Everybody was Muay Thai Fighting! [IC]

[Cube]

February 2012

Lantern Hill

It had been a few days since the Scrap at Greenville, and life had been relatively quiet for The Steel Shrike.

...Which is kind of a pain if you're programmed to go fight crime every night.

It was a relief when an email popped up in his inbox not a few hours ago. The strange girl from the other day wanted to meet with him for a sparring match.

The location of choice was an empty rooftop not far from the Old Davis Estate. It was quiet, it was spacious, and he looked damn good standing there with his cape billowing. Which, incidentally, was exactly what he was doing as he listened for the distinctive sound of the Tigercycle's approach.

...After all, you need to make a good impression before getting beaten up by a lady.

[Thunder King]

The roar of the engine filled her ears, her short dark hair whipped behind her in the wind. She grinned, this was good. Her motorcycle pushed to the speed limit, she felt like screaming for joy. She spotted the building ahead and pulled up to it.

Steel Shrike seemed like a cool guy, with cool technology and a cool costume. She wanted to learn more about sneaking and such, but she noticed he didn't flow as well as she did. She wondered how old he was. She swung a leg over the Tigercycle and hit the alarm. She pulled it into a hiding place and gazed up at the building.

She spotted a ladder and climbed up it. It was dark, cold, and windy, perfect weather for a rooftop spar. She popped up over the edge of the building and spotted him.

His cape whipped in the wind as he gazed forward. She grinned inwardly, he did look really cool like that. She could tell as cool as he wanted to be, he wasn't there quite yet.

[Cube]

Shrike turned to face the superheroine with a flourish as she climbed up to the roof. Rule 1 of Superheroing: Always make good use of the cape.

"Greetings, Crimson Tiger." He said, his mask showing the faintest hint of a smile. "Ready for that sparring match?"

Shrike had been meaning to update his combat protocols for days now. The old Combat Simulator in The Nest was fried, and he really didn't want to get rusty...

...Of course, he was designed from a special alloy designed to prevent rust, so he wasn't sure why he was afraid of getting Rusty. Metaphors... bah.

[Thunder King]

"A few ground rules, first; we come at each other as hard as we can swing, but we stop when one of us lands a solid hit, okay? I don't want to get hurt..."

She started doing her warm-ups. First, a set of jumping jacks, and then she ran in place for a few minutes. After that, se started doing her stretches, her calves, her back, her arms. She didn't want to injure herself during the spar. "Did you stretch before I got here? Always stretch and warm up before working out." She said.

"I'm ready whenever you are..." She said with a grin.

"After this, maybe I can show you a few things from Muay Thai, my fighting style. Then you can show me a few things about sneaking around, maybe?"

[Cube]

Shrike nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

The concept of warm ups was... new.

"Ah! Right! Warmups! I did that before you got here. Always have to warm up you know. Especially in February. "

Why didn't he at least try to Google these things more? WHY?!

"When you're done, I'll let you come at me first, alright? I need to practice my countering skills."

...Also, he could never hope to out maneuver her because someone forgot to include agility enhancement servos in his default construction. Sheesh...

[Thunder King]

Within a second, her eyes shifted from cheerful to gleaming with excitement. Her leg shifted behind her as her body coiled like a spring. She jerked forward suddenly, moving with surprising speed.

Her fist penetrated his guard instantly, blowing right past his hands and straight to his chest. She was doing her best to hit him, but not hurt him. She did not want to injure her new friend.

Still, her heart sang with the joy of a good fight. She knew retaliation was coming, but she welcomed it. She didn't like pain, but each blow was a lesson, each strike taught her to evade better, to strike harder. She was at home in the fight.

[Cube]

OOOF. Right in the power core. That hit nearly sent him reeling. If he hadn't rolled with it in time, he would have been toast.

"Hrmph. Lucky Shot."

Lucky... incredibly painful shot.

"Now it's my turn!" he growled, as he aimed a metal fist... roughly a foot to the left of where her she actually was. His visual sensors were out of alignment. Damn it...

It took him a few seconds to get everything back into focus: Just in time for her next attack. Oh boy... He raised his cape in defense, hoping he could block the blow.

[Thunder King]

Crimson Tiger moved quickly and efficiently out of the way of his attack and went for a snap kick to the chest. To her surprise, however, the strike went wide.

"Shoot!" She said, under her breath. Still, she was grinning like a demon and loving every minute of it. The chill of the evening air didn't affect her, the warmth from her warm-up and the spar kept her plenty warm. It was an interesting evening.

[Cube]

'Perfect! An Opening!'

With flawless precision, Shrike turned and elbowed the martial artist in the gut. Not enough to seriously injure, but enough to knock the wind out of her.

"The tables have turned, friend!"

Was it too soon to say that? It was probably too soon to say that. Maybe he should turn invisible again so she didn't end up kicking his head off or something.

Ooooh, but that would be cheating... Bah.

'It's okay, keep your cool. You're doing fine, Shrike...' He braced himself for the inevitable counter attack.

[Thunder King]

Crimson Tiger's vision fuzzy for a moment, from the strike, before countering with a snap kick to the head. She cursed herself the moment the strike went out. She knew this would hurt, a lot.

"Oh my god!" She shouted, suddenly, backing off. She suddenly panicked. "Oh, god, are you hurt? Please don't be hurt that bad. Please, be okay!" She shouted, running towards him.

She was trying desperately not to attack. What had her father told her? Hopefully the kick to the head wasn't too bad.

"C'mon, Shrike, we need to get you somewhere safe where you can recover, should we take you to the hospital?"

[Cube]

Shrike's neck immediately snapped to an impossible angle the moment the foot collided with his head, a small shower of sparks flying from the freshly exposed wiring.

//WARNING: CRITICAL HARDWARE FAILURE.//

The wires connecting his control center to his body snapped as his body was rocked with spasms, before collapsing to the ground with a loud CLANK.

This wasn't good... this wasn't good at all...

He was lying there, partially decapitated, wires bare to the world, and he couldn't move.

"...Ow."

[Thunder King]

Somewhere deep inside, she realized that her friend was actually some sort of robot. That thought did not come to mind. His safety was by far her biggest concern.

"God, I don't know what to do!" She screamed, crying out. Tears poured down her cheeks as she walked around him. "Where can I take you? Can you be fixed? What should I do? My motorcycle can carry us both, but I don't know where to take you! Please, help me..."

[Cube]

Despite his currently inert body, Shrike's voice box was still functioning.

"There's... a mansion not far from here. The old Davis place. Take me there."

A small shower of sparks flew from his neck with each word. Oh bugger.

"...And wrap the cape around me, please."

If anyone else found out about this, he was toast. They'd repossess the house, he wouldn't be able to fight crime anymore...

Oh man, oh man, oh man, oh man, oh man... He didn't want to go out during a sparring match of all things!

[Thunder King]

As gently as she could manage, she wrapped his cape around his neck. "I'm going to carry you down the ladder, you're not too heavy." she said, gently. "Wrap your arms around my neck, get a solid grip. This will be over soon."

She slowly made her way down the ladder, her eyes still teary. She didn't know what was going to happen.

Gently, she lifted him onto her motorcycle, securing him the best she could.

"Wrap your arms around me..." She said, quietly. "How fast should I go? Do you think it'll hold together if I go as fast as possible, or should I go nice and slow?"

[Cube]

Shrike could only manage to wrap his arms around her in a weak hug, but it would have to do. But it would have to do.

"It... should hold. Just don't make any sudden turns..."

The last thing he needed today was for his head to go flying off like a beach ball. That would look good on the headline news.

Local Hero loses his head over sparring match. More at 11.

"I can open the gates when we get there... take me down to the basement, and hurry..."

How the hell was he going to explain this? He was done for...

[Thunder King]

"Oh, o-okay..." She said, cranking the engine. She built speed slowly, being very careful not to make any sudden movements or turns. She had to make sure he was safe, that he would be okay.

She continued to curse herself for her stupid actions, for getting her friend this badly hurt. What was worse, she didn't even know what was wrong with him. This could be a minor injury, for all she knew. He was a robot. It finally dawned on her. This guy, who she thought was kinda cool and maybe cute, was actually a robot. Oh, well, she thought, that was a strange thing to suddenly discover.

It wasn't like it was a world lacking in such things. Heroes, robots, aliens, all of these things were now common knowledge. But she'd met an honest to god robot! She shook her head, it was full of too many bad thoughts. What happened to him, what could happen to him.

She went faster, as slowly as she could build speed. She made her way towards her destination, hoping he would be okay...

[Cube]

GM POST

The old David Estate loomed in the distance, it's rusty gates looking as though they've stood guard without maintenance for decades.

Managing to twitch his finger, Shrike activated the gate's remote mechanism, causing them to swing open with surprising ease as the Tigermobile entered.

The grounds were wild and unkempt, with grass and weeds slowly creeping over the dirt road that led to the vast, imposing mansion up ahead.

"Park in the bushes. I... haven't been able to get the docking station to work yet..."

[Thunder King]

"Okay..." She said, bringing the Tigercycle to a slow stop. It rumbled gently, and then shut off. She climbed off of it and, very carefully, helped Shrike off of it as well.

She didn't say a word as she started walking with him towards the doors. What could she say? Sorry for nearly killing you? No, she'd make this right, as right as she could. Right now, though, there wasn't much she could do or say, the situation was out of her hands. She just hoped he knew what he was doing.

[Cube]

GM POST

From his rather awkward position on the heroine's back, Shrike guided her through the vast, imposing doors of the mansion. It was clear that this place hadn't had guests... let alone maid service, for some time now. What was once a vast, grand foyer was now filled with dust... debris, and most disturbingly of all, a trail of dried blood.

The trail led up the stairs, through winding abandoned halls, until finally reaching an old study. Papers and journals on robotics and nanotechnology lay scattered all over the floor, as the faint droplets of dried blood led to a suit of medieval armor leaning against the far wall.

"Pull on it's arm..." said Shrike, gesturing to the suit. Part of him was embarrassed as to the state of disrepair the mansion was in. He almost never came through here if he could. What was she going to think?

[Thunder King]

Crimson Tiger was no detective, that much was obvious. Still, the dried blood, absolute lack of cleanliness, and the general disrepair lead her to believe that no humans lived in this house, and perhaps hadn't in a long time.

She was curious as to exactly how or why a robot superhero came to live in such a place. Was his creator here? There were many questions in her head, questions she dare not ask. She knew, deep inside, that he was risking a great deal bringing her here, and that she had given him no other choice. She sighed inwardly. This was not the way the evening should have gone.

She followed his directions diligently, hoping to put him down soon and see what was going on with him. The uncertainty was the biggest problem.

[Cube]

GM POST

The mechanism hidden within the suit of armor groaned to life as the nearby bookshelf slid open, a few precariously balanced books tumbling down as it did so.

"Down... there..." rasped Shrike. "That's The Nest..."

The secret passage closed soon after the pair stepped through it, though it had much better illumination in comparison to the floors above. The trail of blood did not fade though.

He really had to get that cleaned up...

As they reached the bottom of the staircase, the lights blinked to light over a vast, if not particularly well maintained lair fit for a superhero. A massive computer stood in the center of the room, at the eend of the mysterious trail of blood. The dust covered vestiges of gyms, infirmaries, and other facilities lay scattered around the base, with "out of order" signage hastily tacked to them. What wasn't out of order, however, was a vast operating table surrounded by rather unpleasant looking robotic arms.

"Put me in there..." said Shrike, as he pointed toward the fearsome looking device.

[Thunder King]

She nodded and, as gently as she could, put him down where he asked. Once that was done, she sat down on the floor beside him, relieved to be rid of the weight of him. She sighed.

"I, I'm really sorry..." She curled up, her arms wrapped around her legs, burying her head in her knees. "I never knew, I...I didn't expect this would happen. I'm so sorry."

She started to cry. Why, why did she hit him like that. She kept saying "I'm sorry..." over and over again. Now that she was able to put him down, able to stop riding or carrying, the weight of her actions hit her. She'd nearly killed someone, someone she might call a friend. It sickened her.

[Cube]

Shrike snapped into the operating table with a swift click as the device whirred to life, slowly dismantling him to inspect the damage.

Almost immediately, Shrike's voice crackled over the intercom.

"It's alright... I hadn't checked my neck after that fight a few days ago. That guy must have done more damage than I thought."

From the computer in the center of the base, Shrike's AI let out a sigh. "I'll be fine in a few days, though. But... I think I have a lot of explaining I need to do, don't I?"

[Thunder King]

"Are, are you going to be okay?" she asked, head still buried in her knees. She hoped he would be. Still, she had a sliver of hope. Maybe she hadn't done all that damage herself. Maybe this machine could fix him like brand new. Maybe, after a few days worth of repairs, he'd be good as new.

Still, it sucked, and it hurt. "I...I wanna stay with you..." She said, smiling sadly. "I got you into this, so I'm going to help take care of you, watch over you, try to keep you company. It's the least I could do for you. Unless you'd rather I leave. I would understand if you wanted me to leave, never come back."

[Cube]

A hand came down from the Autoworkshop and patted the woman on the shoulder.

"I'll be fine. It just takes a while to re-solder all of these wires."

From the safety of his mainframe, Shrike looked out onto the Nest. The Lair that was his Birthplace and Home.

And like the home of any young being, it was absolutely filthy.

"...I really need to get this place cleaned up. I'm kind of embarrassed. But... please don't be upset. I know this is kind of shocking and all... What with me being a robot..."