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 Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 8:36 am
Relaxing with Rose had been exquisite after the mess of being shoved into the fray of metallic birds and missing people and a hotel in disrepair. She'd had a terrible time just getting to the hotel and while things seemed to have evened out after that... A seed of doubt--no longer planted in the initial acceptance of what this life entailed but now in the ability to do it at all--had taken root. Rather than give it the chance to grow, she decided to seek the one person she knew might be able to help. Cas. She knew from talking to him that he'd been a soldier, that the fight didn't phase him in the least. This was where he thrived and she needed a lesson in that, needed to learn to become and embrace any version of a warrior that might live within her without it becoming who she was. She didn't need to be a super soldier or Buffy, she just needed to be able to channel that when needed. It wasn't terribly hard to find him; he was hard to miss. Or maybe it was simply that she'd spent time with him. Even the back of his head seemed familiar and she approached him easily. He didn't seem to be in the midst of a conversation or even doing much beyond staring out the one intact window that the hotel's main room held. It was a good vantage point and she could see, off in the distance, the damn creatures that were causing so much havoc. "Cas?" there was no anxiety or nerves in her voice but her face seemed softer, less full of the usual smirk and teasing that he was probably used to. "Haven't you managed to render these birds extinct yet?" A smile curved over her lips and there was the light-hearted nature that had been absence a moment ago.
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 11:06 am
The man in question was trying to come up with a plan. He'd done this before, been in situations where he'd had to finagle a new plan of attack before people got themselves killed. But the fact that there was little intel rankled him. He didn't know much about the birds, other than that they were vicious, liked to swarm, and were somehow metallic. There was a whole host of information that he would have liked to have but didn't, all of which left him sitting in the hotel lobby staring with quiet anger out at the birds on the other side of the window. "Marisol." His head turned at her familiar voice, and the lines of his face eased as the deep from melted from his brow. There was something there in his voice, a little relief maybe, a little gratitude to see her there as well. The hours since they'd stepped out of the fire had been chaotic, and here, somehow, they'd found a moment of calm, no matter how brief. "Not for lack of trying," he said, shaking his head with a small smile. "But that all factors into the plan I've been trying to hatch. Or... a plan, anyway. It's not easy when we don't know anything about these birds or what's behind them." It seemed silly to waste more energy trying to bring down the swarm if there was an external factor controlling them. They'd all wear themselves out before finding a solution. "How have you been faring?" he added, turning away from the window.
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 12:12 pm
She closed the distance between them and reached out to touch his shoulder. The height difference between them was rather astounding when they were close, the top of her head just barely reached past his shoulder and that was likely only because of her hair. It was comforting, though, these three she'd bonded with all towering over her. Even surrounded by the taller male dancers in the company she'd never quite felt anything but caged. "It wasn't my greatest moment," she smirked, amused at her own ineptness, "after I stepped through the fire. I think I spent more time taking cover than anything else." Which was part of the reason she'd thought to seek him out. "It hasn't all been bad but I feel woefully unprepared and thought you'd like to teach me by sparring? Although this time I think it best I keep my clothes at the end of it." She offered a wink.
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 12:58 pm
He locked his eyes onto hers and said nothing for a moment, lips parting as if to say something. A joke flitted visibly across his face before he pressed his lips together again, as if to physically stop it from coming out. The look was replaced by a smirk of his own, and he put an arm around Marisol's shoulders with a reassuring squeeze. "Those birds are the highly unnatural spawn of god knows what," he said with a shake of his head, remembering the sight of metal feathers flying toward the air at him. And poisonous poop, apparently, littering the snow. By all measures in Cas' book, that was not okay. And he'd thought geese were bad. "If I had my way, I'd be anywhere but here." Still. It wasn't often that Cas got his way, and a decade in the military had taught him that well enough. Most of the time, it was all about making the best of what you did have. "But I'd be happy to do my best," he added, pulling her close for a moment and finding comfort in physical touch before letting her go again. "I'm not sure how much I can teach you about that whip of yours, but I can try to impart a bit of what I go through mentally when I face off against opponents."
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 4:41 pm
"I think Rose and I would gladly join you," she added to the sentiment about being anywhere else. Maybe back to the beach or home with her parents who she hadn't seen in awhile. No use in dwelling about it; she'd agreed to this, unknowingly perhaps but she'd said yes and now she had to deal with it. A smile lit her face as he pulled her close and she pushed herself up on her tiptoes to a press a quick, friendly kiss to the corner of his mouth--she'd have aimed for his cheek if she wasn't so short. It was brief before there was distance between them again and she gave a wink. "Do your best and maybe you can teach me something else," it was easy, effortless really, to resort to that flow of jokes that stirred images best suited for private rooms. There was a look of apology before she turned serious again, "That's more than I have now and, I think, exactly what I need." "Shall we?" she held out her hand, ready to lead him to where they could spar and he could impart his knowledge.
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 10:47 am
"Let's do it," he said, taking her hand, ready to follow wherever she thought might suit the purposes of their sparring session. There was a small part of him that said they ought to save their energy for the birds, but Cas liked to stay loose, keep moving to keep the nerves down. "It's mostly about situational awareness," he said as they walked. "Knowing where your opponent is at all times, trying to get one step ahead of them and figure out where they'll be before they get there." As they went, he rolled his shoulders, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Looking for opportunities to get on the offensive. It doesn't matter if they have to boxed in or cornered. You can take a few hits, as long as you don't start to panic. Watch your opponent like a hawk. Look for weak spots. Take advantage of any opportunity to turn things around."
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anemosagkelos rolled 1 20-sided dice:
10
Total: 10 (1-20)
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 11:34 am
Marisol listened, stillness belying the intensity by which she committed the lesson to her memory. It was a lot like setting up and following through with a con but in more overt maneuvers. The worst thing you could do was lose sight when a mark was on the move, second only to letting your cover slip. "Is it worse to panic or to lose your weapon?" she asked, she'd think the first. Depending on surroundings, improvisation could be used for the latter. And while she had no intention of losing her weapon--she may well end up sleeping with it beneath her pillow tonight--it would be good to know if it's loss would be to her detriment, or to her death. The room she led him to was down the stairs into what had to be a gym of some sort. If there was equipment besides mats and heat, it wasn't in here. Instead it was devoid of everything but blue exercise mats that more readily recalled a far away, long ago physical education class. It was roomy though and apparently safe. They could spar here with ease and no one would be the wiser. "Rock, paper, scissors to go first?" she suggested once she let go of his hand and turned to face him. Marisol's Health: 50 - 3 (Ranged) = 47 HP
Initiative: 10 + 15 = 25
Marisol's Weapon: Whip (4 Base; +1 Hit)
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MoonRazor rolled 1 20-sided dice:
17
Total: 17 (1-20)
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 1:26 pm
"I don't think there's anything worse than panicking," he said with a smile. "If you lose your weapon... well. That's when you get creative." For Cas, that usually when resorting to his fists. He'd boxed his way out of a few fights before. Otherwise, using whatever happened to be lying around, whether that was smashed furniture or or old charger cords. "Or you run," he added. "There's something to be said about self preservation. You have to know when to throw in the towel and get the hell out." Getting hurt or, worse, dead would help nobody, after all. And in a situation like this, with so much chaos reigning overhead, it was better to be safe than sorry. "Sure, Rock, paper, scissors, shoot," he agreed, letting his hand drop and then raising it. He went with scissors, just because. HP: 50 Initiative: 17 Weapon: Sword (6 Base)
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anemosagkelos rolled 1 6-sided dice:
5
Total: 5 (1-6)
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 1:41 pm
"Rock, paper, scissors, shoot," a wry grin ticked at her mouth as her closed fist symbolized paper, emerging victorious against the scissors he'd defaulted to. "Rock's a great standby." That out of the way, she turned back to the conversation at hand, "Survival is very important and if it comes down to it, I'm not to proud to run." There was no doubt she wasn't about to fall prey to illusions of grandeur centered around hero worship. And the only two people here she might even consider it for, well she highly doubted Rose or Cas would prefer she threw herself at a bird to protect them, not unless all of them would survive it. Green eyes locked on his, she watched and waited. She pulled the whip from where she'd curled it around a belt loop and patiently made sure it was completely unfurled. A few lazy up and down movements confirmed the weapon was ready for battle. Well, sparring. While she had no desire to hurt Cas, she trusted he wanted to see what she was made of. Hopefully both of their gods were protecting them. However she had taken the added measure of using a spare bit of foam from the mattress that was already destroyed to make sure the whip's leather was padded. A sheath of fabric--it felt expensive but it had already been torn when she'd found it--was secured over the foam to make the strikes slide off more easily, as well. With just the position of her arm to telegraph the coming attack--the right forearm had twisted out, parallel to the ground--she shifted her wrist before straightening her arm in front of her. The whip responded like a hungry viper, leather lunging towards the man. Accurate, it collided with his hip and she waited for the payback. Marisol's Health: 50 - 3 (Ranged) = 47 HP
Damage Dealt: Roll + 1 = 200% x 4 = 8 DMG
Marisol's Weapon: Whip (4 Base; +1 Hit)
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MoonRazor rolled 1 6-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-6)
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 2:29 pm
"Does its job," he agreed with a grin, backing away to wrap the blade of the sword with one of the formal dresses he'd found in a suitcase when he'd first come into the hotel. He'd stuffed things into his coat and evidently forgotten the last one when setting up the net he'd strung up in one of the broken windows. "Nice," he said with a nod, stepping forward almost fencer-like to swing his sword at her, coming in sideways from the left. "Footwork, almost as important as the actual attack," he added. "Trust your feet - but not too much. You don't want to get sloppy." HP: 50 - 8 = 42 Damage: 100 x 6 = 6 Weapon: Sword (6 Base)
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anemosagkelos rolled 1 6-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-6)
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 12:58 pm
It seemed obvious now that he said it, that footwork would be so important. While she had used her legs and feet in training, the surety of practice making it easy to be a dare devil and experiment, she'd been relying far more on her arm movement. She'd have to make sure to improve on that. Advice taken into account, rather than just use the motion of her arm, she tried to work more of her entire body. A step forward added to the momentum as she whipped her arm forward but the intensity was less than the previous strike. It wasn't tentative by any means but more controlled, as if the whip's velocity was channeled depending on the speed and communication of her limbs. "I forget that in battle," she admitted, "and resort to relying on the quickness of focusing on only my upper body." Marisol's Health: 47 - 6 = 41 HP
Damage Dealt: Roll + 1 = 100% x 4 = 4 DMG
Marisol's Weapon: Whip (4 Base; +1 Hit)
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MoonRazor rolled 1 6-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-6)
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 1:15 pm
"It's like a dance!" He took a step back as she came forward, catching the blunted whip on his arm, a little lighter than her first hit. Then he pushed forward again, weight centered, balance low, knees bent, driving back at her with his sword and jabbing left. "It's all about the way you move. If you can trust your footwork, you'll save yourself a lot of energy and a lot of potential for errors." HP: 42 - 4 = 38 Damage: 100 x 6 = 6 Weapon: Sword (6 Base)
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anemosagkelos rolled 1 6-sided dice:
2
Total: 2 (1-6)
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 1:23 pm
She chuckled at his remark; it was like a dance. Unfortunately one she wasn't yet trained in though she was learning. The protected blade hit against her side as she tried a moment too late to dodge. She twisted her upper torso and tried to lash the whip but the aim was off, it would only barely graze him. "Timing was off there," she remarked about her own efforts. Marisol's Health: 41 - 6 = 35 HP
Damage Dealt: Roll + 1 = 50% x 4 = 2 DMG
Marisol's Weapon: Whip (4 Base; +1 Hit)
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MoonRazor rolled 1 6-sided dice:
5
Total: 5 (1-6)
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 1:36 pm
Cas nodded as the tip of the whip glanced off his shoulder, barely noticeable. "That's alright," he said. "Keep moving." He came back at her almost the moment her whip had snapped, not leaving any time for recovery, forcing her to think on the fly. "You can afford a bad hit or two. Brush it off, come back stronger." HP: 38 - 2 = 36 Damage: 100 x 6 = 6 Weapon: Sword (6 Base)
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anemosagkelos rolled 1 6-sided dice:
5
Total: 5 (1-6)
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 2:32 pm
The fluidity of his movement was not unlike ballet in a sense and though she did take another direct hit, she was more graceful in her turn away from the cloth-covered tip. She focused half on her footwork--thinking of her balance and motion--as she dropped into a crouch. Rather than send the whip outward, she used a flick of her forearm to send it shooting up at an angle. It would hit him below the throat, an advantage of being taller than she was, but it was too direct to miss. "Perhaps you should take some dance lessons," she thought out loud because the other thought she had was not at all serious. And while she figured Cas would enjoy the comment ( "Oh, I bet you come back stronger, probably enjoy hearing a few screams,"), she couldn't descend into making this a flirting contest. The birds weren't up to par in that area anyway. Marisol's Health: 35 - 6 = 29 HP
Damage Dealt: Roll + 1 = 200% x 4 = 8 DMG
Marisol's Weapon: Whip (4 Base; +1 Hit)
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