the alien. "I won't pry though, you keep that mystery to yourself if you want." She didn't mind the questions though, it was much nicer. She liked nicer, feeling like a woman and not puffy in the hands of scientific minds. Topic changed however and as she often did her thumb and index landed beneath the alien's chin as she contemplated what answer to give.
"I want to be able to glue shit together. Like there's so many bitches that are like lost ya know? Out casted for this and that, victim of one crisis or another. There's plenty of lost shitheads. I want to help em, and show that even the trash can rise to the occasion." Her tangerine eyes perhaps a bit more hopeful in her odd way of a heroic speech. "I'm not so certain on the person to be though, I'm just as confused as the people I want to be there for. While I don't got that shit figured though I do know what I am and excel at being that."
"That's certainly a start," Anakia approved. As far as life goals went, she wasn't sure how she felt about it - Anakia didn't feel like she had the savior complex that was so common among the students at the Academy. She wanted to perform her tasks, and perform them well, but... saving the downtrodden or the outcast or the world was simply not something that she had really put all that much thought into. She knew who she was, and where she came from. She knew who she had chosen to serve, and she knew... she knew that she would keep looking, and see what things defined themselves. But she doubted very much that she was going to save the world. She would be content with simply saving those she had sworn herself to, should the need arise.
"I suppose the rest will just have to come in time," she allowed, of Hruby's goals. "The Academy seems as good a place to establish yourself as any. If nothing else, you'll be building alliances that you can call upon later when you're busy being a universal adhesive." She half-smiled.Like James. The two of them seemed to stick together fairly well. Anakia had a feeling that if they got through the next week together, they would be a strong pairing in the future. It was just a matter of getting them back together in the first place.
And the more she knew about that... well. Foreknowledge, forewarned, forearmed, as the saying went. She didn't anticipate having to strike against the two of them, but should things ever go awry between Lady Kaija and her cousin... well. Anakia would know where to strike.
"Thanks, I'm mostly directionless I feel like that's a solid means to try and be a hero though. If I have that and James the rest of the shit can go anyway things want to go." Of course keeping friends around and reaching out to know more sounded nicer then isolation like she was so accustomed to in the past. She hated school most the time it seemed like a repetitive chore, there was something to it she liked more then her previous places of residence though. It was more exciting, welcoming and weird she might even go so far as saying she might miss those shitheads and the class work that brought them together. "What about you? Anything being sought after or plans? You seem like one of the most capable bitches I know, but also comfortable where you is." Her foul mouthed bubbly attitude trying to extend the conversation with a friend. Though she'd totally get if Anakia told her to shut up the alien just apreciated the means of liberating her mind from focusing on concerns.
"For now, I protect and serve," Anakia answered, with a shrug. "It is... the tradition I have chosen to uphold. It is not always 'comfortable,' or simple, but... it is what I have sworn to do. And an oath would not mean much if it were followed only when it was comfortable. As far as other things, though..." She trailed off, thoughtfully silent for a moment. "I like to explore," she answered, eventually. "This world is full of so many different things. Different places, different peoples. I want to go where I can, and see what there is to study. Learn what I can, about what is here. I want... to be able to learn, not for the sake of a goal or a task, but for the sake of learning itself, merely because it is interesting to know things."
She'd explored very little of the Outer World, all things considered. Sometimes, she didn't even know how little, because she was still trying to fathom the vastness of it all. Still, when she had the time, she skipped in and out of her dimensions, folding the hallways into short paths to other places, dropping in to time where she would, just... watching. Watching different people, different cultures. Picking up smatterings of different languages, studying them in the timeless halls into competency, into fluency. Sometimes, she envied the Outsider his innate ability to understand linguistics through brain synapses, but other times she felt that there was a certain degree of calm in the study, and a feeling of accomplishment that came from it. When things came too easily, they lost much of their meaning. The knowledge could still be useful, and she wouldn't turn it down, but sometimes she wondered if the Outsider would be more determined about things if he had to work a bit harder.
Of course, he might just refuse to work harder anyway. It was hard to tell with him, sometimes. Sometimes, he seemed driven to excel, to become something special, the likes of which the world had never seen. Other times, though, he seemed content to coast upon the wave of his innate abilities, and strive for nothing. The dichotomy was strange, but that was merely one of many things about the Outsider that she often found infuriating. She sensed that he knew. Sometimes, she sensed that he even felt sorry about it, though most of the time, it just seemed to amuse him. She hinted an almost smile at the thought: it may not have suited her, but in its own way, it suited him. And her task was not to lead, but to follow.
To protect and serve.
Anakia returned her attention to the present, and her present companion. "Some would have it that the future is always changing. Others, that it is predetermined. Sometimes I wonder if it is both, and works in a way that I cannot comprehend. Time is... strange. I don't understand it as well as I should like, and perhaps I never will. But whatever the future is, and however it becomes itself, I will try to learn what I can when I am able, so that as things come to when, I am prepared for them. But for now..." That shrug, that hint of a smile. "For now, I study."
She knew this feeling all too well, albeit this was a tad bit different. The Last time she found herself removed from the land of the living, she was sheltered within the walls of her mother's Grand Cardinal Isle. This place was the Land of the Dead, or limbo so to speak.
She was no hero, she was no villain; so she was no forced to spend some time here until the universe eventually decided her postmortem fate. As she strolled through the forest a dense fog seemingly filtered through the trees, this place--this place was her island. Well, a version of it anyways. Many of those that dwelled here were slaughtered by King Ali, and their souls just dwelled here.
But as she strolled, she could see various pieces of places she'd been, almost as if they were sets on a television show; each containing a specific part of Ziccarra's past.
"Those are the areas you'll eventually be judged on." A whisper finally said shooting through the fog. Her time as Spanish President, Her Time with the Cardinals; and lastly as a mother.
It'd be easy to make a judgment on any of those specific points of her life, but the hardest to come to terms with would be how bad of a mother she was to her own children.
They deserved better, but she simply couldn't be the mother they needed. Now they were forced to fend for themselves; she was sure Catalina was going to try and bring them all together--but she shouldn't have had too.
Somewhere in this place, Zeon roamed, maybe she was experiencing the same sort of guilt. Probably not.
"I suppose I shall await judgement" She said sitting calmly under a tree.
It was strange. To be neither here nor there - but somewhere in between. During her time alive, Alexa had done many a great deed and committed just as many a sin. For every patriotic feat to her name in the American military, she had killed hundreds in war, downed so many enemy fighter jets in the air that she'd lost count. In her story, as the American patriot fighting for her country, in wars known and unknown, she was a hero. But to her enemies, to the people she'd murdered, she was the villain. It made sense then that in the land of the dead, she was just as polarizing. Still, as she leaned against the thick bark of a tree, her military garb hugging her athletic frame, and the medals and badges adorning her chest, Alexa was proud.
As her mind ran through every stage of her life, she was proud because for all the great deeds she'd done for the world, the greatest of them all was ensuring that the most powerful being among them - a god, in other words - was raised into a caring and good-natured man. That one of the first few Capes humanity encountered, did not cast fierce judgement on them. So she smiled, her mouth pulling back into something of warmth and pride as she thought of Alexis, a son she never gave birth to but had been his mother in every way that mattered. Her ideals and values lived on strongly in her son's heart. And just as she had, another woman had left a strong imprint on her son's heart. A woman she had watched from afar, from the misty wasteland she believed to be purgatory. A woman she had never in her wildest dreams believed she'd ever meet.
So as Alexa ran her fingers through her short golden hair, and shut her eyes wistfully at the memory of her son, her heart skipped a beat at the echo of a familiar voice floating nearby. Stepping out the tree and wafting her hand through the mist, Alexa's brow furrowed in confusion at the sight before her. "Ziccarra?", she said, shocked and in disbelief. "Good Lord, I didn't think you'd be down here this quick", she almost laughed, the irony of a dead goddess banished to the land of dead mortals drawing a measure of amusement from her. "But then again, I didn't think you'd be down here ever", she paused, arms folded under her breasts, the Texan twang in her voice subtle but there. "I'm Alexa Pettis", she smirked knowingly, "We got a lot to talk about".
Stepping closer to the Goddess, Alexa continued, "I'd say have a seat but looks like that rock's plenty comfy. Now who in the hell managed to kill you? It wasn't my son was it?", she asked, half-joking but half-worried.
It only took a second, from the time her eyes closed to the time she was forced to open them at the sound of her name--in just that small increment of the time she saw the faces of the people she'd left behind--agony.
As the woman approached, Ziccarra's head tilt to the side in apparent confusion. This woman spoke with an American Southern accent, but after leaving Quintus; she hadn't spent time in the U.S. Why did this woman seem to speak to her with an air of familiarity. "A-lexa?" Ziccarra finally said, briefly thinking about her adoptive daughter, but no, this was the person from whom the name was given.
"Y-you are Alexis's mother," Ziccarra was so taken back at discovering Alexis' mother in the place that she nearly missed the following question; a question she immediately answered. "No, ma'am. Your son is a wonderful man. He could not harm me even if he tried."
It was tested and proven, Alexis loved Ziccarra way too much; even during the Spanish Revolution, he could not bring himself to put down the Outlaw Queen. "You raised a good man, he is Kind. Loyal.Trustworthy; but most importantly he is selfless. He loved the hell out of me. And I truly believe we cannot be separated." She nearly scoffed at the thought. "I would not be surprised if he were trying to find a way here as we speak. You know scientist stuff"
Rising out of respect, her pacific blue eyes fix on Alexa for a moment before starting to tear. "I-I'm sorry. I am going to miss them. All of them." She turning away to wipe the salty tears.
"Oh good!", Alexa breathed out, the relief escaping her lungs at the knowledge that her son wasn't responsible for Ziccarra's death. "You're a mother so you understand that fear we all have that you might not have raised your child right", she confessed. "And what luck!", Alexa chuckled, "I'm talkin' to the only other woman who knows what's it like raisin' kids we have to look up at the sky to see. You always wanna make sure they have good values. Those powers... they're a license to a nuclear arsenal to take out whoever you want in the wrong hands. That was always in the back of my mind when I was teachin' Alexis what's right and what's wrong". The thought however, of Alexis doing his damnest to raise Ziccarra from the dead, left a somber shade on Alexa's face.
"He's in a coma, hun", Alexa anguished as the creeping despair of knowing her son's condition stripped the color from her world. "I get some glimpses of his life down here. It wasn't lookin' good but your daughter, Tassi, whatever powers she has she made sure her daddy wasn't joinin' us down here. Not awake yet but... he's doing' better", she sighed, a lump thickening in her throat until the sight of Ziccarra's tears drew out her maternal instincts. "Aww, come here, hun", she insisted, wiping the tears from Ziccarra's cheeks before encouraging her to sit on the rock she'd just risen from. "If there's anything I've learned from seein' what little I can of your life with my son from here, it's that you're strong. Real strong. And you never wait for anything to happen. You make it happen. You wanted to make things better for Spain, you became that country's leader".
"You wanted redemption after your mistakes, you got it when you fought the good fight as the Goddess. You'll miss them? Well then get out of here because it's not your time. Not yet", Alexa assured, as though it were Thee Champion himself speaking through her. "It might be a long way back but there is a way back for you. This isn't how your story ends, not with you givin' up. Not unless you want it to".
Though by now she was sure this wasn't some sort of ruse, Alexa still left Z perplexed, mostly because of the Southern Accent; but it seemed as if she'd long accepted the fact that she was not leaving this place.
But then it hit her, like one of Zeon's super-powered punches. "A..coma?" Z said initially shaking her head in disbelief. "Tis impossible there is no one in the world strong enough to ..." She caught herself. She was literally here in the afterlife. Like her husband, she was one of the strongest beings on Earth--now one of the strongest beings in the afterlife.
Tears continued to run down her face until Alexa forced her back to the boulder. She heard of Tassi's triumph at keeping Alexis alive but to Z? that meant only one thing.
"No, No you do not understand. I have failed..." Z said pausing as Alexa's finger gently bated the salty tears from the contours of her cheeks. A maternal touch, it was soothing and yet odd. She'd never experienced such a nurturing gesture.
"Alexa, I have failed and succeeded at the same time. I-I failed to protect my family, to give them better lives. I failed to protect Alexis. But...In Catalina I have faith. She has truly changed. And in my absence. I know she will be the one to bring balance to the Liafador name. But from you...I still have so much to learn"
Withdrawing her hands from Ziccarra's face, Alexa smiled, sympathy and empathy gleaming in her eyes. "It's not your fault. None of this is your fault. I wasn't there but from the sound of it, you'd never voluntarily hurt your own family, hun", Alexa assured, casting her eyes skyward as she gazed up at the gloomy skies of the afterlife. "And they all know that. They all know you did your best. Your daughter, Catalina, that's the one Alexis loves the most", Alexa smiled, the thought of her son favoring any of his children over the others left her shaking her head in amusement. "He loves em' all with all his heart but Catalina, she's the one that's got a special place in that big heart of his. Might be because he always saw you when he looked at her".
"Might be the same reason you always liked the boy, Leo, a little more than the others. He looks like his daddy", Alexa chuckled, hoping to lighten Ziccarra's mood. "Maybe takin' on this new role will help your daughter see how hard you had it jugglin' bein' a hero and takin' care of the family. Or not", she shrugged, her demeanor warm and playful - like Alexis'. "Did he ever talk about me?", she blurted out before quickly dismissing the question, "Ah but that's not important". Falling silent for a moment, Alexa held Ziccarra's gaze in earnest and finally asked, "Who killed you, Ziccarra?".
She was right, as much as Ziccarra hated to admit it; Catalina was the "favorite" of Alexis; just like Leo to her as a mother the notion was horrible, but as a realist, it's just what it was. Catalina and Leo were, in essence, Ziccarra and Alexis--Albeit with slight personality nuances.
"Y'Yes..." Ziccarra said backtracking intentionally avoiding Alexa's question for the second time now. "He thinks about you often. He has told us stories about how you helped him develop and use his abilities with maturity. He told all of us how you instilled the values he literally breathes. The most intimate story of all, How you decided to take him in. That has always been something he has loved you for. So much that our latest child bears your name--Alexa Pettis. Her story is very similar to his, and just like you--he took her in. It tis almost like it has come full circle"
Z rose removing her Goddess armor, rather the tattered fragments of it. Standing in full form in her Cardinal Grunt underclothing she finally saw fit to answer Alexa's most pressing question.
"I was killed by my niece Zeon. She is another person that I have done wrong in my life. Under any other circumstances, I would have simply offered it to her; but she wanted our children to pay for my sins. I could not have that. So I did what needed to be done. She.Is. Here somewhere."
Ziccarra explained as loosely as she could. Scouring the area as if she were looking for someone, she finally returned her pacific gaze back to Alexa slightly confused. "Where is your spouse, if you do not mind me asking.?"
Cat wasn't like any of her sisters, in fact, she was more 'Ziccarra' than even 'Ziccarra was. She wanted to keep people safe, but she'd kill to do it. As Frank's men dropped to the ground with blood oozing from their wounds, she felt her head push back, before suddenly losing her ability to breath.
Struggling to get the unforeseen force coiled around her neck off, Kaiden arrived just in time forcing Frank into retreat.
Gasping rather dramatically for air, Kaiden too used some sort of telekinesis? to render the bullets suspended in animation. "Please....tell...me...this...isn't...the...matrix..." She mused, before watching Kaiden storm the room.
"Don't worry, he's not going anywhere"
Rising to her feet the soon to be new Cardinal Goddess extend her hands outward assuming command of the shadows of Frank's fallen henchmen. "After him!" She commanded, before taking off behind Kaiden
For a moment, a part of her heart warmed and relief washed over her as Ziccarra spoke, easing Alexa's fears by retelling how fondly Alexis spoke of her. And she could do little to fight the touched smile on her face. "I miss him", she sighed, the gleam of a proud mother in her eyes, "I wish I could'a seen in person how he turned out. It's different watchin' from here. Seein' small glimpses here and there", Alexa lamented, "Bein' able to stand there, look into his eyes, see how much that boy's changed... makes me wish I'd never gotten on that test flight. Called in sick or something'. Maybe then I'd still be alive. I'd see the kids he had with you. My grandchildren", her smile softened, "And see if the one he named after me looks like me", she laughed.
Laughter however, that was soon drowned out by the soon of Ziccarra's armor clanking on the ground. It was then that Ziccarra - stripped of every shred of divinity - answered the question she'd been avoiding. "Your niece!?", Alexa exclaimed, the shock and horror widening her eyes at the thought of her grandchildren being demanded as sacrifices. Gathering her bearings, Alexa shut her eyes and breathed out. "If that niece of yours is here somewhere, it won't be too long before she finds you. And unless you two plan on findin' out if there's an afterlife after this one.. you'll be doin' a lot of talkin' I bet". Sitting by the dead goddess' side, Alexa grew silent, her smile wistful as she lowered her gaze at Ziccarra's question. "I never married", she finally answered, her voice lowering in pitch. "My life... was not easy".
"When the government has you workin' with top secret or classified military projects, there's no time for any of that. And I grew up in Texas, a conservative state. And I died in the 60s. Neither the time nor place they'd even think about lettin' a woman marry another woman", she scowled, angry at having been denied the chance to marry. "I'd see glimpses of Alexis' life from here, his life with you, how happy you two seemed and I was pretty mad that I never had that. But what can you do?", Alexa shrugged with a sigh. "If my son was here, he'd probably talk science to me and tell me there's a universe where I married, I'm still alive, you're still alive, and everythin' is great. Course, I'd just tell him it doesn't matter because this me isn't in that universe, I'm in this one", she chuckled, her laughter dying as she held Ziccarra's gaze in earnest.
"We need to find your niece. I was never part of the family you and Alexis created but the least I can do is help you make peace with her".
"As long as Alexis is alive, he will continue honoring your memory. I'm certain he would not have allowed me to tie my tubes until I birthed him a son named Alex" Ziccarra joked showing she'd indeed calmed down from her initial shock of being separated from the land of the living.
"My own mother wasn't much of a grandmother to my children, my grandmothers died before Catalina was born. But you, you can at least see them. I wish it were possible for Maya to bring you back, I mean I know she could, but I'm not sure where her power progression is now that I've passed. I would love for you to have met them--even if for one day. Especially Tassi."
As their intimate conversation carried on to Zeon and her whereabouts, Ziccarra's lips curved with a curious brow to follow. "Knowing her it would be the former. Though It would not work in her favor. Here, I am not at the mercy of my diabetes, we are not divine. I am the better fighter hands down" She said confidently.
"But I do not wish to speak with her, she has always been so full of rage...and here there is no reason for it." Ziccarra took a look at her hands, it was as if she were observing them for the first time. But she noticed most of her worldly possessions had been stripped of her--except her wedding ring.
"I applaud you for being who you were, even when socially looked down upon. Before I met your son, I too was with a woman. A beautiful woman named Ashley. We had our trials but the good times were just that. But" She said raising her hand to show her wedding ring. "Love wins"
"Excuse me for being so nonchalant, but I have no interest in being punched in the face at the moment. Can you...teach me how to braid hair?" She asked with a light chuckle. It was something that was always done for her, and she was never close enough to her own mother to ask. "I would really like to learn"
A grandchild named Alex? Alexa couldn't help but shake her head and chuckle at the thought. "Knowin' him... you might be right", she laughed, her smile widening in jest. "It hurts me to know that. That your mother hasn't really been there for your children. Lord knows I'd be there every day if I wasn't you know - dead", Alexa shrugged, the laughter dying softly as her smile warmed and her eyes softened. "I would've loved to have known those kids. And to see you and Alexis in action as parents. And as a couple I guess. I always wanted to know what kind of woman would get his attention, and how he'd act around the one who does. There was a time when I thought he'd never settle down", Alexa confessed. "It was the time his senses really came to life".
"It was hard for him to think about anythin' else when he could hear every scream and cry around the world, every murder victim beggin' for their life. It was really hard for him because as many of those people he'd help, he couldn't be everywhere at once", Alexa paused, shifting on the rock to settle her eyes on Ziccarra's. "I think, maybe that's what he liked about you. I remember from the little I saw here, you two met doin' heroics and whatnot. I think knowin' that you were the one woman who could relate to what he'd feel. The one woman who didn't have to look up at the sky to see him. The one who could stand with him at eye level and give him a good one to the jaw if he ever got stupid", Alexa chuckled, "I think knowin' that you were his equal caught his attention. And then everythin' else about you, your passion, your determination, your strength and steeliness, that all hooked him good".
Truthfully, it was why Alexis hadn't treated Ziccarra any differently when she'd been stripped of her divine powers. To the Herald of Hope, Ziccarra was the Goddess, powers or not. She had her fortitude, her passion, her strength of mine and the resolve to do what was right even when mocked by the world for her crimes. "It's probably why your little girl wants to be like you. She saw in you what my son did", she smiled. "Oh good! At least now I know that if your niece comes lookin' for you, I don't have to worry about her hurtin' you. Military trained so I'd be ready to step in for you anyway", she shrugged, joking but serious all the same. But as Ziccarra spoke of her time with Ashley, and flashed her the wedding ring Alexis had given her, Alexa could do little to fight the fool's smile on her face.
"And I applaud you for bein' who you were. I remember when the world wanted you in prison or dead, and you told everyone to shove it and just kept on bein' the hero they didn't want but needed. But that ring", she paused, squinting her eyes as she looked over it, "That diamond looks so pure. Looks like it was sculpted by lasers or somethin'". And in truth, it had been. It was a diamond Alexis had plucked from a high-pressure carbon planet. "Wait, you don't know how to braid hair?", she asked, somewhat surprised. "Tell you what, I'll teach you how to braid hair and you tell me what I've missed since I've been gone. How much the world has changed and advanced. Deal?".
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