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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 10, 2012 21:02:08 GMT -8
"As you wish,"
Her eyes widened as Mathew's body sunk within the earth: now she knew the purpose of the bare feet: to maintain a connection with his element. She found herself approving highly of this: something that was strange or could be considered illogical had it's own purpose.
He is a tricky one...
The ground began to rumble and then rise into the air, causing Delilah to take an alarmed step back as she watched in awe. As Mathew emerged from the stone and began his work, she started to appreciate the level of connection he had with his element. Whereas her Qi caused her to become unstable the more she used it, he had attained a mastery of an art that was his alone. She watched raptly, caught in the thrall of his work. If she would liken it to music, she might have chosen a song played on the "koto", something intricate with a powerful tempo.
All too quickly, he finished and she stood before a great dragon with tears standing in her eyes. Not because of the art itself (although it was pretty freakin' awesome) but what it symbolized.
The dragon in Chinese zodiac (and if she was correct, the dragon before her was of Eastern influence) symbolizes wealth, virtue, harmony and longevity. Dragon's are self-sufficient, free, uninhibited and unrepressable. The dragon is also a sign of change to come, that something is on the horizon, and to hope.
Delilah took this not only as a symbol, but as a promise.
"Very...inspiring." was all she could muster to say.
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 10, 2012 21:16:19 GMT -8
She was indeed correct about the influence from the Dragon that he chose to use to symbolize himself and his ideal of being a Dragon. The immortal Earth Dragon with his personal code of honor. Never wanting for anything, never lying. Changing the world around him to suit his desires, by force and guile.
"I'm glad you think so. It's something that has inspired and driven me forward for many years. To be a Dragon is more than being able to throw a punch. There are rules and ideals one must follow."
And it kept him in check.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 10, 2012 23:07:01 GMT -8
A wistful half-smile appeared on her lips at his words and she nodded slowly, completely understanding. Delilah reached with her left arm to tap the back of her right shoulder, the tattoo there partly visible beneath her tank top, completely visible if moved slightly to the side.
"I think we share a similar belief, then."
If it had piqued Mathew's curiosity and he looked at the tattoo, her own code of honour would read thusly:
once more into the fray
into the last good fight i'll ever know
live and die on this day
live and die on this day
If not, that was fine as well. Her hand would simply slide from her shoulder and back to hang at her side. "It makes me think that those like us are relatively rare in a world like this."
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 10, 2012 23:26:05 GMT -8
He looked and grinned at the tattoo. Interesting, but in a good way.
"Maybe, though that could be a good thing."
Could the world really handle more people like him? Would they want more people like him? He could name quite a few people that would say no. And would probably prefer to see him dead. He always was popular.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 10, 2012 23:52:03 GMT -8
"I don't mean people just like you. You're...I don't even know if there's a word for what you are." she said with a light laugh. "I mean with people with integrity. You could have killed me any time since we met, even after you learned I was part of Crows, and you chose not to. Hell, even during our little spar, you held back. Just surviving isn't enough. Not for me, anyway."
She glanced up at the sky, noticing that the sun was dipping more towards the West than when she had arrived. She hummed at that. "I haven't been in this area at night-time. Have you been around this nick of the woods long?"
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 10, 2012 23:55:20 GMT -8
"I don't like the crows much." Since he didn't care for the thread Kiyoshi gave him, or Unfettered in general. Yeah, the Jew was holding a grudge against the Nazi. What a surprise. "However killing you right now gains me nothing."
And he didn't go and kill people for sport. Everything had a purpose, an angle.
"I got back in the state about a week ago."
He said with a chuckle. He didn't seem to be worried about the approaching nightfall though.
"You worried?"
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 11, 2012 0:07:29 GMT -8
"I don't like the crows much. However killing you right now gains me nothing."
"Things that are good to know." she said brusquely, still studying the sky.
"I got back in the state about a week ago. You worried?"
"I'd be lying if I said no," she admitted with a sigh, turning her attention back to him. "But not so much worried as cautious. Keeps me on my toes. Night is usually when Barker patrols start rounding up citizens. The grunts are easy enough to handle, but they usually have an Experiment or two with them. You know: people who had powers forced into them. The experiments are much harder to kill. "
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 11, 2012 0:10:37 GMT -8
He smiled wickedly at her last comment.
"You know I was one of those experimented on back in the correctional facility."
And it seemed that he was the only one that suffered no real psychological damage. Maybe because he found a way to make it work for him? Going along with Barker with the testing in exchange for some freedoms and control. It was a lose lose situation, his only choice was to go for the small win.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 11, 2012 0:24:22 GMT -8
She tilted her head slightly to the left as she looked at him, "Huh," she said after a moment. "I never would have guessed."
She couldn't even tell if that was an explanation or a boast.
Her eyes suddenly narrowed as it fully hit her that he was an experiment and what it implied for him.
"You do know Barker is looking for his old test subjects, don't you?"
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 11, 2012 0:28:52 GMT -8
"Really now...?"
He thought that over a minute.
"Maybe I should make sure he knows I'm here so he can find me."
And then kill him.
He licked his lips as he grinned, considering how he might actually be able to use himself as bait to lure Barker out. How interesting that would be. And it would save him the trouble of tracking him down. Though, that sounded fun too.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 11, 2012 0:34:28 GMT -8
She blinked at his words. Shit, this guy really was crazy. Did he think he could beat Barker one on one? "Perhaps I shouldn't have told you that." she said with a sigh, reaching up to tousle her hair restlessly. Who knew? Maybe he could.
Then again, if he couldn't, the world would have lost something priceless in value. Was that the sort of risk he was willing to take?
Delilah looked at him for a moment.
Yes. Yes, it probably was.
"You know, that would probably work better with allies or something to that effect."
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 11, 2012 0:38:34 GMT -8
"I have those if I need them. The Dragons, I'm sure David Blaze would help. I call call upon the three factions of the Gods as well to come to my aid. And I have some friends in the city still."
He said casually, turning to look at the sun. Could he take Barker? Or could he use him even? No, he wasn't ready to kill him. Not quite yet. He still needed to find Leon first.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 11, 2012 1:00:42 GMT -8
She smiled at the mention of David and let out a low whistle at the mention of the Gods. He'd only been here a week?
"Well, someone's been busy." she said with a wry grin that quickly fell from her face. Given her predicament with the Crows and Mathew's lack of fondness for them, she had to assume the feeling was mutual somewhere up the chain of command. She couldn't promise anything, but they were all working towards the same goal...weren't they?
"Well, if you need any extra, you can count me as one of them," she said quietly after a moment of silence. "I don't know how much I'll be able to help, but if there's anything I can do, I'll follow through on that to the best of my ability. If those pesky...issues are ever resolved, this will free those abilities up considerably."
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Post by Mathew Amtrum on Oct 11, 2012 1:05:56 GMT -8
"What can I say, I'm a man of action."
And he wasn't about to slow down yet, he had a new stronghold being built for the Dragons as they were speaking and he had already scouted out his next target. Though the next one would probably involve some bloodshed. Good, he was getting restless.
"I appreciate that Delilah. And I will keep that in mind"
He grinned.
"But if you think I've been busy now, just wait a few days. I got something big planned."
As in taking a stronghold from Barker and pushing the offensive. No one was going to stand between him and his first pick for a best man.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Oct 11, 2012 1:36:41 GMT -8
Delilah gazed into the fading sun for a while, deep in thought. She had a mission coming up herself, one a good portion of her team would have to take part in. It was good experience for them, should be a walk in the park compared to what she had been doing to them over the last few months. After her meeting with David, she felt like she needed to do more than her usual routine.
"I look forward to hearing all about it." she chuckled, looking back at him, the suns last rays striking her face in harsh relief. "I'm probably being missed by now, so I should probably get going. Thanks for the lesson...and for being the first to hear me play. Take care, Mathew, and good luck."
She made to leave."
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