A Good Fight
- Location
- Rockford, USA
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[ ] Yes. A thousand times yes. You want this woman on your side. *fangirling intensifies*
A Good Fight
You cock your head, looking as Miss Fren. Several considerations shoot through your mind -- what you may want to specify you want avoided, outright refusal, suspicions-
You put them away from your mind. You can't even make up your mind on what you'd qualify, and to ask not to cover something she never mentioned would be an implication that her offer was in bad faith. Despite your admiration for her, you're not an idiot -- you suspect that she's getting absolutely everything she wants out of this conversation. That said, she has treated you with respect. You won't imply that she's being dishonest.
Besides, even if she is, you can just shut her down and get Dad to blacklist her. Having the nobility cut her completely off for mistreating one of them would ruin her, and you're pretty sure she knows that. Sure, you haven't, but if she stabs you in the back you can destroy her career.
Not that you would. Or want to. But that bit of yourself that always remembers how best to hurt things that hurt you is unusually insistent that this fact means you have nothing to worry about.
So it is with a great deal of relief that you grin at her and say, "I say yes."
She smiles back. "Glad to hear it. It's always better to work with somebody." She stands and turns, heading for the door.
You follow her. "So much easier! Sometimes it seems like nobody thinks about how much easier they could make things on themselves."
"Everybody wants a good fight," says Fren, opening the door. "Honestly. Not every fight needs fists. Sorry if I'm hurrying you. Break's nearly over."
You blink and pick up your pace. "How do you know?"
She taps her head. "A thousand interviews before this one. Come on, now."
You follow her down the passage. "What were you saying about fights?"
"Ah, yes. They don't all need fists. And somebody doesn't always have to lose. Of course, winning is fun, and sometimes the other person can't win if you do -- but if you both can..." She grins.
You grin too. Now that, you can get behind. You think of yourself as a protector now, and that means fighting when you have to. And you're a saiyan, and competition makes your blood sing. But...if you don't have to hurt somebody to get that thrill...
You fix your public face back on as you and Fren push through the door and back onto the stage. Lights come on with a thump. Cheers ring out.
You smile.
Communication: 107. DC: ?
* * *
"You think she was being sincere?" asks Dad, glancing over at you as the sound of impacts rings out from below you.
"She kept her word," you say, shrugging. "You saw."
"So I did," he says. "Still, I'm impressed. That woman can dance a ring around most people. If she asked you for a deal like that, it's because she thought you were worth asking. The audience certainly thought you were impressive enough. You looked like a pro out there." He gives you an approving smile.
"I didn't feel like it," you say, lowering your head. "It felt like whenever she really came after me, I lost."
"Papata Fren is a rare talent," he says. "She knows her craft, and it suits her in particular magnificently. There's no shame in losing to her. Instead, feel proud that she thought well enough to make it the both of you against the audience, instead of her against you."
You smile, letting your bangs hide your face. "I do," you admit.
Dad chuckles, nudging you. "I suppose every teenager needs a hero to worship," he says.
"Dad!" you say, thumping him on the arm.
"I stand by what I said," he replies, smirking.
From below there's a roar of frustration and a deafening bang, and the crowd around you roars in approval. A gong sounds.
Dad looks up. "Hm. Ring-out. Well-executed, too."
The tournament, now that it's happening, has been very interesting.
Tournaments are big deals for your people, especially the professional leagues, but you've never been to one. Obvious reasons, of course. So it's fitting that such an unconventional Scion should come to such an unconventional tournament.
Masques only. Max power level of 500,000, for now. Elimination rounds. Winner takes a purse. Impressive fighters get to fight alongside Dad and you during the invasion. In fact, there's more than just the traditional eliminations; Dad wanted to go all-out for this one. There's a set of bracketed melees. There are beam struggle contests -- jousting, as some call it. There are even target shooting drills with prizes attached. Generally those are the stuff of small-time tournaments -- ways for non-professionals to compete -- but Dad wants to be thorough and test everything.
Not the norm.
Still, a tournament's a tournament, and a tournament with this much on the line has nearly the whole population turning out.
Your people are here in force, and they are happy. Even the minor events are getting more attention than they normally do.
At the moment, they're cheering the Vegeta warrior in the ring, straightening after ringing his opponent out and looking to the box in which you sit, high in the stands.
Dad stands and applauds briefly. "A good fight!" he says, nodding sharply. "Next contestants!"
Very little ceremony at this stage -- these are still the opening rounds, and with as many people as are competing, nobody's going to get too worked up unless a match is spectacular. The Vegetan nods and walks away without a word. Immediately, a pair of women take his place on the stage and square off.
Dad sits back down. "I'm glad you could clear the time to be here, Kakara," he says. "Especially with our...preparations...it's important to take any chance we can get to be out in public."
You swallow, nodding. The announcement for the dragon will be happening at the end of the festivities here. Keeping the secret has been wearing. You'll be glad to have it out in the open. "I don't mind," you say. "Honestly, it's a little interesting."
"I thought you didn't like fighting at all," he says, glancing at you.
You look away with an awkward shrug. Silence falls.
Dad clears his throat. "So, who's up next?"
By which, of course, I mean: are you in this thing?
[ ][FIGHT] Cynthia Balor vs. Mitsuba Roma. Odds favor Mitsuba, and heavily; Cynthia's not a fighter by trade. It won't be a very good fight. Pity, but there'll be other fights for you to watch today.
[ ][FIGHT] Your bracket's next, actually. You should head downstairs and get ready.
-[ ][FIGHT] You're fighting just like all of the others -- Masqued and restricted. You want to see how you stack up against your people's best fighters. By which you mean you want to see how long it takes to lose. You're not winning today.
-[ ][FIGHT] You're here to test the fighters, not prove yourself. You're not bothering with the restrictions. You'll let the runner-up take the purse; you're here to personally judge who should be fighting with you, come the invasion.
[ ][FIGHT] Cynthia Balor vs. Mitsuba Roma. Not going to be a good fight, and you admit that you're restless. You volunteered as a bonus prize for the winner of this tournament -- one fight with you, in the ring, with no restrictions. You're a little eager to get the end and see who's going to make it to you.
You do not need to vote for both that previous vote and this next vote if either disinterests you. Is this statement a bit jarring in terms of reading flow? Probably, but I'm pretty sure people don't notice me saying, "you don't have to vote for both," if I don't say it where you can't possibly miss it.
It's relevant already, but what exactly have you been doing with your training time? It's a bit more...pressing...at this exact moment. Top four action points' [AP] worth of votes win. You cannot take Perfect Multiform research. You dumped it to free these points up. I am not watching that particular game of ping pong.
[ ][TRAIN] Ki Manipulation [2 AP]
[ ][TRAIN] Tien Style [1 AP]
[ ][TRAIN] Specific Technique (write-in technique name here) [1 AP]
[ ][TRAIN] Desperate Research (write-in in desired technique here) [2 AP]
[ ][TRAIN] Write-In.
THESE VOTES ARE NOT YET CLOSED
A note: desperate research is basically Kakara saying, "from my vision, we need to pull something amazing out of the box." It's her, motivated by desperation, trying to break through to some forgotten technique like the spirit bomb or fusion. It's basically the, "research project," option, taken twice, with a healthy dose of, "holy shit holy shit this needs to fucking work." I don't guarantee success -- I never do -- but I am eliminating the stacking penalty for devoting two options to a 1 AP action in a year, representing her singular motivation in this instance. No, you can't do a 1 AP Desperate Research. I will be completely honest and tell you that it's a waste of an action point. You will not succeed on just one.
More happily...
Reputation Developed [In All But Name-->People's Princess]: Your entrance onto the public stage, with Papata Fren's assistance, was an unqualified success. Your awe-inspiring reputation, slowly filtering out of the Ancestor Cult, has been tempered into a more approachable and friendly public image, but one laid over a presentation of deep respect for the duties of your station. They love your for your warmth, and respect you for your devotion to your duty. Many now refer to you in public as, "Princess Kakara." This has made Dandeer furious, but not much doesn't, these days. Your dad is thrilled; having his heir inspire such deep respect on the merits of her ability to fulfill her role only helps his plans to centralize power further.
Acquaintance Gained [Papata Fren, Friendly]: Miss Fren and you took to each other quite happily. She's your first case of hero-worship, and she finds you adorable and precocious in an endearing way. She happily worked with rather than against you during your first public appearance, and you don't imagine it'll be difficult to continue that going forward. You'll always have a friendly ear with the most influential news personality in Exile society, should you not screw this up.
The interview proceeded acceptably. :lol
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the social, folks, because we now hit the kind of storyline that constitutes the longest and proudest tradition is Dragon ball history.
Begin the Tournament Arc!
TWO-HOUR MORATORIUM TO CHAT, FOLKS
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