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Post by Yua on Jul 10, 2023 13:12:02 GMT -5
Not everything landed in the android's favor, but that was just fine. She was in for a few days of rest, so that gave her the chance to at the very least start maintenance on the three chassis that she would operate while on the planet. Though the one with white hair had been her public face for some time, there was more attention on her as a General within the Protectorate, so she decided to return to the Lightning Knight chassis instead. at least for a while. Her eyes opened, blinked, and then she undocked the body as the battle dress chassis stepped into that pod instead. With a movement of her arm, she nodded her head and then took the weapon from the other, before she moved to head out of the ship.
Well, that had been her plan. Instead, she stopped at the closed door as her body leaned against the wall instead as she was dragged into the Astral Realm. Yaidrat was, after all, a planet that was filled with mysterious energies. What she woke up to, however, was a ruined city. And in the center of that, within a thirty meter crater, was Yua. She looked around for a moment as she realized that this looked a lot like the planet Kanassa. The only real difference was the Damaskian tech that ran alongside the Kanassan buildings.
The android shook her head once before she sighed and sat back in the air as she tilted her head to the side. She did have "monstrous" strength, but the android wasn't sure what this crater was about. Not that it mattered in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps she was simply worried that her battle with the kid would end up this way in an urban environment? Well, she guessed that there was only one way to know. First, she'd have to meet whoever it was that entered this space.
322
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Post by Zyren on Jul 10, 2023 13:33:28 GMT -5
Soul floated above a city unknown to him, his power naturally suppressed as he fell into a state of cautiousness. Was he normally so? Probably. However, when his Gem had sucked his consciousness in of it's own volition and made him appear in a war-torn environment...
No like. Came Zyren's short and broken response as he too warily looked around, yet neither Saiyan was worried about Zyren being seen. When one of them was in control, the other was incorporeal; unable to interact with the world unless they switched possession with one another. Some techniques or special effects might register his presence, such as one skilled with the ability to interact with the soul or the ability to read minds.
It is what it is. Soul thought grimly, then his gaze locked on just a small glimmer of movement. Normally, in a bustling city, movement would be everywhere and the Hybrid would struggle to find who the owner of the realm was. In a desolate and broken city, however? Movement stuck out like a sore thumb. Soul quietly approached from the air as he took a subtle breathe in, then cast a low frequency wave of his power and mind outward; the act akin much to how bats or primitive ships used to detect things in their vicinity with echolocation as he brought his sixth Sense[/b] online.
The result?
Soul paused as Zyren hissed, each having different reactions to what greeted his probing query. Nothing was there.
"Greetings, my name is Soul, what's yours?" the Saiyan said as he touched down on a broken building a decent distance from the woman, trying to appear non-threatening and respectful. "I hope you don't mind me intruding upon your battlefield?"
WC: 287
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Post by Yua on Jul 10, 2023 13:45:29 GMT -5
The woman paused in her thoughts before she turned her. While he might have thought that his pulse was not all that intrusive, she was a capable telepath. Or at least sensitive to attempts to touch her mind, which was rather guarded against such random invasions. So her head snapped towards him as her scanners read the boy quietly. He had arrived soundlessly, and had attempted to put out the least amount of power to threaten the android with. She smiled at this, however, as she wondered just what he was up to. The android placed a hand in the air like there was a desk or something there as she stood up on the ground.
"Hello Soul. My name is Yua." The name might ring to him, if he had kept up with the news of the last war, along with the people that had become Generals on Avalon, but she did as much as she could to otherwise not stand out. Not that she would try anything to hurt him, so long as the boy didn't try anything of that sort with her. Still, she wanted to test him a bit as the android moved with what might be called lightning speed as she flashed towards him, and hung in the air with her blade still in the sheath behind her, her arms folded loosely and calmly.
"Don't worry, I just arrived myself. This is the Astral Realm, after all." She wondered just what he thought, before her eyes snapped towards the incorporeal being, before she looked back at "Soul". "I hope that we don't have too many ghosts around us, right?" She wasn't exactly that different to this Soul person, however. The android had a human soul that was trapped within her wires and being; in most ways, it's what gave her the ability to have emotions. This information was not known to more than a handful of people, thought another telepath might be able to make out a second mind among her complicated one.
338 / 670
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Post by Zyren on Jul 10, 2023 14:49:16 GMT -5
Soul chewed on her name quietly, wondering why it rang a bell so distantly in the corner of his mind, yet no matter how hard he thought on it, nothing came to the surface. Zyren growled in his mind in warning to knock the Saiyan out of his contemplation as she flickered toward him, her speed vastly outstripping his. All he did, in turn, was tense his muscles as he stood his ground; his head tilting a bit downward to stare at her as he met her gaze levelly. He ignored the itch in his fingers and hands to grasp for a weapon that wasn't there, a weapon that with a single thought, astral realm notwithstanding, he could summon in a display if things got down to it.
Yet, all he did was twitch his fingers, knowing that if he could base her power off of her speed as a medium...he'd most likely lose a fight against someone that was at least five times his own output. All of this was thought in the mere moment it took for her to get to him, his mind going at a million miles a minute--for he shared a similarity with her.
She wasn't the only android.
However, when she glanced at Zyren, truly taking him in, Soul frowned, clearly unsettled.
Yet, even with his frown, his voice was easy going, "Nice to meet you, Miss Yua. As for ghosts? Nah, no ghosts here. Can't say I should be surprised that you're able to sense my counterpart there, but who would have guessed that android's nowadays have been given a qualitive upgrade. If I can ask, are you able to sense minds or variations in the soul?."
WC: 283/570
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Post by Yua on Jul 10, 2023 15:00:23 GMT -5
Her head tilted at his question as her blond locks gave her head a bit more of a boxed in look as she tapped her lips. "I wouldn't say that exactly?" While it was a question, it was more that she contemplated how much, exactly, that she would tell him. The in the end, Yua smiled a bit wickedly as she replied, "I'm built a bit differently than most others." After all, she was made from pieces from all over the Galaxy. Avalanian, Damaskian, and Steel Legion tech all combined to make a frighteningly potent combatant. She placed a finger to her lips, "Let's not dwell on what, or who, we can sense or not, hm?"
After all, the other was not exactly forthcoming about that. She placed her hand on her hip as she asked him, "So, I suppose the question is, would you want to swap hands with me for a bit? I really would like to gauge your strength for myself. After all, you've piqued my interest in this short time." Though for many inorganic beings, seconds could be years in comparison to other beings. The amount of thought- computations- would rival that for most organic beings, after all.
"I'll just match your speed and power. Skill is often the deciding factor in battle, after all." She had recently had a battle against Joe, this kid with more raw power than he knew what to do with. And yet, he lost to a pair of warriors that were not his equal in power. So she knew first hand that such was not the case. "I do understand if you'd rather just talk though." She added with a kind smile. After all, as a General from the Paladins, she would hate to be seen as a bully. But she wondered if this other had a warrior's soul. Rare was it to find someone in the Astral Realm that wasn't a fighter at heart.
325 / 995
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Post by Zyren on Jul 11, 2023 14:04:50 GMT -5
Soul watched her expression and cocked his head, one eyebrow raised as he opened his mouth slightly, not knowing where to begin on deciphering what she said or how she said it. She was so expressive that he thought for a moment that she wasn't an android, and then he closed his eyes. Abandon your preconceptions, a voice, no, ghost from the past warned. He took a deep breath, then nodded to her question.
"I dont mind sparring if that's what you wish to do, since I'm always eager to enhance my skill--or his." He hooked a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of Zyren, who growled lightly.
"However, I'm a scholar too, so I find our conversation fascinating. If you'd prefer having one instead, I wouldn't complain."
Soul held up a finger as he grinned, trying to look at her much as he would to someone else; with respect not because of her power but because she might just have a soul in there. "If you'd prefer to do both, well..." The saiyan almost teased as he gave her those three options with almost a particular emphasis on the one he wanted--yet left it open in her court to play ball exactly as she wished.
WC: 207/777
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Post by Yua on Jul 11, 2023 14:23:42 GMT -5
"Oh, your giving me the option?" The android gave what could have been said to be a very sweet smile. It wasn't a ploy, she found this guy a bit interesting. He didn't shy away like that kid did on their first meeting, he embraced what he saw, and what he felt, and didn't try to just blow her off. She was a bit strange, to be sure, but the android was genuine and straight forward. That much about her was very much like any android, at least ones that weren't built for deception as a part of their programming.
Then with another sudden burst of speed, Yua slashed her leg out like a blade, as she aimed to kick Soul from his left side. His duel nature eye colors weren't something that she was all that familiar with, but her Paladin companion Keres had them. Once that was done, she'd follow up with a raised leg and throw an axe kick at wherever he was- launched by her kick or able to block, it didn't matter. Just like an axe, there was much power in the blow, but it was hardly her full strength. As she had offered, she put enough power into these blows to match the output that he could show her.
"Oh, but you better bring your A game. I would also like to enjoy our short time in this realm." The grin on her face was pure, like a pure maiden.
246 / 1,241
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Post by Zyren on Jul 11, 2023 15:14:55 GMT -5
"Of course, why would-" he barely paused as she attacked, but he had been ready. His eyes had registered the movement from the right side and his response was on pure instinct. A soft glimmer of white built around his feet as Ki circulated through his Meridians and his left arm came up in a block as his right hand came to support his left bicep in something akin to a crossarm block in boxing. However, the best thing to do in a battle was to parry or avoid absorbing as much of the opposition's force as possible...so that's where the Ki around his feet came in. He floated upward an inch or so as he met the blow head-on...only to spin in place around her left leg like a cog in a machine.
Yet, his eyes didn't leave hers as her next attack quickly came from above and he pivoted in the air to receive it. One hand glowed with Ki as it caught the heel, driving him into the dirt on two stable legs as power crackled around them.
"I prefer to always bring my A-game." He said with a mischievous grin, then his strength suddenly sagged, cut in half to drive him a bit further into the ground. He pushed her leg away as his appearance changed, his visage melting away like dew before the sun, except it shifted and slid to his left. Another teenager condensed himself out of Ki from Soul's side and took most of the blonde's features with him, both eyes fading to amber as his tail turned a chestnut brown. The original one she attacked had his hair turn silver-white along with the tail, and his eyes grew to a deep-blue like the ocean's. "Miss Yua? Zyren."
Then that's when their offensive began. Zyren came in low in several quick swipes of his arms, his technique clearly unrefined in a martial art standpoint but very similar to how an animal struck, while Soul used his back like a spring-board and attacked from on high with a spinning axe kick of his own.
WC: 350/1,127
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Post by Yua on Jul 11, 2023 15:32:21 GMT -5
Paladins were often praised for their defensive abilities, or perhaps it was just their armor that they tried to use to defend themeslves. The answer was hardly a given, though it would have seemed to the two that Yua was not exactly a usual fighter. She watched as the ghost turned into a true being, at least in a sense. She smiled lightly at the other and greeted him with a cheerful, "Hello Zyren. Do treat me next time that we meet, 'kay?" She then watched as the two rushd at the android. Her lips pursed into a greater smile as she took a more defensive stance.
As Zyren attacked like an animal, she didn't really think it was too hard to defend against it. Animal attacks were wild, random, and usually had unreliable strength- as animals tended to gauge just how much strength to spend on individual blows. She dealt with that as she suddenly changed her stance last minute to bring out the blade behind her, as the sharp and long blade cut through the air in a whistle as she sliced at him with a spin in a lightning fast counter attack to use the blade's reach to get a cut around his shoulder of his right arm.
The axe kick that came at her was dealt with as she brought her arm up and tanked the blow from there, where he would find that her body was indeed made of metal, no matter how truly flesh-like it looked or felt like. But she did much more than just brace for the blow, as she then flexed and pushed that leg aside as her blade was already on the way as she swiped across his upper chest, though she could have done much worse. That should have given her a chance to breath as the android a moment.
She followed those up as she leapt backwards in a sort of backflip, but that wasn't all. An orb of cold appeared in her hand before that cold energy flared into several ice-like blades that she launched at the two of them. The cold energy was so frigid that they would cause frost burn, and actually burn the two of them if they were not careful. She sent half after each, before she landed and twirled a bit like a dancer as she grinned. "Good. I like people that show what they have."
WC: 1645
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Post by Zyren on Jul 11, 2023 16:49:26 GMT -5
The blonde's only response to her quip was a light growl of her own as he fell low, partially dodging the blade as it split his skin easily along his arm instead, then scuttled back as he initial probing test came back with more than he'd like to chew. However, he bared his teeth at her as his spilled blood suddenly burst into flame around her, intending to bathe her in a quick flare of fire to trade damage for damage.
Soul took the easier and safer route of defending rather than trying to trade a blow as he landed next to his counterpart, his palms bleeding slightly from his attempt to parry her blade away with Ki-infused palms after she dealt with his attack easily.
Was either Saiyan miffed at their failed offensive? Not even close. If it was easy, then it wouldn't be fun! Soul took a step forward as her rain of Ice blades descended, his left hand raising as an Orb of ki built, then condensed right before he slammed his other hand into the black ball. He grabbed and pulled, stretching the Ki as an echoing ring of fire and the noise of an anvil being struck blossomed out from him at the epicenter; a gleaming sword still red with heat from being freshly forged now held in two hands.
The Saiyan threw it forward and caught it around the middle with his right hand, Ki flooding out from his Dantian to flood the blade as it began to extend, yet Soul didn't wait. His left hand rose upward and grabbed a mote of Ki that trailed from it and pulled back, a silver-red line forming into a string around his clasped hand. The motions took only a second or two to enact and form, but now the stranger would be greeted by a weapon that they might recognize, at least in a basic form; a bow.
A bow with arrows that leapt with eagerness to meet her blades, each striking with only a marginal amount of inaccuracy as the opposing energies struggled for control. Some detonated, yet others fizzled or winked out of existence, the last of which was only a few feet from Soul's face to blow his hair back with Ice-cold air.
"Not bad! Nice technique! Here's mine!" He praised, his rebuttal in progress as he pulled back again on the bow to release another volley at her, the arrows primed to strike and detonate shortly after whatever they struck. Zyren followed suit, his pain forgotten with the resolve to meet her in blade-to-hand combat as he stayed low to the ground and attacked her legs like a boar with sweeping strikes.
WC:450/1,567
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Post by Yua on Jul 11, 2023 17:19:40 GMT -5
"Hmm. Though you formed that bow, you can make the technique faster," Yua smiled as she pulled her arm up. As she channeled the electric energy that ran through her body, the android pulled her hand back a bit as she allowed the energy from the arrows to slam into her other hand as she swiped it forward and grabbed them. Her gloves sizzles from the impacts as they detonated, but she already launched her own counter attack. The attack that she returned was charged with more ki than his, and thus it would bypass most defenses as portals formed quick as lightning that arrows of amethyst rained from to attack the ranged warrior.
As for the animal-like Zyren, she turned to him next as she smiled. She placed her arm back into place and took his blows as they rained against her hard metal skin. The smoke that appeared from the blows was clear, but so was her next attack. She used the moment he finished to shove her blade at him suddenly, as she aimed for his chest. It wasn't really a death blow, but it certainly could have been if she aimed it just a little lower than she actually did. Instead, the blows rained him were at the collar bone, one of the more dense bones in an organic body.
But that was not all. Though she had done that, her blade suddenly dropped from her hand as the arm shot forward like a rocket as she grinned at the little trick. "I see. You are not a normal warrior, the both of you." Her arm that had been launched was left where it was as nanobots moved all around where her hand had been, as they reformed like liquid into a new hand, just like the last one. All the damage done was not rendered useless, but the flesh that had been scorched was back to normal.
"You have a warrior's soul, Zyren, but it has a spiritual core. I'd liken it to a Chinese marital arts from the mythical age. Hmm. Perhaps at the second stage, the peak, of it's mastery...maybe you've touched the third realm." She turned her gaze to Zyren and grinned. "I'm not sure about you, but your savage attacking style and close quarters nature certainly would be more beneficial if you synced up with Soul more mastered the first stage of martial arts, Ming Jin."
Both were likely a bit bloodied, but if Yua was anything, she could be a teacher. As a combat android and intructor, she did help out at the dojo with the green recruits from time to time.
443 / 2088
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Post by Zyren on Jul 12, 2023 15:03:39 GMT -5
Zyren's confusion grew slightly as his blows hit something incredibly tough, every body part in his attack growing bruised as he tenderized his own body instead of the other way around. His eyes, normally dark and unexpressive, widened as he attack with the sharp stick--a sword, that's what it was called, flashed toward him. He reacted slowly, or slower than he would have liked. His hand came up and met the blade and shoved it toward the right; not to stop the attack but move it away from something potentially fatal as it buried itself in his shoulder and collarbone with a great deal of pain.
Explosions echoed behind him as Zyren growled, Soul swearing mentally as a barrage rained down in turn on him. That didn't mean he couldn't deal with it, far from it as he reached out and grabbed the hostile energy and transmuted it into a protective cloak of fire.
No, he swore because he felt the pain across their link, and was unable to help his other half at the time.
The battle, it seemed, was over however. Soul came forward and grinned, happy with what he learned--oh yes, even something as short as their few second bout taught him quite a bit. His sword waved and basked a gentle light over his counterpart as the gash healed; his own blood and nanites stimulated from the energy to heal faster.
"Thank you for the spar, Miss Yua. If I may ask...what realm do you think you yourself are at? "
Zyren sniffed, itching to get payback, yet turned his eyes down and away as he grew hazy, then dissolved back into Soul's body. Immediately, his appearance shifted back to the one that Yua had seen him in as Zyren went to pout.
WC: 297/1,864
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Post by Yua on Jul 12, 2023 15:15:39 GMT -5
The battle itself was over, but in a sense, the android believed that she definitely had more to teach. Each round, each exchange, was certainly a chance to explore, learn, and improve. She wasn't built to just have data and use it and that strength, but to do all that she sought to do for Soul. The pair weren't bad, but transmuting more than once in a shared soul wasn't something that she expected. Now that was something that she'd need to ask about. But for the time being, she just smiled before Soul gave her a question, after he thanked her for the instruction.
"Hmm, in sense, probably between the peak of the third realm, and maybe a touch into the fourth realm. Breaching and breaking into the next are difficult once you reach and start your mastery over the third realm. In additiion, mine is only an approximation. Since I have no life energy in me, I can only gauge where an organic being should be, and make a computation from there." She sighed a bit before she sat back as though there was a chair there and crossed one leg over the other.
"I see that Zyren is in need of some manners training. Wherever did he get such an attitude?" She just smiled and placed a finger over her lips. "But I'm sure there are secrets you wish to keep, and maybe things that you don't even know." After all, Yuna couldn't come out in this realm. But if he met her in real life, it was likely he could meet her other half. She had a chassis built specifically for Yuna after all, one that should have resembled her body if she was age appropriate now.
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Post by Zyren on Jul 16, 2023 10:45:35 GMT -5
Soul nodded as Yua guessed what level she was at as he thought about the system they were approximating themselves on. End of third or the start of the fourth was strong indeed, but not all of it was dependent on one's strength in regards to their power level.
The mastery of one's self is important, he thought to himself and hummed, then answered her question about his counterpart; "He's had...one hell of a rough time." Privately, a voice belonging to self-pity quipped, We both have.
Soul nipped that thought in the bud, or tried to, but it was a bit more of a struggle than he would have liked.
"There's another system we could use for approximating power and mastery, but I think the one you referenced is succinct and I value efficiency. I'd love to explain it-" an abrupt ripple tested the space they were in, and the Saiyan sighed, expecting it as he finished- "Yet we lack the time. It was nice meeting you, Miss Yua. Thank you for your tutelage." He bowed as the realm rippled again, then his view popped like a bubble. A sense of vertigo assaulted him as he opened his eyes, his ship's gravity training room resolving itself into focus around him. Across from him sat Zyren, who opened his eyes at the exact same moment Soul's had.
"Not bad, but she is right; We need to work on our teamwork."
A growl greeted him, one of reluctant acknowledgement, and they stood.
WC: 250/2,114
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