I2: First Public Outing That May or May Not Be a Date

by **Onyx** » Tue Aug 04, 2015 6:46 pm

"I am glad that you like me more than ninjas, ma'am," Onyx teases.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Tue Aug 04, 2015 7:14 pm

"Duh. You're, like, ten ninjas in one." she chuckles. "Plus I dunno if ninjas are a big fan of making out..." she adds a bit more awkwardly after having gathered some courage by making a dumb joke first.

by **Onyx** » Wed Aug 05, 2015 11:27 am

"If they are, they are very sneaky about it," Onyx says with a smile. Her smile fades a little and she looks down at her place mat. She looks a bit...sad? Nostalgic? It's hard to tell.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Wed Aug 05, 2015 4:00 pm

"What's the matter?" Oh no... I bet she's thinking about a ninja friend of hers she misses making out with! it shoots through her head before she can realize how little sense that makes.

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 3:13 am

"Nothing, ma'am," Onyx says. "It is silly. I just suddenly felt a bit homesick."

"Is it strange to miss people trying to kill you regularly?" Onyx wonders.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 3:43 am

"I dunno... Maybe a little? But it's different here and home's home, you know? It's different from Phoenix already so I can't even imagine."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:02 am

"What is Phoenix like?" Onyx asks. She sounds curious.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:17 am

"Well, for one it's way warmer there, but that I don't miss so much. It didn't bug me till I got my permanent fur-boots, but now it's like, yikes. And everything's more... open. Like, even the town, everything is built so close together, even in Maldon."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:21 am

"That is very interesting," Onyx says. "There must be a lot of space in Phoenix. Even London seems fairly empty to me."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:23 am

"Oh yeah, there's tons of space. It's not like it's empty, but man, how does London seem empty? Madripoor must be crazy..."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:25 am

"It makes traveling across rooftops much simpler," Onyx says. "Hightown is different. That is where the people with money and power live."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:34 am

"No crime to patrol for there?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:39 am

"There is more, but it is also much more dangerous," Onyx says.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:42 am

"There's more crime in the rich part of town?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:46 am

"Yes. Lowtown is mostly desperate, hungry people and victims," Onyx says. "The drug kingpins, the slave traders, the mob bosses...they all live in Hightown."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:51 am

"Oh. That... that's kind of fu--fricked up." she almost swears.

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:52 am

"It is," Onyx agrees. "It is not the same in America?"

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:56 am

"Hmm... I dunno. Maybe a little. But I don't think it's as bad. Like, there's no slavery. Well, not anymore."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:58 am

"That is a very good thing," Onyx says.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:06 am

"Yeah. You think Madripoor's ever going to get better?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:14 am

"It is unlikely," Onyx admits.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:32 am

Nailah frowns. Somehow it feels wrong that even someone like Onyx' mom won't be able to make enough of a difference to really change things.

"That really sucks..." she says not very eloquently. "I mean... Then what's the point?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:41 am

"That is something I have struggled with, ma'am," Onyx says. "I do not have a good answer. My...my mentor says that helping even one person is enough. Another person once told me that we do not exist to save others, but to demonstrate that you can stand up and fight. That it is possible to resist. He said that others will follow."

"As I have seen, he may have had a point," Onyx smiles at Nailah. "But, I am not sure either answer is satisfying for me."

"I have never felt that I was doing this for other people. I did not expect Madripoor or anywhere else to change. I did not expect to be praised or make a difference," Onyx says. "I just wanted someone my mentor to be safe and happy."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:48 am

"I think..." she says carefully, as if she was sorting this out in her head as she's talking. "...that it probably won't change until maybe someone goes to patrol in Hightown. Like... They are all just humans or mutants, right?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 5:55 am

"Yes. Humans and mutants that can afford top of the line security, superpowered enforcers, and a military force to protect them," Onyx says. "We do not fight Hightown, ma'am."

"We are at war with it."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 6:03 am

"When you put it that way it sounds much less doable."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 6:07 am

Onyx smiles, "That may be why I try not to focus much on the long-term."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 6:17 am

"Yeah. I mean, every little bit counts, right? I think I'm with your mentor on that. Stopping one badguy or helping just one person is better than doing nothing."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 9:08 am

"Yes," Onyx says. "It is. And many of the alternatives are very dangerous paths."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 3:33 pm

"What do you mean alternatives?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 3:47 pm

"The person I talked about, the man with the opinion that differed from my mentor," Onyx says. "He is a revolutionary. He believes in demanding change, even if he has to burn down all of Madripoor to achieve it."

"He has hurt innocent people, destroyed lives, and killed to achieve his aims," Onyx says. "His goals are admirable, but the path he is on..."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 3:58 pm

"That doesn't really sound like he's a hero at all..."

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:06 pm

"He was also my master for many years," Onyx says. "He was my mentor's master as well."

"I am not certain whether or not he can be considered a hero. He has hurt innocents, but he has also freed many people in Madripoor."

"Without him, my life would be very different," Onyx says.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:08 pm

"Master? You mean, like... he taught you and your mentor how to fight?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:13 pm

"Yes," Onyx says. "It was very difficult. He is extremely harsh and demanding. His methods border on torture."

"The first thing he said when my mentor asked him to train me was 'I am not responsible if she dies'," Onyx says. "He was an excellent teacher."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:19 pm

"That sounds horrible! And she let him teach you anyway!?"

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:21 pm

"She also let me fight men with automatic rifles," Onyx points out.

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:35 pm

"Well... I guess she must have known what she was doing. Or maybe you just knew what you were doing. But it still sounds very harsh to me..." she says, suddenly feeling like walking around the table to give Onyx a hug.

by **Onyx** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:47 pm

"You should not worry, ma'am," Onyx says. She smiles comfortingly at Nailah. "It was not as bad as it might sound. And his training methods were very effective."

by **Nailah Weaver** » Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:56 pm

"I can't argue with that. I'm glad you're taking it a little easier on me though." she chuckles.

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