03-27-2010, 04:13 PM
The artificial yellow light created by the central control core of the Kill Cluster began to expand as the hybrid leaned lazily against the railing. It had been seconds, perhaps, since he had lodged his TIE-fighter into the energy release shaft. He couldn’t be sure, however, because moments later, he landed back in the Carnival, with little to no memory of the event’s last minutes after his last-ditch effort to stop the ‘Insurgents’ Coalition.’ As if it would make a difference—Ander, Victoria, and Szar all seemed leagues more skilled with their vehicles than Juno, Kazuya, and Alex ever would be.
As the familiar scents of buttered popcorn and other, more greasy foods began to waft towards him, however, he was soon reminded that he had new things to worry about—he’d gotten out of that event, no matter how it’d turned out, and he couldn’t sit around pondering past mistakes. That game was over and done, it was time to move on to the next event, which he knew would be making an appearance sooner rather than later.
His attention, however, was soon drawn away from the task at hand as he noticed the shiny, middle-finger sporting badge he’d stolen earlier flopping onto the ground ahead of him. He sighed; it must’ve fallen out when he had hit the ground. With a grunt, the hybrid pushed against the dirt and slowly rose to his feet, grasping his head as it began to ache. He’d probably just stood up too fast, he reasoned, slowly walking over to Kaden’s badge and picking it up off of the ground.
Sliding the accessory into his coat pocket, the black-haired boy stretched, lifting his arms high above his head and cracking his knuckles as he loosened the muscles in his arms. Being trapped in that cramped cockpit had made him rather tense.
As the life slowly came back to his tendons, he also felt that certain spark once again, thankful that his ki had been restored after he’d been deprived of it during the last round. He brought his hands down and looked cautiously at his palm as he focused his energy there. Violet ki began to circulate in his hand, eventually materializing an orb of lavender energy. With a smile he brushed his hand through the orb, effectively neutralizing it.
Slowly but surely, Juno was regaining his strength. He had been at the top of his game after Friend or Foe, but the revolution had taken a sheer toll on his abilities, and when he found himself lazing away, ‘resting,’ he was really slowly letting his powers slip away from him. Only recently, in fact, had he been able to access some of his old abilities—the ones that allowed him to use ki to invade the minds of others. He recalled briefly the soldier on the Kill Cluster that he had effectively Blocked; of course, the technique had been used rather spontaneously. It could’ve just been the luck of the draw. That settled it, then. Until the next event, the hybrid planned to spend his time practicing his abilities, seeing which ones worked and which ones he’d have to gain back.
Footsteps echoed from the other side of the tent, and taking the opportunity, Juno quickly pressed his back to the big top, listening as the footsteps got closer and closer. He readied himself, bringing up the palm of his right hand—all he’d have to do was turn the corner, put his hand to the man’s forehead, and things should fall into place.
He mentally prepared himself, letting the ki slowly flow into his fingers, and then stepped out with one foot, letting his entire body follow suit. The semi-Saiyan seer spun around into view of the target, hand held at the ready and coat billowing from the artificial wind the movement had produced. He began to push his palm toward the man’s forehead when his eyes suddenly caught wind of who he was about to Block.
“…Kaden?”
“Whoa,” the blonde courier muttered, stepping back and holding up his hands, “What the hell are you trying to do?” The hybrid pulled his hand back quickly, embarrassed. He scoffed inwardly at the notion—why didn’t he just do it? It wasn’t as if this delivery boy meant anything to him. Granted, the man was probably stronger than he, so the technique might not have worked in the first place, anyhow. He supposed it was better that he had stopped short. “Wait a sec,” he muttered, eyeing the boy, “You’re Juno, right? Sophia’s friend?”
“Yeah,” the half-Saiyan muttered, half-surprised that Kaden had remembered his name. In the seer’s eyes, the courier was arrogant and self-righteous; he hadn’t even remembered the hybrid the last time they’d met. Juno had been just a flash in his memory, even though they’d spent an afternoon working to stop an evil force. In close company, he might venture to add to that statement.
After Juno had assumed a disarming stance, Kaden, too, relaxed a little, but an awkward silence settled in for a few seconds as the two men observed their partners, standing clumsily across from one another, searching for something to say. Juno’s eyes narrowed every time he looked at Kaden’s face. He wanted to… to hurt him, not only for what he had done to the half-Saiyan, but even more so for whatever unknown thing he’d done to Sophia. Juno supposed that was the good side in him coming out—he wanted to protect his friend, to avenge her for whatever this guy had done to upset her. Yet he couldn’t find it in himself to hurt Kaden. He attempted to muster up something to say, maybe get out of the conversation before it began. “So…” He straightened up as he said this, and began to walk towards the other side of the courier.
“Hey, Juno,” the blonde started, turning to face the boy. The hybrid glanced over his shoulder, but the expression on the face of the courier When you were in a place like this, being alone meant you were not in good company. Kaden mustered the least awkward thing he could find: “You hungry?”
Fond memories of food began to set in at the same time that the Saiyan hunger did, and the seer couldn’t find it within himself to resist an invitation to eat, as much as he was sure he would hate spending more time with the ki specialist. “Sure,” he muttered against his better judgment, and he and Kaden began to walk—silently—towards a small diner that sat just off from the rest of the carnival, next to a larger building, the hotel. The hybrid scolded himself—why was he disarming himself in front of him? He had spent countless thoughts on the reasons why he hated the courier, and now he had just agreed—just like that—to get something to eat with him?
It baffled his mind; whatever forces were at work in this carnival, the black-haired halfling was not himself. It just… wasn’t possible. He convinced himself that he wouldn’t have agreed to a meal like this under normal circumstances, but at the same time, he couldn’t be sure. There was some aura about Kaden that made the fortuneteller curious. And it sucked.
They sat in a booth near the door. It was a joint choice, as they both would’ve liked to be as close to the exit as possible in case their conversation got sour. The blonde made an attempt to sit closest to the front door, but Juno quickly made sure that he had gotten that seat. A pretty waitress came up and took their drink order, and the hybrid visibly flirted with her. Kaden seemed to have something else on his mind—and that intrigued Juno. If the blonde courier was as upset over what had occurred as Sophia was, then, well… this was going to be an interesting conversation.
“So,” Juno muttered, being bold enough to initiate speech, “…how’s life?”
A pathetic ice breaker, but Kaden answered nonetheless: “Life is… good, I guess,” he muttered, but the rescue worker knew that the red-jacket sporting hero was lying through his teeth. He didn’t push the matter, though.
“I saw Sophia,” the hybrid spoke, and Kaden’s ruby-red eyes flitted up, meeting eyes with the seer. “She’s alive again, you know,” he continued, knowing full and well that the courier knew exactly what he was talking about.
Kaden simply nodded. “Yeah,” he replied, “It’s… something I’ve got to get used to.” Juno’s interest was piqued—that last statement had been bleeding subtext and the pseudo-psychoanalyst that he was soon becoming as this conversation went on brooded for more. Eventually, noticing that the half-Saiyan had no intention of kicking the talk any further, Kaden reluctantly continued. “We didn’t exactly get started on the right foot.”
“Is that so?” Juno asked, fully aware.
“I’d… rather not talk about it,” Kaden closed the door. The hybrid inwardly cursed himself for not having something more forceful in his playbook. Surprisingly, however, Kaden hadn’t let go of the subject either. “Juno,” he began hesitantly, not all too sure that he could trust the testimony of the boy who had tried to kill him on a rooftop, but finding no other options to answer his question, “Do you think that I don’t have my priorities straight? Because I’ve been getting that a lot, lately.”
“Absolutely,” Juno replied swiftly and honestly. Kaden, not expecting this, sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.
“People who have little else to believe in believe in you, Kaden, and whether you know it or not, you’re sitting there basking in your own glory. Everyone does it, you just have the advantage of being... likeable.” Kaden was slightly struck at this—Sophia had told him as much before, but the hybrid wasn’t quite sure he was ready to take it without a second opinion, even if that second opinion was a bit unreliable. Whether or not he had listened to the priestess, he was listening now. Or, at least, Juno hoped so.
Finally, he replied. “…thanks for your honesty, I guess.”
“That’s what friends are for,” Juno spat without thinking. He shouted a ton of expletives in his mind, not daring to reveal his frustration out loud. What the hell was he thinking? Friends with Kaden? As if. He felt lightheaded all of a sudden, and leaned on the table, clutching his forehead, saying, “But… uh… t-that’s enough about you, I think.”
“Yeah,” Kaden muttered, watching the hybrid carefully, “…are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Juno responded, “I’m just a bit… sick… and I’m getting a little bit of a… headache.”
What the hell was happening? He’d been fine ever since he’d gotten here, and now, all of a sudden, Gamer decided to flip the switch and turn off the healing powers of Kill Town? How was he supposed to compete now? He bit his lip and felt a bead of sweat forming on his brow. He looked up at Kaden and smiled, trying to hide the pain he felt in his ribs. The courier eyed him curiously—he was well aware that there was something Juno wasn’t telling him, but like the hybrid had planned to not press the Sophia issue before, it was obvious that Kaden didn’t want to pester him if it really was nothing. Though Juno had to admit—he was kind of shocked that there was genuine concern in Kaden’s eyes. For the longest time, the black-haired boy had felt as if he and Kaden were as far apart as the poles of the Earth.
All of a sudden, his ribs were in pain once again, the hurt raging even more furiously than before, and he sat back, attempting to hide his torture as a single thought was echoing throughout his mind: What the hell is happening to me?!
As the familiar scents of buttered popcorn and other, more greasy foods began to waft towards him, however, he was soon reminded that he had new things to worry about—he’d gotten out of that event, no matter how it’d turned out, and he couldn’t sit around pondering past mistakes. That game was over and done, it was time to move on to the next event, which he knew would be making an appearance sooner rather than later.
His attention, however, was soon drawn away from the task at hand as he noticed the shiny, middle-finger sporting badge he’d stolen earlier flopping onto the ground ahead of him. He sighed; it must’ve fallen out when he had hit the ground. With a grunt, the hybrid pushed against the dirt and slowly rose to his feet, grasping his head as it began to ache. He’d probably just stood up too fast, he reasoned, slowly walking over to Kaden’s badge and picking it up off of the ground.
Sliding the accessory into his coat pocket, the black-haired boy stretched, lifting his arms high above his head and cracking his knuckles as he loosened the muscles in his arms. Being trapped in that cramped cockpit had made him rather tense.
As the life slowly came back to his tendons, he also felt that certain spark once again, thankful that his ki had been restored after he’d been deprived of it during the last round. He brought his hands down and looked cautiously at his palm as he focused his energy there. Violet ki began to circulate in his hand, eventually materializing an orb of lavender energy. With a smile he brushed his hand through the orb, effectively neutralizing it.
Slowly but surely, Juno was regaining his strength. He had been at the top of his game after Friend or Foe, but the revolution had taken a sheer toll on his abilities, and when he found himself lazing away, ‘resting,’ he was really slowly letting his powers slip away from him. Only recently, in fact, had he been able to access some of his old abilities—the ones that allowed him to use ki to invade the minds of others. He recalled briefly the soldier on the Kill Cluster that he had effectively Blocked; of course, the technique had been used rather spontaneously. It could’ve just been the luck of the draw. That settled it, then. Until the next event, the hybrid planned to spend his time practicing his abilities, seeing which ones worked and which ones he’d have to gain back.
Footsteps echoed from the other side of the tent, and taking the opportunity, Juno quickly pressed his back to the big top, listening as the footsteps got closer and closer. He readied himself, bringing up the palm of his right hand—all he’d have to do was turn the corner, put his hand to the man’s forehead, and things should fall into place.
He mentally prepared himself, letting the ki slowly flow into his fingers, and then stepped out with one foot, letting his entire body follow suit. The semi-Saiyan seer spun around into view of the target, hand held at the ready and coat billowing from the artificial wind the movement had produced. He began to push his palm toward the man’s forehead when his eyes suddenly caught wind of who he was about to Block.
“…Kaden?”
“Whoa,” the blonde courier muttered, stepping back and holding up his hands, “What the hell are you trying to do?” The hybrid pulled his hand back quickly, embarrassed. He scoffed inwardly at the notion—why didn’t he just do it? It wasn’t as if this delivery boy meant anything to him. Granted, the man was probably stronger than he, so the technique might not have worked in the first place, anyhow. He supposed it was better that he had stopped short. “Wait a sec,” he muttered, eyeing the boy, “You’re Juno, right? Sophia’s friend?”
“Yeah,” the half-Saiyan muttered, half-surprised that Kaden had remembered his name. In the seer’s eyes, the courier was arrogant and self-righteous; he hadn’t even remembered the hybrid the last time they’d met. Juno had been just a flash in his memory, even though they’d spent an afternoon working to stop an evil force. In close company, he might venture to add to that statement.
After Juno had assumed a disarming stance, Kaden, too, relaxed a little, but an awkward silence settled in for a few seconds as the two men observed their partners, standing clumsily across from one another, searching for something to say. Juno’s eyes narrowed every time he looked at Kaden’s face. He wanted to… to hurt him, not only for what he had done to the half-Saiyan, but even more so for whatever unknown thing he’d done to Sophia. Juno supposed that was the good side in him coming out—he wanted to protect his friend, to avenge her for whatever this guy had done to upset her. Yet he couldn’t find it in himself to hurt Kaden. He attempted to muster up something to say, maybe get out of the conversation before it began. “So…” He straightened up as he said this, and began to walk towards the other side of the courier.
“Hey, Juno,” the blonde started, turning to face the boy. The hybrid glanced over his shoulder, but the expression on the face of the courier When you were in a place like this, being alone meant you were not in good company. Kaden mustered the least awkward thing he could find: “You hungry?”
Fond memories of food began to set in at the same time that the Saiyan hunger did, and the seer couldn’t find it within himself to resist an invitation to eat, as much as he was sure he would hate spending more time with the ki specialist. “Sure,” he muttered against his better judgment, and he and Kaden began to walk—silently—towards a small diner that sat just off from the rest of the carnival, next to a larger building, the hotel. The hybrid scolded himself—why was he disarming himself in front of him? He had spent countless thoughts on the reasons why he hated the courier, and now he had just agreed—just like that—to get something to eat with him?
It baffled his mind; whatever forces were at work in this carnival, the black-haired halfling was not himself. It just… wasn’t possible. He convinced himself that he wouldn’t have agreed to a meal like this under normal circumstances, but at the same time, he couldn’t be sure. There was some aura about Kaden that made the fortuneteller curious. And it sucked.
They sat in a booth near the door. It was a joint choice, as they both would’ve liked to be as close to the exit as possible in case their conversation got sour. The blonde made an attempt to sit closest to the front door, but Juno quickly made sure that he had gotten that seat. A pretty waitress came up and took their drink order, and the hybrid visibly flirted with her. Kaden seemed to have something else on his mind—and that intrigued Juno. If the blonde courier was as upset over what had occurred as Sophia was, then, well… this was going to be an interesting conversation.
“So,” Juno muttered, being bold enough to initiate speech, “…how’s life?”
A pathetic ice breaker, but Kaden answered nonetheless: “Life is… good, I guess,” he muttered, but the rescue worker knew that the red-jacket sporting hero was lying through his teeth. He didn’t push the matter, though.
“I saw Sophia,” the hybrid spoke, and Kaden’s ruby-red eyes flitted up, meeting eyes with the seer. “She’s alive again, you know,” he continued, knowing full and well that the courier knew exactly what he was talking about.
Kaden simply nodded. “Yeah,” he replied, “It’s… something I’ve got to get used to.” Juno’s interest was piqued—that last statement had been bleeding subtext and the pseudo-psychoanalyst that he was soon becoming as this conversation went on brooded for more. Eventually, noticing that the half-Saiyan had no intention of kicking the talk any further, Kaden reluctantly continued. “We didn’t exactly get started on the right foot.”
“Is that so?” Juno asked, fully aware.
“I’d… rather not talk about it,” Kaden closed the door. The hybrid inwardly cursed himself for not having something more forceful in his playbook. Surprisingly, however, Kaden hadn’t let go of the subject either. “Juno,” he began hesitantly, not all too sure that he could trust the testimony of the boy who had tried to kill him on a rooftop, but finding no other options to answer his question, “Do you think that I don’t have my priorities straight? Because I’ve been getting that a lot, lately.”
“Absolutely,” Juno replied swiftly and honestly. Kaden, not expecting this, sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.
“People who have little else to believe in believe in you, Kaden, and whether you know it or not, you’re sitting there basking in your own glory. Everyone does it, you just have the advantage of being... likeable.” Kaden was slightly struck at this—Sophia had told him as much before, but the hybrid wasn’t quite sure he was ready to take it without a second opinion, even if that second opinion was a bit unreliable. Whether or not he had listened to the priestess, he was listening now. Or, at least, Juno hoped so.
Finally, he replied. “…thanks for your honesty, I guess.”
“That’s what friends are for,” Juno spat without thinking. He shouted a ton of expletives in his mind, not daring to reveal his frustration out loud. What the hell was he thinking? Friends with Kaden? As if. He felt lightheaded all of a sudden, and leaned on the table, clutching his forehead, saying, “But… uh… t-that’s enough about you, I think.”
“Yeah,” Kaden muttered, watching the hybrid carefully, “…are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Juno responded, “I’m just a bit… sick… and I’m getting a little bit of a… headache.”
What the hell was happening? He’d been fine ever since he’d gotten here, and now, all of a sudden, Gamer decided to flip the switch and turn off the healing powers of Kill Town? How was he supposed to compete now? He bit his lip and felt a bead of sweat forming on his brow. He looked up at Kaden and smiled, trying to hide the pain he felt in his ribs. The courier eyed him curiously—he was well aware that there was something Juno wasn’t telling him, but like the hybrid had planned to not press the Sophia issue before, it was obvious that Kaden didn’t want to pester him if it really was nothing. Though Juno had to admit—he was kind of shocked that there was genuine concern in Kaden’s eyes. For the longest time, the black-haired boy had felt as if he and Kaden were as far apart as the poles of the Earth.
All of a sudden, his ribs were in pain once again, the hurt raging even more furiously than before, and he sat back, attempting to hide his torture as a single thought was echoing throughout his mind: What the hell is happening to me?!