As Starfire attempted to apprehend the man he screamed at the top of his lungs.
"You are the one who needs to be leaving of the alone!" She shouted as she tried to wrestle him to the ground. There was a tremendous build up of power and he released an incredible amount of energy. A wave of heat over came Starfire, and while that no effect, the sheer amount of pure force was nothing to be ignored. Indeed, her eyes widened and she yelped as she was flung across the stage and landed with a heavy thud upon the surface. She managed to disperse her momentum and rolled onto her back. Thoroughly rattled, the orange-skinned woman stared up at the night sky and blinked a few times. Shaking her head to dismiss the fog she scrambled to her feet.
The man was insane! Angry as the Warkin but with none of the discipline. He turned and, seeing that the dancer was gone, did great self-harm and threatened to kill everyone in the place. Starfire's heart was racing and her palms were sweating as she ignited them with green energy. This was a crowded place. Never before had she experienced conflict so spontaneous and terrifying. There were no banners or chanting or frontlines, or even a clear objective. Civilians were everywhere. Starfire was the only Tamaran there, and the light of the moon provided her with a mere fraction of the power of the sun. Fortunately, her Stargem allowed her to store up energy and use it. She quickly checked to make sure it was okay, and thankfully it was. Her entire body took the brunt of the blast instead of just the shiny stone.
Starfire wanted to get back into the fight as quickly as possible. She had been knocked a considerable distance away and had been on the ground for a few seconds. She quickly ignited rolling Starpoints beneath her boots and began skating over to the crazed villain. She reached twenty miles per hour and popped the skates, launching her about five feet into the air. It was enough to get gravity on her side. Shifting her weight and hips, she span 360 degrees in the air and delivered a kick to his shoulder. If all went well he would be knocked out of the way and to the ground allowing Starfire to roll to her feet and keep up the pressure. If the man didn't budge, she would fall on her back and it would be quite embarassing. The kick was imbued with some energy, but Starfire had used most of her energy on simply getting back over to him fast enough to interrupt any schemes he was cooking up. Therefore she had only the brief moment in the air to convert the skates into additional power in her leg.
"Hiyah!" She cried out as she brought the kick down on his shoulder.
Veronica was doing a handstand in her apartment. Across from her, was Bloodrose, also doing a handstand. They stared deep into each other's eyes, unflinching, unbreaking. Resilient as fortress gates, the two beacons of stability had been at it for six minutes.
Bloodrose spoke first. "biiitch"
Veronica narrowed her eyes.
Her nemesis continued: "you ugly. biiiitch."
Veronica raised an eyebrow. "I'm...I'm ugly?"
"yeah bitch. You ugly. biiitch."
"You might as well be looking into a mirror."
"the ugly mirror, maybe. bitch."
Veronica shook her head. "It's not gonna work, lady. I'm a champion. I've gotta will of iron."
"you look like someone hit you in the face with a tire iron. will of iron my ass, biiitch."
"We have the exact same face, dude!"
"you wish"
"Oh, my God!" Veronica laughed. "You're unbelievable."
"Unbelievably hot"
"Okay. That's enough. I have things to do, better things to do than to waste my tame with your ass." "you wish you could waste time with my ass""That's really gross."
Bloodrose shrugged, still doing a handstand. "whatever you say. all i see is a bitch who can't do a handstand."
"I can do a handstand forever. I'm just choosing to leave."
"then leave, bitch" Neither of them moved. Bloodrose looked on expectantly, her eyebrows raised. Veronica grinded her jaw and made a very angry face.
"No." And so it continued.
"You two are pathetic." Kilroy chastised. Standing up from her laptop she went over and push kicked Veronica in the back. Yelping, she fell forward and knocked into Bloodrose, who also fell over. The two were tangled up in limbs. Veronica looked up at Kilroy with a look of betrayal in her face.
Kilroy was unapologetic. "The Pariah are making their move on a chemical lab. Mary is there already. There's a fire, a police chase, and several Variants are on the scene." Kilroy sat back down at her laptop. She had a map of the area around the chemical lab, and a live feed from Mary's phone.
"i was about to win, you basic bitch"
Veronica stood up and leaned over Kilroy's shoulder. "How did Mary get there so fast?"
"Luck, really. Plus, she knows the streets better than any of us. Mary is mainly trying to get a profile down of some of the Variants in the area."
Veronica closed her eyes and concentrated. There you are, Mary. You okay, girl?
Yup, was the response. Succinct as usual, Mary.
-Midtown-
Mary had her phone out, recording the events of the fire. The fire fighters might try to keep her away, but there was a lot of fire to concetrate on. Several Variants arrived on the scene. A female variant seemed immune to flames. A male seemed capable of manipulating matter. Mary also earlier spotted a woman in the shadows, but it was hard to tell. There were of course, the thieves, who Mary had managed to catch a glimpse of. Either way, as more and more Variants arrived on the scene, Mary focused her phone on them, trying to learn as much about their powers as possible, and what they looked like. Saving people from the fire.
Hey, Mary. There's a security firm nearby, and there are signs of commotion. Radio chatter has stopped being output, and a lot more chatter is being input. Something might be going down. Besides, I'm sure there will be plenty of footage of the fire. That was Kilroy. Ok.
Mary pulled her dark grey hoodie over her head and began jogging over to the nearby security firm. It certainly looked quiet in there, all the lights were off which was unusual. Mary circled around the building, filming the whole thing. She turned the corner, hearing laughter and speech. Skidding to a stop, she saw a woman wading between shadows in an alleyway. Raising her phone, she zoomed in on the mysterious woman and crouched down to follow her.
Jehenne looked back and forth and gaped as the bids for her sky rocketed. What? What was going on? Why would someone pay so much money for her and this man? The man began shouting things about a conspiracy, and Jehenne wasn't sure what to think. "What's going on? Why are you wasting so much money?" It was the first time she had spoken loud enough for anyone to hear her. She had not anticipated that there would be people out there looking specifically for her. Her plans relied on relative anonymity. At least not being special amongst the nobles. If someone had some nefarious scheme in mind just for her, than she would have to recalculate.
This was a horrible planet, Starfire thought resentfully to herself.
Earth seemed to be full of nothing but cruel savages so far! Starfire was still holding her neck with her right hand, where one of the natives bit her after she tried to commune with him. It hurt very much, and Starfire needed to find a safe place. This whole planet could not be this hostile, surely? She was speeding across and through a grassy field with trees sparsely dotted around. Beneath her boots were two glowing green orbs, and she was bouncing and skating across the grass leaving behind a trail of scorch marks. Like flaming roller skates, she moved one leg infront of the other.
Finally, she found a road. The monsters had stopped pursuing her, it seemed, and the world around her began to look healthier. For two days she travelled this way, not pausing or stopping. She came across a few small villages and towns, but they seemed scared of her and she couldn’t get close without them firing her weapons, so she continued onward. She could not communicate. It seems like the humans have a mouth so if Starfire could just place her mouth on one of these humans and activate the Language Mimicry technique this whole thing would be a lot easier. But they were so hostile! Perhaps they’ve never seen a Tamaran blazing across the concrete leaving behind a green trail of fire.
This bite was beginning to itch and Starfire didn’t feel safe sleeping in the wilderness, lest a stray monster attack her. These villages were small and tiny in comparison to the glittering metropoli of her homeworld. Surely, these humans must have some kind of large city?
She crested a hill and in the distant she saw massive concrete skyscrapers. There had to be someone who could help her there. But it proved to be far more densely populated than she realized- even more so than her own cities. People seemed confused as they saw her orange skin, glowing green eyes, and trail of flame, though Starfire wasn’t sure why, as this technique was mundane on her homeworld. How else would someone get around!?
Something slammed into her. Knocking her high into the air, she crashed down on the ground in a vibrant green explosion as the orbs beneath her feet disintegrated violently. A bright yellow vehicle of some kind? It reminded her of the war machines she read about that the enemies of the empire used to have. The wind was knocked out of her from the impact. Those steel structures she had seen alongside the road- apparently they moved! What use would civilians have of war transports? They scraped along the ground, as well, they did not float. This place was bizarre, she realized. From wasteland to cityscape, it was no homogeneous pattern of flatland and city like her homeworld. She was totally out of her depth! Stumbling to her feet, the person got out of the vehicle and looked confused and concerned why traces of green embers rested on their hood. Another vehicle screeched to a stop behind her and a loud honk erupted from within. Some kind of sonar blast!? Turning around, she fired a small Starbolt at the vehicle. It backed up and slammed into another of its kind. The driver, seemingly now terrified that Starfire had thwarted their assault, got out of the car and bolted away. The other people in the area began to scatter aswell. Perhaps, she thought with growing dread in her heart, she had made a mistake. Her hips were sore from the impact of that vehicle, and her neck wound was disturbed, beginning to bleed. Eyes wide, she began running down a nearby alley way.
Nothing! Nothing was happening. There were no villains out, no kooks looking to tussle. The streets were strangely calm, and it was driving Makya mad. Her pacing grew frantic as if it had been normal in the first place. But it was normal, wasn't it? Yes, yes it was. There was nothing wrong with walking, back and forth, in a neat line. She had to get some exercise in while all the criminals were busy napping! Stupid, stupid swindlers. This was why she went out at night, but she had been so anxious. So needy. She just had to use her magic. It felt good, and she wanted to feel good. Her fingertips buzzed, and she tapped them against the air as her arms swung. Something had to happen. If nothing happened in the next ten--no, five! If nothing happened in the next five seconds, she'd...she'd, she didn't know what she'd do!
Five...Makaya looked around, stopping her pacing for just a moment to monitor her surroundings. She was near the edge of the building, but she heard nothing.
Four...Makaya grumbled a swear under her breath.
Three...Nothing, nothing, nothing! Makaya's hands balled into fists at her sides, but she couldn't hold them. She had to move, so she began tapping her waist.
Two...A distant honk, the scattered screams, and sounds of frantic fleeing. Yes. YES! This was what she needed! Makaya started in a sprint towards the other building and took a leap onto its roof. Another dash, another leap, her legs building speed. Nothing superhuman, but quite impressive for a mage who sat on her ass bookkeeping most of the day.
As she was leaping between buildings, she looked down below to see a woman with orange skin making a mad dash...somewhere. The sounds of people fleeing had come from around this area, she was running away. If Makaya put two and two together...
"Culprit!" A girlish giggle escaped her lips. As soon as she landed on the next roof, she jumped off. Using the shadows formed between the buildings, she made a platform halfway down and used it to cushion her fall. Lowering herself to the ground, she quickly summoned up a barrier of shadow between the woman and the back of the alley. Hopefully, this would trap her.
"Stop right there!" Makaya said in a booming voice, though she couldn't keep the serious tone for long. Breaking into a snicker, she waited for the orange-skinned woman to turn. This would be an interesting battle.
The orange-skinned woman skidded to a stop as she realized she had been travelling into a dead end. Suddenly, there was a voice of a woman saying something, and a barrier of...pure darkness? What kind of wizardry was this? Turning around, still holding her bitten neck, Starfire backed up against the brick wall. She needed to distract this woman so she could escape up the wall of this alley. Raising her free hand, she began charing up a Starbolt. Releasing it, the green flame exploded upon the shadowy wall. Hopefully, the light would burn away the darkness.
Whatever happened, Starfire turned around and placed several Starpoints a few feet apart from each other up the brick wall behind her. Small, glowing handholds formed out of thin air. She began to climb up, leaping from green orb to green orb that was lodged in the wall. She let go her neck and used both hands to climb, but the blood began to leak from her neck in the process. What kind of bite was it? Must be poisonous, or acidic, or something! Maybe that person just had incredibly strong jaws… still, the pain flared up again as she tried climbing away from the bizarrely dressed wizard of darkness. ”Mayah-leo!” She called out, pleading for the woman to leave her alone as she tried to climb up to the rooftops.
A swath of light shined through the shadow wall as soon as the flames made contact. An effective maneuver certainly, but a weak distraction. Rather than releasing her construct, Makaya molded it into a set of stairs that connected with the rooftop. She climbed them with ease, making her way to the top and staring down at her foe. She noticed the blood glistening on her neck as her hair swayed, the panicked look on her face. Huh, what a strange enemy.
Reaching down, Makaya extended a hand to the woman. A small grin lit up her face as she did so, her other hand dancing along her side.
As Starfire made her way to the top, she gasped when the skull-faced woman suddenly appeared on the rooftop. Smiling, she reached a hand down to help her up. Starfire hesitated. This woman has not done anything to harm her, she thought. Perhaps it is just the language barrier that is causing confusion. Giving a weak smile back, Starfire climbed up the last Starpoint and took the shadow-sorcerer’s hand, with her other hand on the edge of the building roof. Starfire attempted to pull herself up. ”Reyn.” She said, thanking the woman.
”I’m sorry about this, really am!” Feeling a bit less guilty, Makaya gripped the woman and threw her up, and over her shoulder. It was a practiced move, and the lady was surprisingly light. ”That being said, don’t know if you’re evil or not, so until I do know, you’re going to have to stay still.” A laugh, and her hand rose up in a half shrug. Extending her magic, the woman’s shadow came to life. Splitting in half, it wrapped around her legs and arms like a pair of cuffs. ”I’d call the police, but...you don’t seem to understand what’s going on.”
Starfire yelped as she was tossed up and came crashing down onto her back on the rooftop. Suddenly, her legs were bound together by her own shadow. Thoroughly perplexed by this betrayal, the purple-clad woman raised herself into a sitting position and began applying green bright energy onto her shadow trap, attempting to break free. Briefly, she wondered if she would ever have a shadow again. It would certainly be odd, but it would be worth it to escape. The emerald Hard-Light began trying to pry the shadows off her leg. This woman was not very nice, Starfire thought. The shadows disintegrated, and Starfire spiralled to her feet with a kick, warding off any approaches. She turned to face the woman and got into an unorthodox fighting stance. Instead of protecting her head, Starfire seemed more intent on protecting her chest and torso. Now what? She thought. She really needed to learn the language of this planet, then things might go a lot smoother. This woman had isolated herself, and it might be difficult to get another chance has good as this. All Starfire had to do to learn that language was place her right index finger under this woman’s chin, her left thumb on her forehead, and connect their mouths for a few moments, and communication would be theirs. What an impossible proposition to make via pantomime!
Starfire hoped to achieve this goal quickly. She attempted reaching her hands towards the shadow-sorcerer’s head.
”Wow! This is new, I like it!” Usually, they stayed away from her. This would make things so much simpler! Rushing forward, Makaya summoned a single dagger into her right hand. She went straight for the bottom of her hair. It would be a shame if she had to cut all of it off, but Makaya would if she struggled.
Starfire, making her approach, noticed the woman summon her dagger. Gasping that their fist fight had escalated into seemingly a knife fight, she adjusted her right hand away from the sorcerer’s face and down toward the knife. Summoning a shield of Hard Light around her right hand, the knife would graze off as Starfire wrapped her hand around the woman’s knife holding wrist. Then, she grabbed round the back of the woman’s neck, in order to then bring her knee up towards the sorcerer’s bellybutton to knock the wind out of her. It made impact.
As the woman’s knee collided with her abdomen, Makaya found herself gasping for air. She wheezed, all thoughts knocked out of her head for a moment. They came racing back as she took in a large breath. This was her fight. This was what she had wanted. Summoning her second dagger in her free hand, she ripped it through the woman’s hair. All she needed was a sliver. Out of the corner of watering eyes, she saw it. Bright red hair, falling. Disconnecting her shadow, she made it into a large catcher’s mitt behind the woman and collected the strands.
Tossing her dagger, she summoned up a doll. ”Don’t make me do this, lady!” The truth was, she wanted to do it. So, so badly.
Starfire gasped as the woman summoned yet another dagger. She summoned a protective wall of Hard-Light around her midriff to try and block the blow. Strangely, the woman missed entirely and began speaking again, getting out a small toy. Strange, Starfire thought. Well, if this was an attempt at surrender, the sorceress wasn’t making it very obvious. So Starfire delivered several knees to the woman’s tummy again, trying to stun her long enough to initiate oral contact to learn the language this woman was so fond of speaking all the time!
Damn, she really knew how to throw a knee! The edges of Makaya’s vision went black, and she spluttered, coughing up spit and perhaps a little blood. Nope, not today magical orange lady! Makaya wasn’t going to...wasn’t gonna...not that easily. Oh heavens, she was dizzy. ”Can we-” She wheezed a breath, her voice slurred due to the spit. ”Breather!” Forgetting the doll in her hand, her one scapegoat, she slumped forward onto Starfire.
Starfire noticed the woman beginning to relax, and so laid off her assault. She hoped she did not hurt her too much, but she pulled a knife on her! Starfire turned and dropped the woman onto her back. As quickly as possible, she placed her left thumb on her forehead and her right index finger under her chin. Starfire placed her lips upon her opponent and there was a flash of hot green energy in the two women’s faces. A few seconds later, Starfire retreated and stood a few feet back, getting into a defensive stance.
The new language tasted odd in her mouth. There were lot’s of strange, inelegant noises. With a curious accent, she finally spoke. ”Hello?” She said cautiously. ”Are you well? Starfire was a good ten feet back from the sorceress, and clearly tense. Her green eyes flicked down toward the shadows, watching for movement.
Makaya hadn’t been expecting a kiss. To be fair, she hadn’t really felt the woman’s lips touch her own. Her body was too busy focusing on the pain. The high she felt when using her magic slowly dripped away, until she was left cold and broken. No, no. This was Makaya’s time! She wasn’t allowed to feel this way! She groaned, rolling around once or twice. Get up, idiot! She looked like a fool, surely. Groaning, she sat up. Her gaze was still fuzzy around the edges, but she could see well enough. Her shadow mitt was still there, gripping a piece of hair. The woman was in a stance again, but she had said something in English. Huh, funny that she decided to speak now.
”What’s your deal?” Makaya hissed, and the mitt clenched as a manifestation of her own anger. ”Why didn’t you start speaking English until now?”
Starfire looked curiously down at the shadow mitt, but thought nothing of it, instead focusing more on the woman’s words.
”I did not know how to speak the English until I kissed you during our fight. It is a trick I learned long ago.” She paused, coming out of her stance and instead just standing normally.
”I just came here a few days ago.” She said, not making it obvious she was referring to the entire planet. ”Is our fight over?” Starfire asked. ”I will stop talking and continue fighting with you if that is what you wish. Though it was unkind of you to draw a blade on me.” Especially when she already had her devious shadow powers. Starfire flicked her eyes down to her own shadow, lifting her foot off the ground and checking underneath it.
Interesting. Must’ve been a form of magic. Of course, Makaya had never seen a mage with orange skin and glowing green eyes. There was research to be done when she went home.
When the woman asked if the fight was over, Makaya grinned. Perhaps there were no hard feelings between the two.Makaya had been beaten, she’d admit that...begrudgingly. The woman wasn’t trying to escape or continue the fight, so she must not be all that guilty.
There she was! She was starting to feel more like herself again. She’d been beaten and broken numerous times before, this wasn’t the worst she’d been through. Moving her mitt closer, she took the hair from inside the glove and shoved it in a secret pocket of her coat. The shadow sunk back into the ground, attaching to Makaya as if it hadn’t moved in the first place.
”For now,” She chuckled, getting onto her knees. Best to take it slow, to avoid internal damage. ”Name’s Makaya, now, care to tell me why people were running from you?”
Starfire made an apologetic face. ”Well, I think I must of scared them. They rammed into me with one of their vehicles, and then tried to do some sort of sonar attack. I fired a Starbolt to scare them away. It was all very confusing.” Starfire was down for a moment, and then perked up.
”Oh, my name is Starfire. Hello, Makaya!” She waved. It felt odd to say Starfire in this language. It was certainly shorter than the word for Starfire in Tamaran. She considered telling this woman her real name, Koriand’r, but it was hard to say in this tongue, and it wasn’t very relevant anymore anyway. Koriand’r was gone for now, Starfire felt. She’d come back later. Starfire then folded her hands behind her back and rocked on her heels, looking at the kneeling woman with her head cocked to the side.
A sonar attack from a vehicle...the honk? What a character this woman was turning out to be. Shaking her head with a grin, Makaya spat out some of the saliva that remained in her mouth. She steadily got onto one knee, then she was pushing herself up onto her feet. Her mind yearned for her to bounce around, but her body screamed to stay still for the time being. ”Nice meeting you, Starfire! Do you have a home here in New York?” She said she had arrived in the city a few days ago, but from the looks of it, she had no idea what she was doing here. Makaya considered this...she could always harbor the girl for a couple of nights. Then again, she seemed capable of defending herself. Maybe if she just gave her some cash?
Why was she being so nice to this stranger that had kneed her in the stomach? This was uncalled for. But the chick seemed so..naive. Reminded her of herself, if she were being honest. A younger, sillier version. Yes, because she was so mature. Yes she was. She was! Right? Shaking her head, she attempted to focus.
Starfire smiled and shook her head. ”No, I do not.” The smile faded into a pondering look. ”I do not have a home anywhere, not anymore.” The thought made her heart hurt, and she wore the pain on her face. Starfire didn’t say anything.
Oh...oh wow. That was saddening. Not wanting to bring the mood down further, Makaya forced a laugh. ”What’re you talking ‘bout? Mi casa es su casa!” No, no! Why was she doing this? This was a mistake. What if Starfire got into her curse ingredients? Those were so hard to come by. Stop this, stop this right no- ”We can bunk up for the time being, ‘till you find yourself a home.” She cringed slightly, but it felt like the right thing to do. With a flick of her wrist, she summoned the keys to her apartment. ”Just...keep out of my closet. And, call me Clio while we’re in the building.”
Starfire beamed. ”That’s very kind of you, Makaya!” She thought her trick might have failed, as for a moment there, her ability to understand Makaya faded away. Fortunately it came back just in time to hear the most important part.
”I’m sure I can find myself a home somewhere. This is very kind of you. I was worried you might be angry because I struck you many times. But you are even kinder than I could have hoped.” This was joyous news! Perhaps Starfire was not so bad at diplomacy after all. All she had to do was assault enough people and eventually one of them would be her friend!
”Do you think the others will be angry at me?” She brought her hand up to the bite on her neck, which she had forgotten about during the fight. Now, the pain was back, and Starfire winced. ”The person who hit me with a vehicle, and the one attacked me with sonar, and the one who bit me might not be as forgiving as you. I do not want to put you in any danger incase they come after me to seek satisfaction.” If she was really going to be friends with Makaya, or Clio, she would have to consider her needs as well.
Makaya went to wave it off, but paused as Starfire talked about the person that bit her. Everything else made a bit of sense, but she wasn’t entirely sure about the biting. ”A human bit you? Let me see.” She neared Starfire, looking her up and down for the wound. It must’ve been that bleeding patch on the back of her neck. ”Turn around...when did it happen?” The green-eyed woman obeyed, turning her back to Makaya and tilting her head to one side so her new friend could see the bite mark. ”It happened almost immediately after I got here, about 53 hours ago. New York is much nicer than that other place. Now, after meeting you, I suspect that the area I landed in was not a normal place at all, Makaya.” She raised her hand and pointed toward the west. Seeing the splendor of the skyscrapers in the distance, the bustling streets, and the expansive fields of green surrounding the city, the dusty wastelands now filled Starfire with a sense of dread and loss. The bite was that of a human, with imprints of human teeth. It was bleeding, and there were flecks of bubbling black ickor around each mark. Starfire winced as she moved her neck, sucking in air through her teeth.
Makya held back a swear, gritting her teeth to prevent herself from saying something completely idiotic. A humanoid creature had done this, but the ickor pointed towards something of demonic origin. Starfire must’ve ‘landed’ in the Rift. What a terrible first impression! If this girl were otherworldly--which seemed more and more likely by the minute, she was probably expecting something a lot nicer when she first came down. ”Here...let’s see if we can’t get you patched up.” She wasn’t an expert by any means, but the ingredients she used to reverse Necrosis would probably aid in the healing. ”Follow the leader!”
She began strolling towards the edge of the rooftop, her strides proud and powerful as if her stomach pain were nonexistent. As she hit the edge, she summoned up another staircase. Walking down nonchalantly, she waited for Starfire.
Following the leader.” She responded seriously. Starfire decided to step on the shadow, feeling it shift and then harden rapidly beneath her feet, like compacted sand. It was tentative steps at first, the woman not being sure how Mayaka’s magic would work.
Finally planting her feet on the ground, Starfire said, “I do not believe we need to place any patches upon the bite, Mayaka. I believe I only need to rest for a minute or two, and the wound should heal.” Starfire held her hand on her neck.
”When we get to your home, Mayaka, it would only be fair for me to tell you more about my home. If this were a more professional diplomatic mission, it would have been more of the smooth.” There was a bit of a flubbing of her grammar towards the end, but Starfire did not notice.
”I’m not sure if you understand the gravitas-” Wow, fancy wordplay. Good job! Or...maybe not, since Starfire wasn’t all that versed in the language. ”The seriousness, of the situation. Metahumans can heal from a lot, but magic is a nasty bi--thing. If it was a creature from the Scar, then it’s probably a festering wound. You know what festering means, right? Don’t really understand how your language gift works. Well, anyways. It’s a bad thing.” Perhaps she was going off on a bit of a tangent. Didn’t matter much. ”When did you get it? If it’s not that big of a deal, then wouldn’t you have stopped bleeding by now?”
Starfire chose not to comment on some of the things Mayaka said, otherwise she might get tongue tied. Starfire spoke deliberately, clearly, and relatively slowly in comparison to the fluent speaker.
”I received the bite 53 hours ago. I have not been able to sleep since then, so the wound does not heal. Once we go to your home, I will rest, and it should be better.” Mayaka occasionally spoke words she didn’t understand, but that was to be expected. Phrases like “nasty bithings” and “gravitas”. So far, they did not seem to have much issue communicating. It was truly an amazing ability, Starfire reflected.
”Alright, we’ll do it your way, but if you die I’m going to use your body for the greater good.” Perhaps that was the wrong phrasing, but it was accurate. Starfire nodded solemnly.
Before long, they were at the fire escape. Makaya began climbing it, making a sort of race out of it despite the fact that Starfire didn’t know about the challenge. She whooped as she made it to the top, then detached her shadow and allowed it to slip in through a small crack on the window. It unlatched the pane, sliding it to the side and allowing for entrance. ”Welcome to the abode!” Makaya said with a grin as soon as Starfire stepped inside.
The window lead into Makaya’s bedroom, which was painted in a pale eggplant color. In the center of the room was Makaya’s bed, which was covered in a grey comforter and pillows the same shade as the wall. Other than that, there were a couple dressers and a bedside table.
”The living room couch is a foldout, which is where you’ll be staying.”
The guest looked around, and then back to Mayaka. ”Thank you for inviting me into your home, Mayaka.” She paused. ”I forgot you wanted me to call you Clio. I will not repeat the same mistake again, I’m sorry.” She looked at the couch, which apparently was a foldout. Still, it was more than enough for Starfire’s purposes. She pressed her hands down on the pillows and tested their squishiness.
Makaya shrugged off her suit coat, folding it neatly then tossing it into a random corner. Sitting on the arm of the couch, Clio pulled off her mask and took off her top hat, which had somehow managed to stay on. Her braids fell out, and she shook them until they were out of her face. ”Don’t apologize, it’s weird having two names.” She was starting to feel her high wear off. At least someone was around, so she wouldn’t turn into a groveling mess.
”So...before you doze off...are you going to tell me why you left your home? I mean, not that it’s any of my business. Just curious.”
Starfire went silent, dropped the pillow onto the couch, and looked at the ground, and traced the carpet with the tip of her boot. ”We did have a fight,” she seemingly thought aloud. Their combat seemed to be almost a trust-building exercise. ”You were struck because of my past, so I suppose it is only fair you hear a little about it. If I stop talking, it is because the memories are hard to talk about, though that may not make sense to you. It hardly makes sense to me.”
After a search for words, she tried to sum it up briefly as possible. Not even Starfire wanted to hear her own life’s story. ”I was chased away. Nobody wants me there anymore. Especially one particular person, who hates me very, very much.” Her voice broke a little at the delivery of the last sentence. She spoke far quicker than normal, trying to spit the words out quickly as possible, like they were poison along the inside of her mouth.
Clio cleared her throat, scratching her forearm awkwardly. She didn’t know what it felt like to not be wanted. Her family was always there for her, even when others weren’t. She did know what it was like to feel guilty, though. She didn’t want Starfire to feel that way. ”Ya know, it’s...it’s not your fault. I hope you never think that.” There were certain situations where it could have been her fault, but that’s not what the girl needed to hear. Perhaps in the future, she’d be able to face it.
”Do you...need a hug? Clio cleared her throat, choking on the last word. She wasn’t really a hugger unless she was hyped up on magic. Luckily, there was still a bit flowing through her. ”I mean, we already kissed. So…”
Starfire nodded, and went to embrace her new friend, holding on longer than necessary.
Clio eventually grew antsy during the hug. She didn’t break away, but her soft pat on Starfire’s back became still.
As Starfire withdrew, she wiped a tear out of her eye. ”Even though you know little of my history, your words bring some comfort, Clio. Thank you.” Starfire did still believe the events that transpired were her fault, and Clio could probably notice that. But the thought was there.
Starfire went back over to the fold out couch, moving past the part of the conversation ”This folds out?” She began to mess with the object, wrapping her fingers underneath the lip of the furniture and pulling outward.
Clio retracted her hands quickly, ignoring the blood and black ichor that had stuck to one edge. As soon as Starfire tugged on the lip of the couch, it expanded. A queen size bed with arms took the couch’s place. ”Indeed it does.” Smiling slightly, she stood from where she was sitting on the arm. ”If you don’t mind...I think we should both rest.”
Starfire looked over at Clio and nodded. ”Yes, Clio, I agree.” Still standing up, she closed her eyes and concentrated. A green light began to glow beneath her skin, where her heart and stomach would be. Then, she pitched to the side and timbered onto the couch, landing with a thud and going limp. The light continued to glow, and Clio would be able to see it travel beneath Starfire’s skin and focus on the wound in her neck. Barely perceptible, the bite marks began to knit themselves back together. There was also a heat radiating off the orange-skinned woman, as if Clio were standing next to a fireplace. And snoring. Just a little.
What...in the world? She was, she was glowing… After a moment of confusion, Clio smiled, a small chuckle escaping her lips. What an interesting way of doing things. She wished she could heal like that. Turning, she walked into her room. She tore off her Makaya outfit, and changed into some loose-fitting clothing. Sighing, she slipped into her bed and shut her eyes. Her stomach throbbed now that she was paying attention to it, and giving it a gentle rub she forced herself to sleep.
you know, now that i think about it, the Justice League would probably notice Starfire entering the atmosphere. maybe. i'm not sure how badass the satellite is, if it can notice a person-sized object that is high temperature? i don't know. either way she very quickly made her way east.
i don't want to risrespect the Justice League and just assume they wouldn't notice her or be able to find her. so i guess that's up to you guys. it did happen two days ago, so i don't know. i just needed Starfire to land in the Scar, but there's no way she could land in the Scar and get to New York within a few hours
edit: big giant massive mega collab between MsMorningstar and I. very big. very good, i think. but very long
A green flash divided the clouds over expansive muddy midwestern fields. An emerald meteor came crashing down, and smashed into the dirt, causing an explosion of dust and rocks. The smoke clear and there was an orange-skinned woman with vibrant brown hair that fell just past her shoulders. She was wearing all purple clothes, composed of a top that was cropped at the ribs, a miniskirt and purple boots. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing heavily. A few moments later, she stirred and her eyes fluttered open. Her eyes glowed bright green, and it was quite striking to see the light vanish and reappear with every groggy blink. She really needed to work on her landings. Still, she managed to slow her descent by a lot, and broke her fall with a shield. It was only unlucky that she banged her head, but the Emerald within her seemed to patch that up rather quickly.
Standing, she began wiping the mud off of herself and looking around. It was a barren place with no one in sight. The mist was thick here, and after a few moments of walking, Starfire had noticed someone standing quite still in the dirt. She doubted they would understand her Tamaran language. Fortunately, given that she was being trained to be a diplomat before she was...well, she was being trained to be a diplomat. That training hardly even began, but the first thing her mother taught her was the ability to learn languages. In order to do so, one must place their right index finger underneath the chin, or wherever the vocal cords were, and the left thumb against their forehead, or wherever the brain was. Then, place one must place their mouth upon the other person's mouth, and create a bridge of energy between the two. A few moments later, and one would be able to speak their language! It was quite fascinating how versatile the energy of the stars really was.
Starfire didn't want to startle the first native she saw. "Anna!" She called out a greeting to the distant figure. The figure turned slowly and began walking towards her. No...galloping? It was an odd way of moving, that was for sure. The figure seemed very intent on reaching Starfire, as quickly as they could move.
"Anna! Jenzk o Wenlendmun-" Her greeting was interrupted as the figure grew closer. Their hair was matted and patchy, with sunken eyes and a face that looked disfigured. Well, the first part of diplomacy was not being judgemental. The hideous fish creatures of Chtho'an were the friendliest in the galaxy, according to legend. Beauty is subjective, for all the species. The person, who seemed to be a man (though she could be wrong) gallopped ever closer.
"Anna?" She said again, and he slowed down a little, hunching over as he got closer. Now she could do her trick that allowed her to learn the language of any species she came into contact with. Carefully, Starfire smiled, and placed her index finger under his chin, and her thumb on his forehead. She drew her lips in close and-
"Aaeeiigh!" Suddenly, his teeth were clamped upon her neck. It was like nothing she had ever felt. Poison, or acid, or perhaps just raw biting power! His teeth dug in, and took some of her orange flesh with them. A beast? A savage? Either way, Starfire was taken totally by surprise. Still a little groggy from the fall, she had no time to put her defense up, either. She wrenched him off of her, and her fists became aglow with green energy. Hard Light formed around her knuckles and she punched him across the face. He stumbled back onto the ground.
She didn't want a diplomatic incident so early...but from the records she had read (apparantly outdated!) this was about what a human looked like. They came in shades of light beige to dark brown according to the record. This one was oddly grey now that she looked at him closely. That bite really, really hurt! Must be sound kind of flesh-eating poison. She heard the humans of this world were relatively fragile. A bite from this creature were most likely have their entire throat be torn out! This was no human at all.
"Orve sthi varn carrivelos!" She spat down at him, giving him a chance to run away. Instead he came in for another bite. This time, she was ready. Her body was now covered in a thin, invisible layer of Hard Light. Not only was her skin naturally resistant, now his poison would bounce off. He clamped down on her forearm, and just like she suspected, his teeth were too weak to penetrate her armor. And he was too stupid to realize this. She punched him, once, twice, three times. She knew nothing about this planet. Even if he was not human, perhaps he was someone's pet, or maybe he was going through a bout of madness. Diplomacy was key! Her normal punches were enough to get him off of her. He fell down again, and Starfire ignited two orbs of glowing green energy underneath her purple boots. They elevated her off the ground about four inches. Like skates, she rolled them underneath her heels and toes and leaned forward, causing her to glide above the surface. After about a minute she was going forty miles per hour across the wasteland.
There were more of these creatures scattered about and all of them looked just as friendly. Unbeknownst to Starfire she was heading east. All she wanted to do was get away from this awful place. Hopefully, she thought, the whole planet wasn't like this. If she were a better Tamaran she would have circled around to the half of the planet submerged in darkness, and seen the glittering lights of civilization from far above. But Starfire wasn't that clever and wasn't skilled enough to stop herself from crashing down. So onward she went. Travel far enough in any direction and she would reach something, eventually. Time was not of the essence, as long as the sun of this planet didn't burn out (which Starfire estimated would take at least a few more billion years), she could travel freely. All she needed came from the sky.
@RedVII i don't think i'll be able to join this RP. the RP's I joined in the meantime seem to be a bit much already, and I don't want to slow down this RP with noncommital posting. good luck!
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