maskormenacelogs | the climb [OPEN]

Entry tags:

the climb [OPEN]

WHO: Lucina, assorted
WHERE: All over
WHEN: September
WHAT: September adventures
WARNINGS: tbd

o1. Put in the work (Helix Station training rooms, daytime)
[a facility like this does a great deal to soothe Lucina's worries she's simply not doing enough; here she can really push herself without imposing on others -- perhaps to her detriment, given her stubbornness in the face of pain. it may be easy to blame her for being so shortsighted, but honestly? when there are 30ft robots and people who can lift buildings or read minds or control the elements, it's hard to not feel a little lacking.

now, she's not a bearer of super strength or anything, but her years of training and the war have led her to be unusually powerful for her size and physique. some of that must also come from her pedigree -- not just Chrom, but Sully, whose sheer brute force would've been the stuff of legends, had her world been given a chance to thrive.

it's why, despite the almost comical image she makes, Lucina's not yet crushed by the massive weight being gradually increased and pressed down on her. at least the damn machine is designed to avoid fatal risks, because she sure as hell isn't willing to give herself a little slack, instead snarling through gritted teeth and trying her damnedest to push back up on the weight.]

o2. Increase one's awareness (Maurtia Falls, evening)
[for a time, Lucina thought it a bit arrogant of her to go out of her way to find and resolve conflicts on her own, especially considering this world already has its own system for calling upon her and others registered for just that. repeated catastrophes and some first-hand experience with the police of this city has her more inclined to question that initial impression.

it's why now, she's taking a page from her father's book and patrolling the city. there's still a little apprehension in stepping in, of course, but only to a point: the second she sees real danger looming, she'll be there, swooping in from the heights with a brandished blade and loud proclamations of the very real consequences of continuing the threat. it's not subtle by any stretch, but from her standpoint, it shouldn't be: injustice should always be brought to light kicking and screaming.

perhaps you're already on patrol and spy her drifting above the rooftops, or maybe you're in the midst of de-escalating a situation she's about to swoop into. orrrr, perhaps, you're the one in need of rescue?]

o3. Don't forget to take breaks (a bake shop, Maurtia Falls, daytime)
[many good things have happened in this particular pastry shop, so Lucina finds peace of mind in simply having a seat with a small confection, a book, or some particular distraction to busy her eyes when she's not caught up in watching the street outside or perusing the Network for news.

here, a surprise visit from a friend or acquaintance is most welcome -- and she's not impartial to making new friends here, either! after all, she's made dear friends here before, why not more? she'll even buy you a donut.]

o4. Stay open to making mistakes, learning (O'Malley clinic, De Chima, mornings/day)
[she still feels a bit guilty for letting herself slack and avoid returning to De Chima because of the Shimmer. all the more reason to make her way back there, honestly: she promised Iris her aid months ago, and she won't go back on that.

after all, she's getting the hang of how things work in this clinic -- not just from a first-aid sense, but in its general paperwork structure and processes. here she can guide new patients through the papers with relative ease (albeit with a limit on her patience) and get things tidied and ordered relatively quickly, picking up slack so the physicians can do their work most effectively.

she's no nurse, but she does tend to be the first person one may see in getting seated in a room. checking blood pressure, getting initial symptoms written up, all that sort of thing...she can do that.

just don't expect to be coddled too much if you're being a fuss about it: she will wrestle you to the table if you're going to misbehave.]

o5. Pause for breath (Maurtia Falls canal/park, day)
[Odin's dogs don't walk themselves in this city, and when he's off and busy, Lucina takes it upon herself to get them walked and their excess energy expended. they're a bit of a handful, those two big, fluffy lugs, but never disastrously so. it just means lots of stops for folks to coo and pet them and for those two hams to soak it all in. it grates on her patience a bit, but Lucina's always polite -- and certainly more amicable when she's seated and letting them mull about and sniff so she can rest.]

o6. Uhhhh (???)
hmu @ whyellewhy on plurk if u got another idea, or just start ya own thing below

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Of course!

[and, without any room for more doubts, she gives his arm a yank, pulling it up and over her shoulders. once that's in place, she wraps one of her own arms around his waist and bends, scooping him up under his knees with the other.

ever been bridal-style carried before, Fortunato? ever been bridal-style carried by a princess in the middle of midday traffic? congrats! but it doesn't end here!]

Now--hold on!

[cheerful and casual as ever -- as if they were just going for a brisk walk in the park. no big deal. with a little grunt, she bends and then hops up, but doesn't come back down, instead beginning to float upward. nothing too quick, but brisk enough to leave the safe ground well below and its spectators gaping upward.]

And do let me know if I move too quickly for you.

[ Oh. Oh no. He doesn't fight her, but he starts stammering the moment she picks him up- this is a bad idea. An awful idea. He doesn't have a particular fear of heights, flying, anything like that. But he's fairly certain this is going to make a gigantic scene, and that's something he's been very much inclined to avoid. ]

Lucina- I- we-

[ And then she starts moving up in the air, and he realizes he's going to lose this battle. Not that he was ever really winning.

He tenses up, but he stops talking, biting his lower lip. Well. At least he doesn't expect her to drop him. ]

[goodness. she's clad in plate armor and can still sense the tension! was this a bad call?

too late! time to just take it in stride and remain confident and in-control. and to start, she lets out a light sigh once they've cleared most of the rooftops, looking about.]

Right, then. Let's see... Helix iiiiis...[squint.] Ah. That direction. Now--I'm going to tilt, but you won't fall! Hang on as tightly as you need.

[and with that, she does as she said: tilt, and then fly forward at a leisurely pace. it'd be akin to a scooter ride.............................without gravity.]

[ He nods quickly a few times, then freezes up again. Even without any particular phobia of heights, this is...fairly overwhelming. He's tempted to grab onto her tighter, but that feels rude, and he's not even sure what he would latch onto. He knew Lucina could fly, but he certainly wasn't expecting to be heaved up that quickly.

Unless she asks him something, he's not going to feel like talking for the rest of this trip. He doesn't expect to be dropped, really; this is just so strange, and he can't help but think about it happening in the middle of the street. He supposes that's the end of his low profile. ]

[Lucina doesn't expect much chit-chat up in the air like this; the breeze can be noisy, and a first-time experience is harrowing! instead of striking up conversation, she just points out buildings she's familiar with --] Ah, there's the clock tower. That's where I live. You're welcome to visit any time! [--and such things like that.

luckily for Fortunato, it's a short little trip, and she glides easily back down in front of the entrance to Helix Station. only when her feet are on solid ground does she begin to ease her hold on his legs and let him find his feet himself.]

Easy does it, now. There! Not so bad, huh? And no traffic.

[ Right. Not so bad. Frankly, he's been through enough things in his life that were equally bizarre and far more dangerous than that- but he still clearly needs a moment to readjust, slightly dizzy when she sets him down. He's trying his best to hide how startled he still is, but the feeling quickly starts to fade now that he's on solid ground. ]

...Yes. [ Well, she's correct. Once he has his bearings, he turns to look at Helix Station. He tries to keep up-to-date with what's going on even when he tries to stay out of it, but he doesn't recognize the building immediately. ]

Where is this?

This is called the Helix Station. [she holds the door open for him, letting him pass through before her, but once inside she takes the lead again, navigating the halls toward the training areas.] Jacob Taylor procured this place for his new team, Aegis Force. He agreed to let me join up, and so... [smiling over her shoulder with a light shrug.] I've got access to the facilities here. I'm sure it'll be no issue to borrow a gun for a quick armor test! It's even got a room designed for those weapons.

[as if perfectly timed, they reach an armory, and after verifying her eye scan, the door pops open and in she goes, gesturing Fortunato follow.

guns. guns everywhere. among other things.

she steps out of his way, hands on her hips.]

Well? I hardly know the difference in any of these, so I'll defer to your judgment.

[ He follows after her without any questions; he's familiar enough with the concept of Aegis Force, and further, it doesn't surprise him Lucina would join. From what he knows of her, she has a distinct desire to help people, no matter how well or how little she knows them. Heroism seems like it's her life's calling, whatever inspired her to do it.

Once they get to the guns, he studies the room; it's been a while. And he admittedly was never a big fan of weapons; they were a thing necessary for him to learn about, though it's primarily the usage of the guns that he was trained in. It's more type that he'd think of, rather than exact model. He stares contemplatively for a minute. ]

It depends. [ The answer is somewhat obvious to him- he doesn't think she'll be facing many rifles. But he may as well ask. ] What do you need to train against?

The hooligans who run rampant in this city are so often armed with guns they've no business wielding -- especially with how trigger-happy they seem to get. [her eyes flicker over toward the case of smaller firearms.] Things concealed in their clothing, mostly. Small...but just as dangerous.

Ideally, I'll have a keener eye for the body language of the sorts who carry these weapons, and then be too quick to be aimed at. But...that's only ideally. I have to know this armor can take a lick or two while I close the gap.

[ So really just common crime, rather than the more complicated pursuit of something like OTO. Suitable enough.

He doesn't quite like the sound of her just hoping on luck and circumstances for avoiding bullets, though. He knows well enough that it doesn't really work that way. And he very much doesn't like the idea of her being hurt.

He takes one of the smaller firearms and studies it for a moment- its name and some details are different here, of course, but it looks familiar enough. This is something he knows how to use. ]

This will work. [ But his brow furrows and he looks back at her, trying to hide the extent of his worry. ] I- I think we should shoot the armor first. Without you in it.

Oh, we don't have to worry about that. [she waves a dismissive hand as she leads them out of the armory, on the way to one of the training rooms.] The smithy who built this gear already showed me the test pieces. We can go straight to the core test!

[has anyone ever been this pumped to get shot before?? who knows. in any case, she opens the doors to a huge, open room. it's suited for holograms, but that's hardly necessary.]

[ Oh no. Well. It's not that he doesn't trust Lucina or her judgement, but he can't help but feel as if something is bound to go wrong here. He definitely gets the impression she knows little about guns and doesn't come from a place with a lot of them, and he's flummoxed by the idea of trying to explain them to her. How do you start with explaining how dangerous they can be if you've known that most of your life?

He follows her in anyway. There's plenty of stranger things he's seen here than armor that bullets can bounce out of; he just wonders if she's naive about this. ]

What happened in the test?

Ah, well, I didn't see it happen? Just the effect. There was a proper denting in the steel, but the layer he crafted underneath the plate held whole. [she nods confidently, striding away from him and turning on her heel to face him.]

Much the same will happen here, I'm sure of it. But I need to feel it. Understand it. I don't want anything to catch me off-guard out there.

[a beat.

this is...a little crazy, isn't it? perhaps. but she's had similar training back home -- though with arrows and spells, not bullets. it's probably not the case for Fortunato here, and that's why she pauses in thought.]

...You're certain you don't mind helping me out? I understand if it's an extreme request.

[ It's not that he thinks this is too wild- he completely understands why Lucina is doing it, and doesn't even think this training is too far out of the realm of what he's familiar with. He's just not very fond of the idea of her being hurt, and moreso the idea of himself being responsible for it, at least without warning her. ]

No, it- it's fine. [ He stops for a second, briefly biting his bottom lip. This is a hard thing to say without making her seem too foolish. ]

It sounds- it- it seems like you could still be hurt. By the impact. Like with vests. [ You'll still get bruised at the least from one of those, after all. ] Did you know that?

Of course. No impact can go unscathed so easily, right? [hands on her hips.] If something goes awry, I'll call Archie. Are you familiar with him? He has healing abilities.

With the bat. [ That guy. The bat really was one of the more memorable things. ] I do.

[ He pauses, having followed her. He's holding the gun carefully, of course, realizing it's really been a long time since he had to use one, let alone has held one- but there's a sense of experience to it, too. He didn't want this to come off as prodding. But he's still so unsure of her lack of understanding, and trying to get to it without giving away too much. ]

If you understand... [ Well, what else is there to do? ] Then we should do it.

[she nods, smiling.] Yes. Let's do it.

[she's immediately scrubbed of any nagging doubts of putting Fortunato through this in order to focus precisely on doing this. she walks swiftly away from him, far to the opposite end of the room before turning on her heel and calling out to him:]

When you're ready, I'll rush at you! [she unhooks the butterfly-shaped shield at her back and fastens it to her forearm.] And you open fire! One shot!

[ What. What does she mean she's going to rush at him.

He learned how to aim, sure, but he's not Irina. He knows why she wants to do this, sure, but this sounds like it could be the makings of a disaster. Archie may be able to heal, but he's not sure he'd be able to heal a bullet wound in Lucina's face.

But another thought occurs to him- if she's so determined to do this, and she seems to be, would she go to someone else other than him? Someone who may have even less experience than he does? Despite everything, he could be the best option.

Hesitantly, he starts to get into position, but not before calling out to her on the other side of the room. ] Are you certain?

[does unsheathing Falchion answer for that? it better. she gives the blade a testing swish as she changes stance, eyes sharp.]

Ready?

[ Ah. He supposes that is an answer. He doesn't really know what she means to do with the sword, but he has enough faith in her to assume she must have...some plan.

He likes to pray aloud if he can, but that seems like it'd be distracting right now. But it's in his head. The kind of basic prayer that got him odd stares growing up. He really does not want to shoot someone. Not now. Really not ever.

But he gets into place, aiming at her. Concentrated. Hoping it hasn't been too long. ]

Ready.

[she bristles, still for a beat after his word. then, she springs forward, flying fast and direct, her sword tilted and prepared to swing.]

HAAAAAH-!

[ Perhaps he was foolish to think she'd just stand there and be shot. That isn't her, is it, really.

It doesn't matter. He knows better than to be distracted now.

He aims for the armor- slightly towards her shoulder, in case this could cause more injury than she expects- and while his aim has never been exceptional, he certainly has suitable experience.

He fires once. ]

[PTANNNG!

(that's the bullet hitting the plate, btw)

Lucina jerks to a side, having to compensate by ducking into a somersault on her way forward, getting upright on her knees and staying there, shield up and sword held aside.]

...

[she slowly lifts her head and peeks up his way, a small, slow smile creeping across her face. honestly? she's kind of surprised he actually did it.

but also: not dead. she's pretty pleased by that, too.]

[ He steps back when the bullet hits- a knee-jerk reaction. Bad memories. And the knot in his stomach that he expected to unwind doesn't do so until he sees her lift her head, smiling.

This world is strange. It's not that nothing can go bad here- he was in the Shimmer, he knows how bad it can get- but he expects so much to go far worse, considering the direction his life had gone in. He feels as if he's just cheated something.

And that she did, too. He stares for a moment before speaking up. ]

...Are you hurt?

Ha...

[she lets out her breath, climbing to her feet, steady and certain. her shield gets set down, propped up against her leg so she can inspect the impact site.] I could feel that...like the hardest punch... [her fingers glide along the metal until she feels an out-of-place dent -- a crater made in the breastplate just shy of her shoulder.] Or getting kicked by a horse, I bet. Oh--

[as she picks at it, the bullet slug gets dislodged and drops to the ground with a gentle tinkle.]

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