the_last_resort | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: Grainne, Open
What: A day in the life of a retired Servant. Running errands, skeleton bashing, turning in bounties and general kerfluffles. See prompts!
When: Month 12, Day 13
Where: Around Blackway
Notes & Warnings: TBA

#1

Skeletons seemed fairly easy these days. Grainne practiced and kept her skills sharp, using the skeleton's weak points against them. She actually felt like she was getting good at hunting, though some enjoyment of that was mitigated by the fact most of it wasn't her doing, but the Servant abilities granted to her.

Her feet were silent where she padded on the grass, barefoot, enjoying the silky feeling beneath her skin. It made her feel closer to the wild, and lifted her spirits where nothing else could these days. It was quite a walk around to the other side of the town, but she had lost count of the trips she had made already.

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#2

When the day came, and the numbers of skeletons went down, Grainne turned toward the security office to turn in the few bones she found and collected. Money had no real value to her except for a few curiosities here and there, but she saw no reason not to collect it for some rainy day occasions, or new clothes.

She waited her turn, as usual, for someone to come and record her bounty, hoping they wouldn't mind a short chat. It might be the nostalgia she had earlier running through the area outside of town, but she felt a little lonely today.
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#3
Whoever had volunteered her for the race may as well have given her a mouse to ride on. The large cat that's supposed to serve as her mount was the most obnoxious, contrary creature she had the misfortune to meet. They may as well have given her a mouse. She hadn't been thrown... yet, the cat could move when he wanted to, but when she rode he just sat down.

Rubbing her rump, she walked into the gardens, wishing they had at least gotten a decent saddle for the beast. Cheetah, she remembered, as she sat down on a bench.

The gardens were a nice spot, though she didn't spend as much time as she used to in there, and that was very intentional...

Anyone who passes by the rose plants may notice that some of the blossoms have been mangled into a petaly pulp, and a few telltale petals may stick to Grainne's skirt and shoes...

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#4

[Need a particular prompt? Have something we need to finish off? Pick this one!]

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Silent, Grainne nodded and stopped just a few feet from Jade. She could tell where the skeleton was already, but wanted to get closer before using any magic, so Jade could see how her magic worked.

Once Grainne stopped, Jade drew out her staff and crouched beneath the cover of bushes. She didn't have any sense of where it might have been hiding, but she trusted the other woman's magic senses, if that's what was happening.

Once she got the bearing again, she motioned that way and started creeping along as silently as she could- which of course meant that she was as silent as a ghost.

A silent sparkle manifested the cup she had used back when gravity had failed them, and it tipped over, pouring out much more water than it could conceivably hold. Instead of forming pillars of ice to hold on to, it retained a sphere shape and hovered behind Grainne's head, at least until the skeleton was right in front of them.

Grainne held back here to look at Jade, and the spheres formed into discs with sharp edges.

Jade watched in complete awe as water flowed out of the cup and into the air, completely defying all laws of physics. Water suddenly turning into ice was scientifically possible, but seeing Grainne in complete control over where it went was astonishing even to her.

As the skeleton drew closer, Jade nodded at Grainne. "After you."

There was no movement on Grainne's part. There didn't need to be. Once the skeleton came into sight, the discs of floating water shot out and hit the bones at a pinpoint accuracy; one severing the neckbones, the other just above the pelvis.

With a clacking of bones, the skeleton tried to return fire, but failed as it fell apart.

Walking toward it then, she looked into the dissolving remains for any intact bones. "That was easier than usual, but it is what I do typically on a hunting night."

Jade was ready to rush in with a follow-up attack, but stopped short when the skeleton fell apart. She poked at it a few times to check on it and turned back.

"Those are some really powerful discs you got. Mine can barely make a scratch on this thing. Can you take out a whole group with that?"

Two other skeletons, alerted by the sounds of one of their own, began slowly ambling towards their location, though Jade showed no sign of fear when she noticed them.

There were no bones to be collected.

"I can, but then I am drained for a while and need to recover. Do you wish to take these ones?" Grainne stopped looking through the remains and held back, letting her discs spin in the air for a moment before they collapsed and dripped to the ground to form puddles.

"Can do."

Jade took a few steps closer to the skeletons to put a safe distance between her and Grainne, bended slightly at the knees while holding a wide stance, then moved into a more upright position while holding her staff in one hand.

She let out a powerful cry as her staff begins to glow, not moving from the spot until the two enemies were right in front of her, at which she spun and released the energy she stored in her weapon. The blast knocked both of them over, though one of them was struggling to get up.

Jade took a second to get her bearings straight, then lunged at the moving skeleton and hit it with a powerful blow, knocking its skull off. She waited as the other one struggled to get up, and once it stood, she rushed at it with a flurry of quick attacks. It didn't even have time to counter before it too broke apart.

Staying back, but close enough to intervene in case something went wrong, she watched Jade's movements, and watched in surprise at the energy the staff released.

Walking around to admire Jade's handiwork, she smiled. "I did not know you could work magic, and you use it with such elegance. Are you a magic fighter on your word?"

With one swift motion, Jade strapped her staff on her back again and looked at Grainne over her shoulder. "It's not exactly magic. The daï-jo stores energy, and I know how to release it at the right time."

She never bothered with the science behind it. She already had years of practice in martial arts, and the staff felt like a natural extension of her fighting skills.

"Oh," it must be some sort of science, not that anything scientific she really understood. Mostly, Grainne categorized everything into magic of some sort or another. "Still, it looks very much like it and it looked very natural with your fighting. It is very impressive."

She chuckled at the compliment. "Thanks, but I've been practicing all my life. When you need to defend your home against monsters, you need to find anything that adds on to your fighting style."

Now that the skeletons were down, Jade crouched by them and sorted through the remains. "Anything here you can take?"

That got a short headshake out of Grainne. "No, it is your kill, anything you find is yours." She turned to look out into the area around, listening for more skeletons, before she spoke again. "Was it not difficult? Learning to fight so young, I mean."

There isn't much on them besides bones and the remnants of an arrow quiver, but Jade takes a few bones as a reminder. While the skeletons could move their hands like the bones where still connected, after they were defeated, Jade could only pick on one tiny fragment at a time. She settled for a skull.

Jade pressed a button on the SAC she carried on her belt, and the skull glowed a pale neon green before it was digitally stored inside the device.

"Not really. My uncle's been teaching me how to defend myself since I started living with him, so everything after that came naturally."

Grainne turned to watch in fascination when Jade put the skull away, intrigued even more than before.

"You were very fortunate to have a good uncle... I cannot imagine fighting coming natural. Could you show me how to fight that way?"

"I guess. It's really just some modified martial arts, so it shouldn't be that hard." She tilted her head towards the other end of the path. "Wanna keep going a bit more?"

Once they began walking slowly, Jade continued. "You'd had to start off learning really basic moves that aren't good in combat, then move onto more complicated stuff. You ever studied anything like that? Karate, tai chi, anything?"

Walking along, Grainne looked around for more skeletons as she considered the question. "We did not have those forms of fighting. I tried, a little, to learn what the warriors did when I was still a child, but it was boring and painful, so I am afraid I did not remember much."

Not that Aillil when he had been alive hadn't tried, or Diarmuid either when they were on the run. It seemed like physical fighting was just a thing she could not grasp.

"It's not that similar. People in the military have a whole different way of fighting, from what I've seen." Hyllian soldiers favored strength over all other attributes, and her only advantage over them was her speed.

"Not every type of martial art is good for fighting, but it's pretty handy for avoiding attacks."

"Yes, there are many different styles even amongst the warriors." She at least remembered that from what she knew, after how many people came to visit the High King. "I will try yours, if you would teach."

"Sure. I could do that." She wasn't sure how good of a teacher she would be, but it couldn't hurt to try. "Maybe we can start with meditation, since I think that's a big part of my style. At least, that's how I see it."

Grainne smiled. "I am looking forward to learning. Meditation sounds like a wonderful way to start. Is there anything I could offer you in exchange?"

"Well, uh..." she stopped walking and crossed her arms. "The smart thing to say would be to pay me for lessons, but it's for something I do everyday." Unlike photography or exploration, this was not something clients requested for back home.

She finally shrugged. "I dunno. Is there something you'd like to give me?"

Grainne drifted a bit before she stopped and thought on the request. What could she give in exchange? There seemed little useful skills she could offer.

Except...

"I could make a protective charm for you when you go exploring." That seemed as good as anything, and useful at least.

"A charm?" She had no idea how that could work, but who was she to refuse a gift? "Sure, that could work."

A smile lit up Grainne's face, excited at the prospect of learning something new. "This will be fun! Thank you, Jade! I will try to be a good student."

If only Jade knew Grainne was planning on making breakfasts to go with those training sessions...

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