Post by Lu on Apr 27, 2007 5:54:45 GMT
(( Not really a plot as such, just odd rambling that I felt like writing at work one day. Thank yous go to Ves and 'Rin for their help with the ending and *hugs* for Ves to letting me borrow his toon. ))
Lu made her way across Paragon, the long bag slung over her shoulder looking almost like a sports bag. Its appearance suggesting an innocence completely at odds with the contents. Letting herself into the base of the Fletched Alliance, she made her way to the weapon display cases and placed her bag carefully on top. She loved spending time here on her own. It was mid afternoon and the base was silent. With exams coming up, the students had a study afternoon, so she was free to spend the time as she wanted. Alita would still be at the garage working on Akkarin's bike, and she suspected the others would be working somewhere, although she realised she didn't know what all of them did outside of their Alliance work.
Opening the bag, she unfastened the safety clips and removed her three blades, lying each carefully on the display cases. Here she could practice with all three and not worry about some one wandering off with two while she was using the other. Her basic katana that she had first learnt with was looking a little worse for wear. The blade was as sharp as it ever had been, the metal pristine, but the hilt needed a little work. The wrapping showed evidence of the sweat, tears and sometimes blood that had accompanied her training as she had pushed herself to the limit, using the blade to work out the daemons in her life. And yet it was comfortable, picking it up was like putting on an old pair of slippers. She was planning to replace the wrapping this afternoon to make it Alliance colours and to mark her transition completely from her old life in the UK to her new life in Paragon with the Alliance, with her new family.
Looking at the other blades before her, a smile grew as her eyes lingered on the silvered blade Alita had given her. The Latin inscription on the blade always fired her in battle and the care that had gone into its construction gave her a strong feeling of responsibility to live up to the blade. To be worthy of it. She smirked, Akkarin would have been a very worthy opponent, but she could not use the blade against him now. Perhaps she would have an opportunity against Arketh. Her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched involuntarily at the though of him. And yet they were twins. How was she ever meant to be completely sure Akkarin was not Arketh just trying to get close to the Alliance?
The third blade was one she had coveted for some time. Now she had it she was unsure how she felt. The darkness of the blade seemed to suck light into itself, any identifying marking were lost in the inky blackness. reaching out to touch it she noticed the blood spot drop from her fingers onto the display case and winced. She would have to clean that before it dried. Examining her fingertips before her mutated gene caused them to heal, she knew she had not felt the cut, not would she find any blood on the blade.
Somewhat reluctantly, she left the dark blade and the silvered one on the side. Picking up her basic katana she walked into the conference room and looked thoughtfully at the table. It looked solid, and working around the flame would be good practice. She deftly leapt onto the table, somersaulting over the chairs, landing lightly in a readied stance. Taking a moment to centre herself, her breathing slowed, her eyes unfocused, she could sense her surroundings, the sword in her hand an extension of her being. Then she began to move, working through gently flowing katas as her muscles warmed up before, on some unidentifiable signal she flew into a whirling dance. Her body moving smoothly around the table, skimming close to the edge and the flame.
Her mind invented opponents for her to work around, to tackle as she twisted and turned, trying to keep her movements smooth and flowing. Skulls, Hellions, Trolls, Igneous, Council soldiers, vampires, war wolves, Tsoo, Crey, Akkarin, Arketh, Veskit, the traitor...
Suddenly there was some one else there with her, working against her, challenging her, making her work harder to get around their defences. It was becoming more difficult to keep up, to maintain her edge. Already beginning to tire from her training, she felt as though her opponent was three Paragon Protectors rolled into one, or perhaps the trinity from Akkarin's family. Retreating, she threw herself into a reverse flip off the table to put some space between them and to get a better view of her opponent.
He laughed but did not follow, his eyes watching her reactions, noting her pulse rate drop and the rise and fall of her chest reduce as she recovered quickly from the exertion. "Your form is near perfect, cheer leader. And your skills with a blade ain't so bad either." he said, the smirk hidden by his mask obvious by the tone of his voice. "Maybe I should take Akkarin up on his offer if it means I'll get to play with some of his girls more often."
Blushing at his comments on her form, her right eyebrow arched as she replied "I'm hardly Akkarin's girl, but then I wouldn't expect a deserter to know what is going on." She watched him warily, readying herself to continue sparring, resenting the feeling she was being toyed with, being used as a plaything. She knew she couldn't beat him without more training and some research to identify any weaknesses, but maybe she could score a couple of points if she worked at it.
He chuckled "I know more than you think, Miss Stevens, like how your recent guest managed to get out of her room. Now be a good girl and keep practicing. You leave too many gaps open for your own good and if I come back I want to have at least *some* challenge when I come and play."
Lu watched him leave with a mixture of emotions and a head full of questions. How did he know her surname? How did he know how Meadow got out? Why did he keep coming back to Paragon? And why did every encounter with him leave her feeling infuriated and inadequate. She felt like a school girl. Well, she would just have to keep working and try to figure out where those gaps were he mentioned.
With purpose she put her basic blade back in the bag and selected the silvered steel Alita had given her. Just holding it in her hands cheered her up. Checking the daggers in it were securely stowed, she mounted the table again and began her whirling dance once more.
Lu made her way across Paragon, the long bag slung over her shoulder looking almost like a sports bag. Its appearance suggesting an innocence completely at odds with the contents. Letting herself into the base of the Fletched Alliance, she made her way to the weapon display cases and placed her bag carefully on top. She loved spending time here on her own. It was mid afternoon and the base was silent. With exams coming up, the students had a study afternoon, so she was free to spend the time as she wanted. Alita would still be at the garage working on Akkarin's bike, and she suspected the others would be working somewhere, although she realised she didn't know what all of them did outside of their Alliance work.
Opening the bag, she unfastened the safety clips and removed her three blades, lying each carefully on the display cases. Here she could practice with all three and not worry about some one wandering off with two while she was using the other. Her basic katana that she had first learnt with was looking a little worse for wear. The blade was as sharp as it ever had been, the metal pristine, but the hilt needed a little work. The wrapping showed evidence of the sweat, tears and sometimes blood that had accompanied her training as she had pushed herself to the limit, using the blade to work out the daemons in her life. And yet it was comfortable, picking it up was like putting on an old pair of slippers. She was planning to replace the wrapping this afternoon to make it Alliance colours and to mark her transition completely from her old life in the UK to her new life in Paragon with the Alliance, with her new family.
Looking at the other blades before her, a smile grew as her eyes lingered on the silvered blade Alita had given her. The Latin inscription on the blade always fired her in battle and the care that had gone into its construction gave her a strong feeling of responsibility to live up to the blade. To be worthy of it. She smirked, Akkarin would have been a very worthy opponent, but she could not use the blade against him now. Perhaps she would have an opportunity against Arketh. Her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched involuntarily at the though of him. And yet they were twins. How was she ever meant to be completely sure Akkarin was not Arketh just trying to get close to the Alliance?
The third blade was one she had coveted for some time. Now she had it she was unsure how she felt. The darkness of the blade seemed to suck light into itself, any identifying marking were lost in the inky blackness. reaching out to touch it she noticed the blood spot drop from her fingers onto the display case and winced. She would have to clean that before it dried. Examining her fingertips before her mutated gene caused them to heal, she knew she had not felt the cut, not would she find any blood on the blade.
Somewhat reluctantly, she left the dark blade and the silvered one on the side. Picking up her basic katana she walked into the conference room and looked thoughtfully at the table. It looked solid, and working around the flame would be good practice. She deftly leapt onto the table, somersaulting over the chairs, landing lightly in a readied stance. Taking a moment to centre herself, her breathing slowed, her eyes unfocused, she could sense her surroundings, the sword in her hand an extension of her being. Then she began to move, working through gently flowing katas as her muscles warmed up before, on some unidentifiable signal she flew into a whirling dance. Her body moving smoothly around the table, skimming close to the edge and the flame.
Her mind invented opponents for her to work around, to tackle as she twisted and turned, trying to keep her movements smooth and flowing. Skulls, Hellions, Trolls, Igneous, Council soldiers, vampires, war wolves, Tsoo, Crey, Akkarin, Arketh, Veskit, the traitor...
Suddenly there was some one else there with her, working against her, challenging her, making her work harder to get around their defences. It was becoming more difficult to keep up, to maintain her edge. Already beginning to tire from her training, she felt as though her opponent was three Paragon Protectors rolled into one, or perhaps the trinity from Akkarin's family. Retreating, she threw herself into a reverse flip off the table to put some space between them and to get a better view of her opponent.
He laughed but did not follow, his eyes watching her reactions, noting her pulse rate drop and the rise and fall of her chest reduce as she recovered quickly from the exertion. "Your form is near perfect, cheer leader. And your skills with a blade ain't so bad either." he said, the smirk hidden by his mask obvious by the tone of his voice. "Maybe I should take Akkarin up on his offer if it means I'll get to play with some of his girls more often."
Blushing at his comments on her form, her right eyebrow arched as she replied "I'm hardly Akkarin's girl, but then I wouldn't expect a deserter to know what is going on." She watched him warily, readying herself to continue sparring, resenting the feeling she was being toyed with, being used as a plaything. She knew she couldn't beat him without more training and some research to identify any weaknesses, but maybe she could score a couple of points if she worked at it.
He chuckled "I know more than you think, Miss Stevens, like how your recent guest managed to get out of her room. Now be a good girl and keep practicing. You leave too many gaps open for your own good and if I come back I want to have at least *some* challenge when I come and play."
Lu watched him leave with a mixture of emotions and a head full of questions. How did he know her surname? How did he know how Meadow got out? Why did he keep coming back to Paragon? And why did every encounter with him leave her feeling infuriated and inadequate. She felt like a school girl. Well, she would just have to keep working and try to figure out where those gaps were he mentioned.
With purpose she put her basic blade back in the bag and selected the silvered steel Alita had given her. Just holding it in her hands cheered her up. Checking the daggers in it were securely stowed, she mounted the table again and began her whirling dance once more.