DT1 - Solo Career

[Nailah Weaver]

"Wh-what? No, that's not... I'm just... I'm just upset she doesn't want me to be her partner anymore. Crime-fighting partner!" she quickly corrects herself.

[Onyx]

Momnyx chuckles, "My mistake. I apologize for my error, Ms. Weaver."

She freshens Nailah's tea, "You know, for the longest time, I refused to let Emily fight crime. Her training was supposed to be defensive. I did not want her to be powerless if my enemies captured her, but I had no intention to have her helping me."

"But that girl is stubborn. And very good at sneaking out."

[Nailah Weaver]

"She snuck out to fight crime? That's so cool! I mean... that's so reckless and dangerous?"

[Onyx]

"It was a little bit of all three," Momnyx says, sounding amused by Nailah's enthusiasm.

[Nailah Weaver]

"So you decided to train her instead of keeping her safe in here."

[Onyx]

"I did not have much of a choice," Momnyx says. "She made it very clear that she was going to help me, whether I wanted her help or not."

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah frowns at her for a moment, then her face relaxes as she seems to realize something.

"Oh..."

[Onyx]

Momnyx smiles, "How is your shoulder, miss? Does it still hurt?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"Yeah, but it's much better." she says before she suddenly jolts in her seat. "Those guys, they're still in Maldon!"

[Onyx]

"Yes, they are," Momnyx says. "Would you like to go stop them?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"Yes! Somebody has to!" she says, jumping up and doing her best not to wince at the searing pain in her shoulder and wing flaring up some.

[Onyx]

"Would you care for some help?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"I could probably use it..." she admits.

[Onyx]

"That is not what I asked," Momnyx says. "Do you want help? Or do you still have something you need to prove?"

There is no judgement in her voice. It seems like she is honestly asking Nailah.

[Nailah Weaver]

"No, I think I figured out what I need to do instead." she says. Besides, she's not going to turn down a chance to see the person who trained oNyx in action.

[Onyx]

"Well. We had better get going then," Momnyx says. She offers her hand to Nailah as the shadows swell up around her feet.

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah takes her hand and maybe clutches it a little tighter when the shadows swallow her up. It might have saved her, but it still feels pretty disconcerting.

[Onyx]

There's a brief sensation of falling as the world is swallowed up into darkness. When they reemerge, they are on a rooftop in Maldon. Nailah can hear Sign and Tough Love talking in the alley below.

Momnyx holds a finger up to her own lips. She points at Nailah and the at the sky, before disappearing back into the shadows.

[Nailah Weaver]

Before Nailah has a chance to object Monyx has disappeared again. She makes a careful flap with her wings and immediately regrets her decision. Even if the feathers she lost aren't enough to ground her, she's not taking to the air tonight. Instead she creeps up to the edge of the roof to peer down while trying to ignore the self-inflicted pain.

[Onyx]

"Well, what the fuck are we supposed to do now?" Sign says angrily.

"Center yourself," Tough Love says. "Our time will come."

Nailah had a few options. There was a fire escape she could climb down and a drain-pipe she could try to slide down.

She could also just jump on top of them. That might work!

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah chooses the fire escape and as she's carefully moving down she pulls a smoke grenade from her belt. Once she feels comfortable with the distance to the ground she throws the grenade and jumps down into the billowing smoke, silently landing near the wall.

[Onyx]

"The hell?!" Sign shouts before beginning to cough, Tough Love waves his hand in front of his face, trying to clear his vision. Sign coughs violently as his tattoos flicker weakly. Apparently he can't use his powers if he can't breathe.

[Nailah Weaver]

That's certainly good to know. Nailah takes a deep breath and rushes into the smoke, aiming to throw a quick one-two punch first into Sign's stomach and then to the side of his head, trying to take him down fast before he has a chance to recover.

[Onyx]

Nailah's punches send Sign reeling, but he recovers quickly. A tattoo on his back glows and he disappears, reappearing outside the cloud of smoke.

"You slippery little bitch," Sign says, wiping blood from his mouth. "I'm going to enjoy this."

As Nailah was dealing with Sign, Tough Love was stumbling out of the smoke when black tendrils wrapped around his neck, arms, and legs. Forming out of the shadows, Momnyx stood on his back, gripping a mass of liquid shadow hard in one hand and pulling tightly. Tough Love began to stumble around, gasping and wheezing.

[Nailah Weaver]

Glad not having to worry about Tough Love falling into her back again Nailah scrambles to find some kind of weapon in the alley. She finally decides on the lid of a garbage bin, hoping it'll at least somewhat withstand one of Sign's fireballs and allow her to get in close. She silently charges at him, lid raised in front of her like a shield.

[Onyx]

"You think that's enough to save you, princess?" Sign asks, summoning a fireball in each hand. He throws one towards Nailah's shield and the other at her legs.

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah jumps, ignoring her shoulder screaming in protest, and throws herself to the side to dodge the fireballs while throwing the lid at Sign's face like a Frisbee.

[Onyx]

Sign wasn't expecting this and panics. A familiar tattoo glows and a field of lightning surrounds him, but this doesn't do much more than electrify the projectile coming towards his face. The trash can hits him dead center and he reels backwards.

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah lands her desperate dodge on hands and feet and immediately pounces at Sign, hands aiming for his throat so she can try and slam his head into the ground should she manage to topple him.

[Onyx]

The blinded, stumbling, enraged Sign is easy pickings for Nailah's pounce and she manages to knock him over and slam his head into the ground. He goes limp. Comic book limp. The kind where you know they are safely unconscious because the writer doesn't know that being knocked unconscious with a blow to the head is, like, super bad for you.

He'll be fine.

"Nice work," Momnyx says, sitting on the back of a restrained and unconscious Tough Love nearby.

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah tries to calm her breath and gets off of the unconscious villain, leaning against the wall of the alley with her good shoulder. "Thank you." she manages, too hopped up on adrenaline to really process the compliment right now.

[Onyx]

"I can take these two to the authorities. Do you need assistance getting back to the school?" Momnyx asks.

[Nailah Weaver]

"No, I think I can make it. Uhm... Does Onyx know you're around? Do you want me to tell her anything for you or...?"

[Onyx]

Momnyx shakes her head, "She needs to find answers on her own. I do not wish to interfere."

"Just tell her that I love her and that I will always be proud of her."

[Nailah Weaver]

"I will. Thank you, Miss Onyx!"

[Onyx]

"It was my pleasure, Ms. Weaver," Momnyx says. "I hope I can meet you again someday."