Kyo, ku, gi, waku

[a_monetized_mind]

The One Who Waits is not going to be an easy fight. So, Jen's practicing, with a rather odd setup. At one end of a small field is a baseball pitching machine; at the other, Jen stands ready with a naginata.

"Alright. Calm breaths...still heart...some other buddhist thing. Let's do this.'

Jen raises the polearm above her head, and hits a start button. The 95-mph fastball that shoots towards her is met with a blinding overhead strike, and splits in two. They've still got enough momentum to carry forward on either side of Jen, and she hasn't even completed her first strike.

When her foot touches the ground, it's with a slight twist. She needs to turn around to hit the pieces of the baseball again, and Jen has started her movement to do so too early. At the speeds she is moving, an imperfect landing means her ankle is strained far past its breaking point-and Jen's finish is far from perfect. She twists her ankle and crashes to the ground. All of it is over in a fraction of a second.

For anyone not accustomed to watching kung fu action movies, or people who just blinked at the wrong time, they miss the in-between action. Jen is holding a polearm over her head at one point, and rolling on the ground swearing loudly in three languages the next.

Comments

[in_over_his_head]

... Well...

[Calvin tries to ponder what to say here. Lets just go with the obvious.]

Need help with that ankle?

[a_monetized_mind]

[More rolling on the ground, less swearing.]

Augh...No, It'll be fine...Just need to...keep off it, for a bit.

[in_over_his_head]

Right...

[Calvin's going to sit down nearby the flailing courier.]

So sprained ankle aside... I'm guessing you're practicing a trick you picked up?

[a_monetized_mind]

Urgh...yeah.

[Jen sits up, rubbing her ankle.]

I went through some body modification stuff, when I was with VIPER...it's basically like Nemain's speed, so if I can get a handle on it, I can use Nemain more effectively.

The goal is to cut the baseball into quarters.

[stupidhonor]

... Ah.

[Sielje wastes no time assessing the situation. She rushes closer - at fast but very much not superhuman speeds.]

Jen, what happened?!

[a_monetized_mind]

...I was trying to do this cool thing Apogee showed me, and I messed up and broke my ankle.

[stupidhonor]

That was when using a machine. You are not...

No, that is not important right now! Stay still. I will seek a medical bed. Ones on Earth can mend broken bones, is it not right?

[a_monetized_mind]

Uh, no. But, that's not really important, er...you don't need to worry so much.

[stupidhonor]

This is a serious concern. You could be injured for life.

[totallyhonest]

I never knew you knew kung-fu.

[a_monetized_mind]

I practiced escrima! This Jackie Chan bullshit is pretty different, you know!

[more rolling in pain.]

[totallyhonest]

Hokey martial art and ancient weapons are no match for a good gun at your side.

[a_monetized_mind]

I'd believe you more there if we didn't know people who can punch boulders in half.

Urgh...Anyways, Apogee can do it like it's the easiest thing in the world. So I figure I might try it as well.

[lostamigo]

...That was quick. And painful.

[a_monetized_mind]

You're telling me!

You wouldn't happen to know how to do supersonic martial arts, would you?

[lostamigo]

Nope. Martial arts ain't my forte.

...Is your foot fine?

[a_monetized_mind]

...Not really. I think I dislocated my ankle...People aren't meant to move like that, with or without skeletal reinforcement.

[empress_without_a_throne]

[Regarding her weapon choice... and heck, her everything...]

Does the Nemain even have a naginata?

[a_monetized_mind]

It's got a spear...And what are you smiling about! Help me out and turn off that dang machine before it shoots again!

[empress_without_a_throne]

[Too late. The machine fires again, but with a glance and a thrusting hand Mizuki catches the ball and stops it cold.]

Spears and naginatas aren't used the same way. You don't hold them the same way either.

But what did you have in mind?

[a_monetized_mind]

They're close enough...Anyways, it's an exercise Apogee taught me. Something about setting aside attachments and biases, seeing the whole world, and cutting that baseball into quarters.

...She said if I figure it out I'll have a better handle on Nemain's speed, so. I'd like that when we go fight some demon god next week.

[actuallyselfish]

"So..." Dido says, blinking at Jen's pratfall. "You've been infused with nanomachines, right? Mecha integration, accelerated healing, the works?"

Her expression looks sour, as if she's worried about something.

[a_monetized_mind]

Yeah, and?! Just go turn that machine off before it hits one of us!

[Someone's a little preoccupied to think on whatever you're worried about, Dido.]

[actuallyselfish]

"Whoops!" Dido side-steps the arc of the hurling balls (Training from Dung Beetles!) and switches the machine off.

"Well," Dido says. "medical nanotech repairs your body back to its original template, right? Fixes muscles, fuses bones, etc. So...does that mean you can't get stronger with exercise? Since the nanomachines restore you body to how it was before?"

[a_monetized_mind]

...Yeah, it does. Though I got from Doomstar, my baseline's set pretty high now...

...So what? This isn't about getting stronger muscles.