Han clears nine paces before Lotus can finish crying out. Her patta traces a glittering arc through the sky; a late-falling star with deadly aim.

“You want me to just surrender?!”

And down. And through. And swipe and slash and through and through and ever forward. Han calls forth an avalanche of steel, churning the ground to mud in her wake. Let slip from the mountain heights by an innocent demigod’s cry for help. She is unstoppable. She is indomitable. All her body is a weapon, and no one can stand against her.

(But not her left arm. It hangs by her side, only sometimes shifting, for balance. Not the vaulting, free-flowing ideal of violence she was before.)

“You want me to take a damn vacation while you steal my home out from under me?!”

She opens herself, and the Essence comes roaring in. With every slice of her blade, the midmorning air turns to reeling clouds of steam. A sword of justice, wielded in defiance, barring the way to Lotus with the power of Heaven that was her birthright. And she takes in more, and more, and more still.

(But not to her zenith. Not so brightly that the Beast comes forth. Not so hot that she burns all around her. Not with Lotus still so near.)

“You want [i]her[/i]. I don’t know where she fits in your plans, but you’ll fit in a stewpot when I’m done with you. And you thought, you thought-!” She snarls, and her own sword creaks in her iron grip. “You thought we’d [i]just go along with you?![/i] You stupid, swaggering, Dominion [i]rat![/i] Save your breath and spare us the wilting speech!”

Such as it has been. Such as it is. Such as it always will be. The Dominion comes to steal, to corrupt, to [i]own,[/i] and she stands against them. The Dominion will fight her, from their fortresses to their luxury barges, from their soldiers to her own neighbors. They may wound her. But they will not break her. They cannot break her. She will give her body and mind and soul to this war, and when the ash settles it will be her standing. Her!

(But not her heart. Her heart has no place in this battle. So. It cannot possibly hear the longing in Lotus’ cry. Or wonder at the strange, curious picture this Dominion spy paints, of quiet time, of true hearts unfolding, of [i]fun.[/i])

[Rolling to Fight: 5 + 4 + 2 = [b]11[/b]. Choosing to:
-Inflict a Condition, with cutting words or violence
-Create an opportunity for Lotus
-Provoke Piri with a harsh rejection of her goals, and take a String on her.

Piri chooses 1 option in return.]