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[darkinferno]

so a lot of people have been talking about receiving packages in the mail from retrospec lately. we've had fruit, stuffed animals, various accessories... but i want to know more about the other things people have been getting. the weird changes that don't make sense

like anya suddenly being fluent in russian or yin's eyes changing color

how many of you guys have had stuff like THAT happen so far? what sort of changes are we seeing here?

people have been getting these flashes over the past month and a half, and now some people are turning up with these random physical changes or abilities they definitely didn't have the day before. i wanna know if there are just a couple people who've experienced this or if it's more common than we think


on a somewhat related note, who here knows anything about swordfighting? i think i want to try something

Comments

[darkinferno]

that definitely counts

do you think we could meet up somewhere to give this a try?

[heiroglyphs]

Of course.
Is there somewhere on campus we can meet?
Or we could head to the park.
Your call.

[darkinferno]

let's try the campus

if my theory turns out to be right, i don't want to put on a public show for anyone watching

what about the rec? we can use one of the racquetball courts

[heiroglyphs]

Alright.
I'll bring the blunted one then.
When do you want to meet?

[darkinferno]

hmm... does later this afternoon work for you? maybe around 2

and tell me you've got multiple swords, otherwise i'm about to make a trip to find one of my own

[heiroglyphs]

I have two practice swords.
Only one real one, though.
You don't have a sword, then?

[darkinferno]

no, i never did any sort of fencing or fighting when i was a kid

i don't think we need real swords for now, the practice ones should be fine. if this works out like him thinking it might, i'll see about getting one of my own

[heiroglyphs]

Well good
Because I definitely dont have gear in your size.

[Being at least a foot shorter than you and all.]

Meet you at 2?

*i'm, not him, gj self

[darkinferno]

i'll see you then


[And he will! A little bit prior to 2:00, Dante's walking into the rec center, heading down to claim one of the racquetball courts for their use. It's big and open, and although sound echoes a little bit, he figures it should give them plenty of room to maneuver.

Of course, that's assuming they need to maneuver. Dante frowns, remembering working with Sorey earlier. He'd thought that, if he had fought with a sword in the past, holding one again might trigger another one of those flashes, giving him some more detail and maybe filling in a couple blanks. But it hadn't happened. Does that mean he's wrong...?

Dante's waiting outside the court door for Vera. When he sees her, he'll wave her over with an easy smile.]

Thanks for coming, Vera. Do you think we'll have enough room in here?

[heiroglyphs]

[Vera arrives about ten minutes later, carrying a white metal briefcase with golden clasps and trim. She gives Dante a smile and a little wave as she walks over to him, setting the case on a nearby chair and retrieving the two blunted practice rapiers inside.]

Should be plenty. Not like we're going to be doing backflips or any of that movie shit, right?

[She offers him one of the swords.]

Lets just try not to actually hit each other with these, okay? They may be blunted, but they'll still hurt like hell.

[darkinferno]

[Dante can't help himself: a smirk pulls at the corner of his mouth.]

Well, there go all my plans to become a famed swordsman in the movies. You sure I can't try just one backflip?

[Like he can even do a backflip in the first place... Dante accepts the sword from Vera, holding it in his hand to test the weight. In spite of its smaller size, it feels a bit heavier than the bokken he used with Sorey earlier, but Dante finds that he likes the feel of this weapon better for some reason.]

Yeah. Nice and slow. How do you want to start? Just fight a couple of passes first? Or something else?

[He flexes his wrist, watching the way the sword moves. Maybe this will work a bit better?]

[heiroglyphs]

Right. Do your best to match my footing, we'll take this one step at a time.

[She walks to the other side of the court, getting into position.]

Fencing is all about speed and poise. You have to predict your opponent's movements while being fast enough to counter.

[darkinferno]

All right.

[Dante places his feet to mimic her stance, watching the way she holds herself. It feels a little bit weird, his body turned almost sideways, but Dante frowns to himself and holds the position. He's going to see if this works or not.]

Sounds like a chess match.

[heiroglyphs]

You're not wrong.

[She shifts her weight forward, taking a step forward by swinging her back leg out in an exaggerated arc. Lowering the tip of the sword until it pointed at Dante's chest, she pulls her wrist close to her chest to give the indication she was poised to lunge.]

Except it's a bit more punishing if you make a wrong move.

[darkinferno]

[Dante can't help but chuckle at that.]

A little bit, yeah. I'll try to avoid that.

[So. Predict her next movement and figure out how to counter it. He can do that. Dante narrows his eyes at the blade, guessing that if she's pulling her arm back, it's to give her more power when she thrusts it forward again. It's positioned to point straight at his chest, so in order to block it he'd need to...

His first instinct would be to swing and try to meet it from above, forcing her sword to drop out of the way. But these rapiers, while heavier than the wooden bokken, aren't wide enough for him to be certain he could control her blade like that.

So if he can't do that... maybe he can knock it upwards and duck below it? Dante shifts his wrist, angling the blade so that when she lunges, he can catch her blade on his and push it up and off. That's a good move, right?]