001 | text | foster

[beknight]

My name is Alan, originally from 21st century Earth.

I'm looking for sparring partners. I'm familiar with a wide variety of martial arts, unarmed and weapon-based. If you're keen, you can find me here.

​​​​[ Enclosed are directions to a dojo in Olympia; he'll be there all day. ]

If there's enough of us, I'd like to start a regular group. ​​​​[ we're all in this together.mp3 ] We can learn a lot from each other.

​​​​[ eta: here is a log for direct action needs. you are also welcome to jump to action directly in the post. ]

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[motivation]

Sometimes, that's what we call ourselves, too.

[ it's a fair assessment: dutch grew up in a royal harem, groomed together with other young girls to marry into royalty — and unlike the other girls from the harem, her tutor trained her to be an assassin as well. she knows how to poison, how to fight, how to master her own pain and kill despite it. the first time she murdered a man, she'd been eight.

the rac didn't recruit her. she ran to them — only to find that it wasn't what she'd thought it was. that she'd never really escaped her tutor at all. ]

It's an open call kind of thing. Anyone wants in can try out. [ a beat, in which she takes another sip, then she sets bottle and towel aside and steps back onto the floor. ] And what is it you do?

[beknight]

[ It speaks. To one who knows it, it calls out to be recognised. ]

This and that. I settled on being a martial arts teacher. [ He smiles, someone might not swallow that explanation wholesale; it's the best he's got. He won't use soldier as a cover. ] Thought I might set something up here. It's a shame to stop practicing.

[motivation]

This and that.

[ dutch repeats the words back to him in-between another round of blows and kicks traded back and forth between them. there's scepticism in her tone, but there's no questioning lilt to the sentence. she isn't asking him to elaborate, just indicating that she's not buying the story as such.

if he wants to keep his secrets, she won't poke at them right now. later, maybe. ]

Got the patience for it? [ dutch sure as hells doesn't. ]

[beknight]

[ In answer he cuts off one of her movements. She's agile, but he's bigger, and stronger, and not afraid to use that. Bruce pins her easily, then he stands up and gives her space. ]

We'll find out, won't we?

[motivation]

You're a slippery one, aren't you?

[ he'd told her to find out if he was any good, now he's telling her they'll find out if he's the patient kind. dutch isn't patient, and when he pins her, her jaw clenches for a moment. he gives her space, but she stays on the ground — to swipe at his legs, mainly, though she waits until he's no longer moving back.

that's another lesson khlyen had taught her. even if you're down, you still have to be dangerous. some lessons she likes better than others. ]

[beknight]

[ He dodges — wasn't expecting that. ]

Prickly one, aren't you?

[ Not very patient, but hardly a character flaw — patient people are more dangerous. ]

[motivation]

Oh, you've no idea.

[ but as much as the words are a challenge, there's also pleasure in them. like recognizes like and sometimes, it's good to be seen -- though dutch had thought before that perhaps she wasn't the only monstrous thing on her ship and she'd been wrong about that then. ]

[beknight]

I have some idea.

[ The same tone. Tit for tat. Although the things that live with them recognise each other, that doesn't make them less dangerous. Trust on both sides will be hard won. ]

[motivation]

[ trust is never easy, but familiarity has its own worth, as does recognition. dutch is glad to have taken him up on the invitation to spar. ]

Tell me, old man, do your knees already creak? [ she asks in lieu of responding to his comment -- though in a way, it's further proof of prickliness, offered with a twinkle in her eye and a challenge in her grin. ]

[beknight]

Heard that one before.

[ The amusement flickers — obvious to her, she's looking for it. ]

Let's try with some weapons. Staff or escrima?

[motivation]

[ khlyen taught her how to use both, and a large number of other weapons — from firearm to poison. dutch shrugs. ]

Your choice. I'll kick your arse either way. [ big words, jokingly spoken, though she'll certainly try. she's aware, at least, that they're evenly matched, so some of the cockiness that often creeps in in moments like this is missing from her tone. ]

[beknight]

I look forward to seeing it.

[ Big words, but she can back them up plenty. He chooses the escrima — let's call it nostalgia. Or perhaps to avoid the joke of the staff being a glorified walking stick. ]

Here.

[motivation]

[ she takes the escrima, settling into a loosely defensive position after finally shrugging off her jacket and tossing it aside. ]

Think you can handle it, old man?

[beknight]

[ The smirk's more in his eyes than his mouth, but it's the clearest it's been. ]

Try to keep it interesting.

[ She's not going to have any problem with that. ]

[motivation]

Oh, you're on.

[ dutch loves a challenge, even if (or especially when, really) it's as blatant as this. she hasn't finished speaking by the time she attacks again. ]

[beknight]

[ From the outside, it looks choregraphed. Blow for blow, strikes parried, falls that become rolls. They could both keep going until they're out of breath — but when the rhythm changes to almost friendly, he stops. ]

Glad you took a chance?

[motivation]

[ they stop before they're out of breath, but there's a thin layer of sweat on dutch's skin and at his question, she grins, twirling her weapon for a moment. ]

You'll do, I suppose.

[ her tone is all casual disregard, but her eyes are warm. ]