[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/fwTNIGR.png[/img] [color=tomato]"In hindsight, trying to copy my opponent’s banner may have been a bad idea."[/color] [color=888888] -Mika Fang[/color] [/center] MP: 10/10 Swan Gauge: 78% [center][h3]Chinatown, Pax Septimus [sub]1:28 PM, 3 days ago[/sub][/h3] [img]https://i.imgur.com/JJWfGCt.png[/img] ▶︎• ၊၊||၊|။||||။‌‌‌၊|• 3:10 [sub][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVFL8Jn-fzg]Daisuke Ishiwatari – Kill DOG As A Sacrifice To DOG [/url][/sub][/center] Her blades dripped with blood. Her blades were often clean. Monsters had evolved to stay out of human consciousness, and part of that was leaving no trace of their existence. Their bodies flaked apart like ash when they died, leaving nothing to study. Even the blood on Mika’s blades dissipated when she vanquished what soiled them. But her most recent prey was smart. It knew it couldn’t beat her in a fight, and so it ran. She managed to get a single good swing at the werewolf’s chest before it took off running. A single underling wasn’t worth hunting down, but this one knew things. Mika had slain the other mobsters and if she wanted any more information, she’d have to choke it out of this snitch. He was fast, and well dressed. His tailcoat fluttered in the wind along with his tail. He bolted over a chain link fence and kept right on running. Mika didn’t let up either. Though clearing a fifteen foot tall fence with a jump was a feat most espers couldn’t accomplish. Unless they used their magic. [center][self][Pull] : [i]no mp cost[/i][/center] She jumped off the ground and extended a hand. A spectral wolf head manifested and took hold of her wrist. Before she could lose momentum, the spirit gave her a firm yank. What had seemed like a troublesome obstacle had been cleared with little effort. The landing would be harder, but she had trained for it. She tucked her head and rolled to her feet instead of smashing her head like a pumpkin. The chase continued. The werewolf left the back ally and arrived in the middle of busy China Town. It was just late enough that everyone was back at work, but the street stalls were busy serving up raw fish and noodles. The wolf wasn’t hungry for anything but freedom. He shoved his way through the crowd. It wasn’t long before Mika emerged from the back ally. Any other city and a tuxedo wearing werewolf being chased by big red hood and her big bowie knives might cause some people alarm, but not in Pax Septimus. Street performances were commonplace, as were crazy people. They were given a little space, but otherwise it was just another Tuesday morning. It was only a matter of time before the werewolf lead her into an ambush or managed to shake her completely. She needed to end this chase as fast as possible. She pushed forward and spoke under her breath. [color=ff6347]"Speed of an ostrich…"[/color] [center][Self][Transform][Full Extend] : [i]2 mp, recover 1, 9/10 left[/i][/center] She could feel the spirits of ostriches entwining with her legs, and she sprinted forward. The werewolf’s lead was starting to shrink. He had parted the crowd like the red sea, which gave Mika a straight shot at him. In a desperate move to delay the inevitable, he ran off the street into a busy road. It was a smart move, actually. Monsters were quite resistant to physical harm, while an esper wasn’t. But this wasn’t Mika’s first rodeo. She approximated his direction, then aimed across the street. [center][Beam][Blink] : [i]1 mp, recover 1, 9/10 left[/i][/center] The werewolf finally bumbled his way across five lanes of traffic, and only got hit by one car. It did absolutely no damage to him but his tailcoat got torn on some bloke’s front bumper. Once he got to the other side, he noticed Mika was leaning up against a building. She took her dagger and demonstrated its sharpness by dragging it along the brick siding. The mortar flaked away under the blade. [color=ff6347]"Just tell me what I want to know, and I’ll let you go."[/color] He ran again, not even taking the time to consider the offer. It was the right choice, as Mika never spared monsters. Not even nice ones. But the wolf was truly out of options. How could you escape someone who was faster than you, and could teleport on top of it? By appealing to their humanity of course. The werewolf grabbed the nearest person he could and held his claw up to her neck. Another smart move, as they picked the perfect hostage. An old woman who couldn't defend herself, likely a widower, but still with many good years left in her. It wasn’t hard to picture her doing volunteer work or looking after kids, if the tacky craft pieces she was wearing were any indication. The world would be a darker place without her, and Pax Septimus was plenty dark already. [b][color=ffffff]"Now here’s what we’re going to do."[/color][/b] He made sure that his claws cut her enough to draw blood. This guy was serious. [b][color=ffffff]"You’re going to drop those blades and kick them over to me. And then once I’m sure you can't pursue me anymore, I’m going to leave."[/color][/b] Ah, the classic not-lie. He’ll know Mika can’t pursue him anymore when she’s dead, and the old woman will likely be dead too. It was a play she had seen and she never participated in them. The reality of the situation was that surrendering now would be a death sentence to both of them. Monsters were only monsters, and giving the werewolf what he wanted was always going to be a bad idea. Killing both of them would save far more lives that allowing him to live a second longer. As clever as the wolf had been up to this point, Mika felt like he had just shown the limit of his intelligence. She knew he could be outsmarted now. Her eyes began to glow as spirits raced up and down her body. [center][Spawn][Summon][Multi-Cast] : [i]4 mp, recover 1, 6/10 left[/i][/center] [b][color=ffffff]"Hey! You keep doing that, and I’m going to kill her!"[/color][/b] He pressed a second claw into her neck. This one did not cause her to bleed, interestingly enough. Mika sighed. [color=ff6347]"I’m just going to heal this scratch your friend gave me earlier."[/color] She showed the Werewolf her arm. Sure enough, it had been cut when she had ambushed their pack earlier. [color=ff6347]"I won’t be able to do it once I-"[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"Whatever, just get it over with!"[/color][/b] This was good.He was showing weakness. Or was it confidence? Either way, he felt in control enough to let Mika heal herself. That meant her trick was working. [color=ff6347]"You understand, right? Without my weapons…"[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"Yea."[/color][/b] He growled. [b][color=ffffff]"If you drop those weapons, you’ll eventually turn into a harmless human. One I can run away from. Now quit stalling and drop those daggers!"[/color][/b] She held out her hands, loosened her grip, but her weapons never left her hands. [center][Projectile][Damage X][Poison][Homing][Avoid][Bend] : [i]6 mp, 0/10 left[/i][/center] The failed attempt to heal herself had been a successful attempt to call a spirit. A feline entity oversaw the altercation below and knew just what to do. It picked up a spirit puppy with its fangs and cast it towards the werewolf. The sound of a bark got the wolf to look towards the sky, but it was too late. No matter how the wolf man moved, or how he planned to use his hostage as a shield, the puppy nimbly weaved around it’s prey before latching onto his shoulder. At which point the lovable puppy face ballooned to that of a full grown wolf and bit down. The Wolf man’s arm was severed instantly. He hadn’t even howled in pain before Mika lunged for him. He used his remaining arm to shove the old woman into Mika, who in turn shoved her into a nearby pedestrian. That bite had contained some venom too. He wouldn’t be able to run for long. But Mika was getting tired of chasing him. In his current state he could harm anyone. He had to know his time was coming, and might go on a rampage just to spite her. Even if he wasn’t worth it, this werewolf was going to get the full brunt of Mika’s powers. Her eyes flashed, destiny aligned itself with her vision, and the unlikely outcome was the only one that would ever happen. All that was left to do was watch it play out. [center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/81fcca52-e25e-4cd8-abc2-685416495280.png[/img][/center] Pax Septimus was known as the city of blood for a lot of reasons. The gist was that it was plenty cursed. Right now a meteor fell towards the city. It wasn’t big, it barely made the news. But it didn’t burn up in the atmosphere. It hit earth straight on and was cooked down to a fist sized rock. The speed it was moving was so absurdly fast that humans do not have the mind to properly grasp how fast it is. Normally monsters were quite resistant to physical attacks, but that was like expecting a waterproof phone to survive the deepest depths of the ocean. The stone fell from the sky and struck the werewolf in the knee. The wound was instantly cauterized, but he didn’t have a leg to stand on. He tumbled to the ground and the chase was over. Mika rolled him onto his back and mounted him. She stuck the tip of her blade into his chest and fretted her brow. [color=ff6347]"Tell me where Bookman is."[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"Why?"[/color][/b] the monster groaned. [b][color=ffffff]"Y-ou’re just going to kill me anyway!"[/color][/b] Smart boy. [color=ff6347]"You don’t know that."[/color] She pulled the blade free and stuck it under his remaining arm. [color=ff6347]"You’re a small fry. I’m looking for a big catch."[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"S-crew you!"[/color][/b] [color=ff6347]"But if this drags on, I’m going to have to hunt down your family."[/color] He refocused his gaze, she continued [color=ff6347]"I know how you guys work, you can’t help but settle down with someone and tell them all of your secrets."[/color] She pulled his wallet out of his pants and flipped it open. [color=ff6347]"Cute family, a shame their father’s a piece of shit."[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"And you call us monsters…"[/color][/b] He growled. [b][color=ffffff]"Bookman went to South Town to settle some business with some debtors. He should be there."[/color][/b] [color=ff6347]"That’s it?"[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"He’s doing something with medicine. Apparently there’s a guy in China Town. That’s all I know."[/color][/b] [color=ff6347]"Well, that’s a lead anyway."[/color] [b][color=ffffff]"So now what? Do you let me go? Let me be a better person for my family?"[/color][/b] [color=ff6347]"Something like that."[/color] Mika’s knife sunk into his chest. There wasn’t even a whimper when his body turned into ash and blew away. To the onlookers, this was just another part of a performance. A few of them clapped as Mika rose to her feet, but she did not bother to turn and accept the applause. [b][color=ffffff]"I love Red Savior’s performances!"[/color][/b] One man said to another. [b][color=ffffff]"They’re so visceral and raw!"[/color][/b] [b][color=ffffff]"I just think pissed off girls are hot."[/color][/b] Mika took one last look at the photos in the wallet. Maybe there was more information to follow up on, but it sounded like for the first time in a long time, she was going to have to leave the city that took her mother’s life. … … … [center] [h3]Chinatown, South Town [sub]1:28 PM[/sub][/h3] [img]https://www.fightersgeneration.com/nf9/game/stage/realbout-fatalfury2-china-stage.gif[/img] ▶︎• ၊၊||၊|။||||။‌‌‌၊|• 4:21 [sub][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwFiIUAa5Jg]Dorkus64 – Main Menu [/url][/sub] [/center] Same minute, same type of locale. Deja vu? Couldn’t be, coincidence didn’t exist. Mika considered trying to keep a low profile by remaining untransformed. However, Bookman was a rather clever fellow and already knew what the real Mika looked like. Better to strut around as Red Savior and be ready if a fight. It wasn’t like anyone had ever stopped her before, and how different could one China town be from another? Very, apparently. On paper they should have been the same. Pax Septimus and South Town were hard places that had their share of dangerous individuals. An entity like Red Savior rarely caused a stir in Pax, and the same seemed to be the case in South Town. If there was a difference she could notice, it would be the attitudes surrounding fighting. In Pax Septimus, Mika kept her fighting in the shadows, and tried to make it feel like a street performance when things got out of hand. Nobody liked the idea of a real fight, so they had to make it seem less serious. South Town celebrated fighting, however. Maybe they even worshiped it. They held big fighting tournaments and it was nothing for people to block off traffic to make an improv arena to fight in. Fighting prowess was something to be displayed, not hidden under the veil of a performative art. The fights were real, the pain was real. They delighted in the lack of a script. When Terry called out to Mika, she hadn’t thought she was the one being singled out. Her eyes went to his finger, then over her shoulder. All she found were rows and rows of eyes that were locked onto her. She grunted, but the sound was totally masked by the crowd’s clapping. They had just seen a great show and they wanted an encore. Her eyes swung back over to Terry as her brain tried to catch up to his words, now knowing that everything he said was intended for her. It was an interesting arrangement of comments wasn’t it? You called people cutie when you wanted to flatter them, told them they were tough if they’d make strong allies, and asked them if they were looking for a fight if you were itching for a fight yourself. As opposed as all of the comments seemed, Mika believed he meant all of them. It was just one more way the fighting culture of South Town differed from Pax Septimus. She understood it, but she didn’t agree with it. [color=ff6347]"You could say that."[/color] She placed a hand on her hip, right above one of her sheathed knives. The unconscious combatant did not escape her notice, nor did the destruction that lead to his eventual knock out. [color=ff6347]"I don’t suppose you’ve seen a tall, dark skinned man with the head of a sheep and numerous horns?"[/color] She held her hand up to her face to stroke an invisible snout. [color=ff6347]"Has kind of a long face with jagged teeth? Black eyes with cyan irises? Talks with a smooth, velvety voice?"[/color] Mika folded her arms. [color=ff6347]"He’s a lifestyle influencer that goes by the name [url=https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/b08b1331-b794-40bf-8f24-40a9641124ee.jpg]Bookman[/url]."[/color] Mika added, as if that suddenly made everything she just said make sense.