[Marking Insecure]

[i]Not one second.[/i]

Mirror wanted to step back, assess the damage, orient herself, think of what to say and do next. Think of how to recover. She should pursue, use the one advantage she had, the one flaw in her opponent's thinking in this critical moment -

She takes one step back. Two.

> haha you have no idea how much this hurts <3

It was true. She wasn't fighting with a Zaldarian God. The Bezorel was not designed for her - barely even retrofitted for her. The psychic safeguards that had meant to keep her from the neurological feedback hadn't held properly and now her right arm was nothing but pins and needles - like the crash of renewed blood to a limb that had circulation cut off. She could barely move it. Oh wow. Oh wow she was in so much trouble.

This was the cost of holding fire in her hand. This was the cost of reaching out those fingers towards the sun.

The Bezorel's left arm reconfigured as it drew its sword.

She still had five fingers left.

Her feet were so heavy as she took her stance. Each footfall emerged from the water in a cascade and slammed back down into the mud. Sword point out, damaged side angled away from her opponent. One real arm left, one with enough range of motion to twist, parry, and strike. Her secondary shoulder-mounted missile launcher threw her balance even further off towards the left. Shedding scales fell away as point-defense flamethrower ports opened all over her body. Her skin burned as she felt their pilot lights against her steel. 

Her feet were so heavy. They were packed with rocket fuel and jump jets. All interior leg armour had been traded out for fuel and thruster systems. If Mirror had put that trident into her leg instead of her arm she'd be [i]done[/i]. 

> something i think about a lot is how we would have fought with our positions reversed
> me in the Gods-Smiting Whip. you in the Aeteline.
> how much our imaginations are shaped by our tools
> recently i've been thinking about what you'd do if you piloted the Bezorel
> the potential you'd see
> the possibilities it'd present

With a hiss and crack, the cockpit of the Bezorel lifted open. Solarel stood up into the rain, illuminated all about by the pink and gold of her command console. She lifted up with her an anti-materiel sniper rifle that unfolded to three meters in length, and she braced it left-handed against the top of her navigational scanner. Scopes flickered relentlessly as they cut through the steam and smoke of her own destruction, zeroing in on the distant shape of Mirror behind her armour plated glass. If she stared at the flickering heat blob she could almost see Mirror's heart beat.

The Bezorel does not imitate the motion at all. It take another heavy step in its careful duelist's stance. She was maintaining both thoughts in her head simultaneously. It was easier than it sounded. It was all about Mirror, after all.

> but i don't want you to think i'm looking to win through sheer surprise
> so i'm just going to tell you all of the bezorel's secrets <3
> it has two atlas-class jump thrusters that i mostly have the hang of
> 12 remaining missiles
> 10 flamethrowers
> mining scanner
> the severed right arm still has a functional wrist-mounted gatling gun that i'm aiming at you rn
> also the laser arrays are still live and doing the same
> all of those have self destruct explosives too
> the sword has the ability to do sonic vibrations. very cool.
> and i've got a sniper rifle i reckon could break your cockpit glass if i landed 3 direct hits

[u][i][b]CRACK![/b][/i][/u]

> 2 direct hits <3