Post by Aiami Lin on Sept 22, 2015 4:03:37 GMT
The rain was cold in the north. That was the first thing Aiami had noted in the days after her first real taste of combat with Dr. Breech and some sort of mutant. It would have been much worse without Val at her side, but even then Aiami was still having a hard time thinking about the ordeal. To the young martial artist it was always ‘sparring,’ never really fighting. It was more of a game. To see who was stronger, to get stronger while playing. She knew why all of it had been originally created, but she never imagined she would have to use her abilities for self-defense… or attack.
It was an extended period of cognitive dissonance for Aiami. She had never really given thought to using her skills like that. Even now she can remember, vividly, the battle. Firing her first energy wave with any real intent on harming someone, having to force herself through real pain, narrowly dodging death at least once. Nothing like she had done before.
But, looking back, she figured she should have been aware of that. The Saiyan army had not used any special weapons, or so she had heard. Just their own martial ability and their own energy. Granted, there was… something about giant apes in there, something she didn’t understand, but that was for another time. Still, the Saiyans had done nothing different from what she could do, they were just… stronger. Much stronger.
And with that strength they had attacked Earth and decimated her cities. Aiami didn’t get a concrete answer as to why that was, but she knew, at least, that not all Saiyans were united under the same banner. Val was proof of that.
These thoughts all led up to the question she had been asking herself for days on end as she recovered in the wilderness and practiced in the chill of the north. The question which had kept her up at night and refused to let her be during her meditations.
What will I use my strength for?
Suddenly Aiami breathed in a cold breath, eyes snapping open as the thought interrupted her once more. Currently she was in a small clearing not far from the cave she had chosen to be her hideout for the time being. One aggravated sigh later, she stood to stretch out some of the tension in her muscles, wanting to take a break from her training for a little while.
The ‘training’ in question was her attempts to learn to hide her own energy by pushing it down, suppressing it. Aiami had known of it even before coming to the north, but she had never understood what kind of use it would be. Her master, Su, had always encouraged learning it. Then again, she had always encouraged anything related to the control of her energy, and suppressing energy was certainly that.
Though, after the battle in the city Aiami had come to understand a practical reason for masking her energy. She may have, at the least, been able to catch Dr. Breech off guard initially, though that wouldn’t have mattered much with the addition of the… thing. However, the real use for this new ability would be to hide from the Saiyans. She wasn’t sure how much longer they would be on Earth, but she had discovered that they could track her down if they wanted to, and she had no intention of being caught so easily. Whether it be through the ability to sense energy, or with one of the devices she had been told was called a ‘scouter,’ it didn’t matter. If she could push her energy down and subdue it, she would effectively be hidden from them. She hoped.
After a deep breath Aiami once again lowered herself onto the grass, cross-legged. It was damp, but bearable. Besides, the cold kept her senses sharp and focused. Something she needed while she was having such a troubling time keeping her discipline during her meditation.
Once again it began, once again she closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, concentrating on her own energy within. Aiami began by manipulating it simply, moving it through her body, feeling it deeply. After these exercises she began to… shrink the energy, in a sense. She wasn’t really sure what she was doing, or how to do it, but she was going with what felt natural, with what she knew.
Aiami started by relaxing and dispersing the energy, then began to slowly condense it. When she struggled to do so, she did it once more, dispersing the latent energy but keeping the already suppressed focal point subdued. Continually she did so until she could hold no more, and then she began to almost absorb whatever was left. Or… so she tried.
Every time Aiami had gotten to that point it ended in failure, as it did once again. The dam broke and her power flowed forth fully from the small ‘ball’ it had been condensed into. She let the energy swell back to it’s natural state before she tried again, which gave her a moment to breathe and keep her composure, which is something she needed.
Aiami was failing. Herself, the people she had helped in the city, Val, Su.. her family. It was infuriating that she was having so much trouble something that should be so basic, so instinctual and easy for someone with her training…
And that was when she realized she was never really angry about her inability to control her ki, but more so about the battle before. She was inadequate during the whole situation. Not only in terms of power and strength, but also in terms of experience. Even with all of her practice she wasn’t a fighter. Not a true one. She lacked the instinct developed from life and death situations, the ability to be quick on her feet, to adapt to any situation. Back home she knew everyone and how they fought. She had never imagine anything like Dr. Breech or the mutant. And it threw her off, made her even worse off than she already was with the difference in power.
What will I use my strength for?
Again, the thought intruded when Aiami wanted nothing to do with it. She had no answer for herself, nothing good, anyways. Her strength was marginal in comparison, and even if it weren’t, what good could she do? How much stronger could she get?
She opened her eyes and slumped some, despair permeating her form. Aiami had never fought for anything more than to push her limits, and now that was a deeply dissatisfactory purpose. She still wanted to break her limits, to get stronger, but after seeing what she had seen it felt selfish to use her strength for only that.
The only time Aiami could remember that she used her abilities for anything more than her own purposes was when she had met her best friends, the brothers, Aka and Ao. They hadn’t always been friends, much less even on good terms. She did allow herself a small smile as the memory started to form in her mind.
~~~
“Leave him alone!”
The two men, both dressed in the same thing were only distinguishable by the color of their pants. One a blazing red, the other wearing a bold blue, otherwise only simple, white t-shirts. The twin brothers turned to the source of the voice and away from their victim.
Aiami was on her way to Su’s home in the wilderness and was halfway there when she came upon the sight of three strangers on the path. The two had been tormenting the one, some kind of merchant, for money. She had hidden at first, but she couldn’t leave well enough alone as she watched.
“That’s weird. The closest town is about three miles that way. What do you think she’s doing out here, Ao?” The man in the red pants asked his twin, which responded with a shrug. “Hey, get out of here, girl. This doesn’t involve you. Best run back to your family.” Aka said with a dismissive flap of his hand, very much a ‘shoo, shoo.’
To that, Aiami took her form, raising her arms to defend her center line and placing her feet steadily. “Leave him alone or I will fight you.” She declared, a little surprised about the boldness in her voice, considering how unsure of herself she felt. Even with all the time spent at the temple, these two didn’t look defenseless by any means.
The two look dumbfounded briefly before breaking into laughter. “You’re kidding! You!? That’s rich!”
And any unsurity was drowned out by anger at not being taken seriously. Aiami leaped forward and swung her leg out, planting a kick firmly in the stomach of the loud-mouthed one, Aka. His look of jocularity was replaced with one of shock and pain as he stumbled backwards, clutching his middle. Ao responded a second later, having to realize what happened, and began locking blows with her.
The merchant bumbled off while Aka joined in the fray. Aiami was able to block and dodge a majority of the blows. They were strong, but she had training and discipline, and that gave her a distinct edge, even with both of them attacking her. She jumped back from the, forming ki in her palms as she did so. A very small energy wave shot from her palms, the best she could manage, but she wasn’t aiming for them, but the ground in front of them. Dust and debris flew up, giving Aiami the chance to rush back in and take them by surprise.
A little while later both of the brothers were slumped down, beaten quite harshly by Aiami, who was dusty and grazed, but not much worse for wear.
“How…?” Aka sputtered out between labored breaths. “You’re just a kid…”
“The town you mentioned has a temple, and I’m one of the students there. Raw power is no match for discipline… Or so the instructors say.” Aiami responded.
“Look, just.. let us go, okay? We’re already not going to eat tonight, and neither of us wants to go to jail, or.. worse.”
“Worse? I wasn’t…” Aiami put her hands out, palms flat, and shook them. “I wasn’t going to… you know…” She trailed off and sighed. “Look, why not go into town? There’s lots of nice people there, and… you can always find work in the fields if you can’t afford food.”
“Peh, no one’s ever been nice to us. Why would they start now?” Aka looked up at her, scowling.
“Well… my parents always taught me that if you don’t give anyone a reason to dislike you, most will treat you ‘just fine.’ The last part is my dad, actually, but… you know.. Maybe if you didn’t attack strangers on the road, people would like you more.” She shrugged.
Aka looked like he was going to responded before Ao looked at him, tilting his head slightly in an accepting sort of way. “Okay… let’s say you have a point.” Aka said. “You’re sure there’s work? And a place we can stay? And… food?”
“Sure. The farmers always need help from what I hear, and they usually have small shacks for temporary workers.”
A moment passed and they both stood, clutching some of their wounds. “Alright, kid. We’ll try that… what’s your name, anyways?”
“Aiami Lin, what about you two?”
“Aka and Ao.” Aka answered for both of them. “It was an… experience.” There was a sardonic hint to his tone, but he let it be as he headed for the town. Ao smiled at her, bowing his head some, before following.
~~~
After that the two joined the martial arts school some time, easily joining the top students. They were good men, just desperate.
Aiami smiled thinking about home, and about that memory. Something good had happened because of her, and her taking a stand. Maybe that was her answer?
She couldn’t tell, and she wasn’t sure of that, either. Finally she took a breath and closed her eyes once more, but before she began her meditations on ki, she thought hard about that question, about for what purpose would she fight.
Aiami eventually came to the conclusion that she didn’t have an answer at the moment. She knew that only a desire to push limits would no longer suffice. Not in the world where empires attacked Earth or where those like Dr. Breech and the mutant existed. But she wasn’t sure where she fit into all of that. Not yet, at least.
This brought her some measure of comfort, at least enough to resume her training in peace. Once again she tried what was natural, but went over her thought process once more, and realized her flaw. She could not relax the remainder energy and hold the focal point at the same time. They were opposites, and trying to do one while doing the other was taxing, not natural and easy as it was supposed to be.
She would have to pick one option or the other, Aiami realized, and since she couldn’t use the focal point method effectively, she attempted to relax her energy, letting it fade while not in use. As she did so, it felt much more right to Aiami, and it made much more sense. When her muscles were not used, they were relaxed, but that did not mean they couldn’t be used at a moment’s notice. The same went for her ki, it was just her inner energy as opposed to her physical strength.
Aiami let out a breath as she finished her work, most of her ki faded and ‘relaxed.’ It was incredibly easy to maintain the state of suppressed energy, she found. More so than she had even expected, which was a good thing. After hitting a wall for so long on something that should have been natural and easy, she had to get back to her real training.
The next time Aiami got into a real fight, a battle for life and death, she would be ready.
*Poof*
Got a skill!
((Thread PL: 4,807
Learned: Ki Suppression
I would like PL for this, please!))
It was an extended period of cognitive dissonance for Aiami. She had never really given thought to using her skills like that. Even now she can remember, vividly, the battle. Firing her first energy wave with any real intent on harming someone, having to force herself through real pain, narrowly dodging death at least once. Nothing like she had done before.
But, looking back, she figured she should have been aware of that. The Saiyan army had not used any special weapons, or so she had heard. Just their own martial ability and their own energy. Granted, there was… something about giant apes in there, something she didn’t understand, but that was for another time. Still, the Saiyans had done nothing different from what she could do, they were just… stronger. Much stronger.
And with that strength they had attacked Earth and decimated her cities. Aiami didn’t get a concrete answer as to why that was, but she knew, at least, that not all Saiyans were united under the same banner. Val was proof of that.
These thoughts all led up to the question she had been asking herself for days on end as she recovered in the wilderness and practiced in the chill of the north. The question which had kept her up at night and refused to let her be during her meditations.
What will I use my strength for?
Suddenly Aiami breathed in a cold breath, eyes snapping open as the thought interrupted her once more. Currently she was in a small clearing not far from the cave she had chosen to be her hideout for the time being. One aggravated sigh later, she stood to stretch out some of the tension in her muscles, wanting to take a break from her training for a little while.
The ‘training’ in question was her attempts to learn to hide her own energy by pushing it down, suppressing it. Aiami had known of it even before coming to the north, but she had never understood what kind of use it would be. Her master, Su, had always encouraged learning it. Then again, she had always encouraged anything related to the control of her energy, and suppressing energy was certainly that.
Though, after the battle in the city Aiami had come to understand a practical reason for masking her energy. She may have, at the least, been able to catch Dr. Breech off guard initially, though that wouldn’t have mattered much with the addition of the… thing. However, the real use for this new ability would be to hide from the Saiyans. She wasn’t sure how much longer they would be on Earth, but she had discovered that they could track her down if they wanted to, and she had no intention of being caught so easily. Whether it be through the ability to sense energy, or with one of the devices she had been told was called a ‘scouter,’ it didn’t matter. If she could push her energy down and subdue it, she would effectively be hidden from them. She hoped.
After a deep breath Aiami once again lowered herself onto the grass, cross-legged. It was damp, but bearable. Besides, the cold kept her senses sharp and focused. Something she needed while she was having such a troubling time keeping her discipline during her meditation.
Once again it began, once again she closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, concentrating on her own energy within. Aiami began by manipulating it simply, moving it through her body, feeling it deeply. After these exercises she began to… shrink the energy, in a sense. She wasn’t really sure what she was doing, or how to do it, but she was going with what felt natural, with what she knew.
Aiami started by relaxing and dispersing the energy, then began to slowly condense it. When she struggled to do so, she did it once more, dispersing the latent energy but keeping the already suppressed focal point subdued. Continually she did so until she could hold no more, and then she began to almost absorb whatever was left. Or… so she tried.
Every time Aiami had gotten to that point it ended in failure, as it did once again. The dam broke and her power flowed forth fully from the small ‘ball’ it had been condensed into. She let the energy swell back to it’s natural state before she tried again, which gave her a moment to breathe and keep her composure, which is something she needed.
Aiami was failing. Herself, the people she had helped in the city, Val, Su.. her family. It was infuriating that she was having so much trouble something that should be so basic, so instinctual and easy for someone with her training…
And that was when she realized she was never really angry about her inability to control her ki, but more so about the battle before. She was inadequate during the whole situation. Not only in terms of power and strength, but also in terms of experience. Even with all of her practice she wasn’t a fighter. Not a true one. She lacked the instinct developed from life and death situations, the ability to be quick on her feet, to adapt to any situation. Back home she knew everyone and how they fought. She had never imagine anything like Dr. Breech or the mutant. And it threw her off, made her even worse off than she already was with the difference in power.
What will I use my strength for?
Again, the thought intruded when Aiami wanted nothing to do with it. She had no answer for herself, nothing good, anyways. Her strength was marginal in comparison, and even if it weren’t, what good could she do? How much stronger could she get?
She opened her eyes and slumped some, despair permeating her form. Aiami had never fought for anything more than to push her limits, and now that was a deeply dissatisfactory purpose. She still wanted to break her limits, to get stronger, but after seeing what she had seen it felt selfish to use her strength for only that.
The only time Aiami could remember that she used her abilities for anything more than her own purposes was when she had met her best friends, the brothers, Aka and Ao. They hadn’t always been friends, much less even on good terms. She did allow herself a small smile as the memory started to form in her mind.
~~~
“Leave him alone!”
The two men, both dressed in the same thing were only distinguishable by the color of their pants. One a blazing red, the other wearing a bold blue, otherwise only simple, white t-shirts. The twin brothers turned to the source of the voice and away from their victim.
Aiami was on her way to Su’s home in the wilderness and was halfway there when she came upon the sight of three strangers on the path. The two had been tormenting the one, some kind of merchant, for money. She had hidden at first, but she couldn’t leave well enough alone as she watched.
“That’s weird. The closest town is about three miles that way. What do you think she’s doing out here, Ao?” The man in the red pants asked his twin, which responded with a shrug. “Hey, get out of here, girl. This doesn’t involve you. Best run back to your family.” Aka said with a dismissive flap of his hand, very much a ‘shoo, shoo.’
To that, Aiami took her form, raising her arms to defend her center line and placing her feet steadily. “Leave him alone or I will fight you.” She declared, a little surprised about the boldness in her voice, considering how unsure of herself she felt. Even with all the time spent at the temple, these two didn’t look defenseless by any means.
The two look dumbfounded briefly before breaking into laughter. “You’re kidding! You!? That’s rich!”
And any unsurity was drowned out by anger at not being taken seriously. Aiami leaped forward and swung her leg out, planting a kick firmly in the stomach of the loud-mouthed one, Aka. His look of jocularity was replaced with one of shock and pain as he stumbled backwards, clutching his middle. Ao responded a second later, having to realize what happened, and began locking blows with her.
The merchant bumbled off while Aka joined in the fray. Aiami was able to block and dodge a majority of the blows. They were strong, but she had training and discipline, and that gave her a distinct edge, even with both of them attacking her. She jumped back from the, forming ki in her palms as she did so. A very small energy wave shot from her palms, the best she could manage, but she wasn’t aiming for them, but the ground in front of them. Dust and debris flew up, giving Aiami the chance to rush back in and take them by surprise.
A little while later both of the brothers were slumped down, beaten quite harshly by Aiami, who was dusty and grazed, but not much worse for wear.
“How…?” Aka sputtered out between labored breaths. “You’re just a kid…”
“The town you mentioned has a temple, and I’m one of the students there. Raw power is no match for discipline… Or so the instructors say.” Aiami responded.
“Look, just.. let us go, okay? We’re already not going to eat tonight, and neither of us wants to go to jail, or.. worse.”
“Worse? I wasn’t…” Aiami put her hands out, palms flat, and shook them. “I wasn’t going to… you know…” She trailed off and sighed. “Look, why not go into town? There’s lots of nice people there, and… you can always find work in the fields if you can’t afford food.”
“Peh, no one’s ever been nice to us. Why would they start now?” Aka looked up at her, scowling.
“Well… my parents always taught me that if you don’t give anyone a reason to dislike you, most will treat you ‘just fine.’ The last part is my dad, actually, but… you know.. Maybe if you didn’t attack strangers on the road, people would like you more.” She shrugged.
Aka looked like he was going to responded before Ao looked at him, tilting his head slightly in an accepting sort of way. “Okay… let’s say you have a point.” Aka said. “You’re sure there’s work? And a place we can stay? And… food?”
“Sure. The farmers always need help from what I hear, and they usually have small shacks for temporary workers.”
A moment passed and they both stood, clutching some of their wounds. “Alright, kid. We’ll try that… what’s your name, anyways?”
“Aiami Lin, what about you two?”
“Aka and Ao.” Aka answered for both of them. “It was an… experience.” There was a sardonic hint to his tone, but he let it be as he headed for the town. Ao smiled at her, bowing his head some, before following.
~~~
After that the two joined the martial arts school some time, easily joining the top students. They were good men, just desperate.
Aiami smiled thinking about home, and about that memory. Something good had happened because of her, and her taking a stand. Maybe that was her answer?
She couldn’t tell, and she wasn’t sure of that, either. Finally she took a breath and closed her eyes once more, but before she began her meditations on ki, she thought hard about that question, about for what purpose would she fight.
Aiami eventually came to the conclusion that she didn’t have an answer at the moment. She knew that only a desire to push limits would no longer suffice. Not in the world where empires attacked Earth or where those like Dr. Breech and the mutant existed. But she wasn’t sure where she fit into all of that. Not yet, at least.
This brought her some measure of comfort, at least enough to resume her training in peace. Once again she tried what was natural, but went over her thought process once more, and realized her flaw. She could not relax the remainder energy and hold the focal point at the same time. They were opposites, and trying to do one while doing the other was taxing, not natural and easy as it was supposed to be.
She would have to pick one option or the other, Aiami realized, and since she couldn’t use the focal point method effectively, she attempted to relax her energy, letting it fade while not in use. As she did so, it felt much more right to Aiami, and it made much more sense. When her muscles were not used, they were relaxed, but that did not mean they couldn’t be used at a moment’s notice. The same went for her ki, it was just her inner energy as opposed to her physical strength.
Aiami let out a breath as she finished her work, most of her ki faded and ‘relaxed.’ It was incredibly easy to maintain the state of suppressed energy, she found. More so than she had even expected, which was a good thing. After hitting a wall for so long on something that should have been natural and easy, she had to get back to her real training.
The next time Aiami got into a real fight, a battle for life and death, she would be ready.
*Poof*
Got a skill!
((Thread PL: 4,807
Learned: Ki Suppression
I would like PL for this, please!))