D5 MM (Nishi Beach) - The Char meets the Pinky Swear (Expecting)

[Utaku Itsuka]

"Hey, Rui-chan, can I fetch my bag back? And a Carp-a-Cola, please!" She was just back from a jog at the beach - a bit of a challenge with the city so full these days, but she still gave it a try - and was now covering the bottom part of her red-on-orange bikini with an azure-blue sarong showing what looked like a flock of Jimen-Tori on a beach.

She popped her cola, held her bag up against the kiosk counter, and got out a small, but clearly well-cared-for drone.

She then looked around. She should be coming anytime now.

[Bayushi Senshuken]

Bayushi Senshuken does not simply walk down the beach. She descends, her flip flops snapping with the confidence of tiny war banners.

The waves crash dramatically, yet her stylish swimming suit and short shorts still manage to outshine the scenery. Her backpack clearly contains drone related doom.

Senshu closes on the distance. Her hair is perfectly tousled by the wind. The Fortune of Cinematic Timing remains a loyal fan. She strides up to Itsuka and offers her typical stupidly sexy smirk that has ended debates and burnt rice fields and hearts alike.

“Utaku Itsuka san?" She asks after a bow.

[Utaku Itsuka]

The local Pony answers with a bow of her own and a faint, very faint smile. One who didn't know Itsuka might even take it for a smug grin. Her voice is flat as she answers..

"Bayushi Senshuken-san?" She points to a small space on the beach that seems slightly less crowded, then to a bench beside her on the kiosk, head nodding at the Carp-a can.

"A drink before we get to it?", she asks matter-of-factly. It's hard to say if her voice is 'friendly, but contained', 'dismissive' or just 'eeyoreish'. One way or another it seems like she plans on finishing her own carp-a before getting started.

She eyes the girl's backpack after a sip. "That's the famous Pinky Swear, eh?"

[Bayushi Senshuken]

Bayushi Senshuken sees the Utaku warrior gesture toward the slightly less crowded patch of beach and the modest kiosk like it’s the grand throne room of the Celestial Heavens. Naturally, she responds in the only appropriate way. With the dramatic weight of a full archvillain monologue.

She bows again with operatic flair.

“Utaku Itsuka." She announces with a voice dripping theatrical menace. "You stand before Bayushi Senshuken, devourer of reputations, breaker of plot armour, sovereign of the dramatic reveal!"

She lifts a hand, palm to the sky, like she’s conjuring invisible doom.

“I shall defeat you so thoroughly,” she continues, "that future historians will argue whether you ever existed in the first place!"

A beat. A dramatic pause long enough for a commercial break.

Then she casually drops the villain act like a coat she got bored of wearing. She shrugs and plops onto the bench with the ease of someone who regularly switches between global threat and beach gremlin.

She flashes a grin. It's sharp, bright, and annoyingly charismatic.

“Soda with lime and ice, please. The large one.”

She taps the backpack at her side. "Pinky Swear, indeed. Mythical, dangerous, not pink. And yes,” she adds while smirking, "Try not to be intimidated. It gets embarrassed.”

Another grin and a normal, human tone this time. "Forgive me. I tend to role play a bit during these duels. I can be more serious if it's something that will spoil the experience for you."

[Utaku Itsuka]

Bayushi Senshuken sees the Utaku warrior gesture toward the slightly less crowded patch of beach and the modest kiosk like it’s the grand throne room of the Celestial Heavens. Naturally, she responds in the only appropriate way. With the dramatic weight of a full archvillain monologue.

She bows again with operatic flair.

“Utaku Itsuka." She announces with a voice dripping theatrical menace. "You stand before Bayushi Senshuken, devourer of reputations, breaker of plot armour, sovereign of the dramatic reveal!"

She lifts a hand, palm to the sky, like she’s conjuring invisible doom.

“I shall defeat you so thoroughly,” she continues, "that future historians will argue whether you ever existed in the first place!"

A beat. A dramatic pause long enough for a commercial break.

Then she casually drops the villain act like a coat she got bored of wearing. She shrugs and plops onto the bench with the ease of someone who regularly switches between global threat and beach gremlin.

She flashes a grin. It's sharp, bright, and annoyingly charismatic.

“Soda with lime and ice, please. The large one.”

She taps the backpack at her side. "Pinky Swear, indeed. Mythical, dangerous, not pink. And yes,” she adds while smirking, "Try not to be intimidated. It gets embarrassed.”

Another grin and a normal, human tone this time. "Forgive me. I tend to role play a bit during these duels. I can be more serious if it's something that will spoil the experience for you."

One of the beach-going Utaku's brows inadvertently raises during the Bayushi's performance, then raises some more. Senshuken will probably have noticed a hollow, rather lifeless expression on her, beach clothes, cola and everything else aside - but at some point during her theatrical introduction, she'll see a small grin adorning the otherwise flat expression, a small flicker burning on her eyes.

As Senshuken goes back to a "normal" tone, she shakes her head, slowly. "No apologies needed, Bayushi-san. Unless you didn't mean your words." The tone is still flat, although the flames are still noticeable in her eyes.

She side-eyes the backpack as she takes another sip.

"...Not pink?", she finally asks. The voice suddenly sounds less monotone, maybe surprised. Maybe frustrated? "Huh. Why not?"

... a strange question. Maybe Itsuka liked pink?

She eventually opens her own bag, revealng parts of the Char, shining with patches of red, dark yellow, purple.... and pink.

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"It takes two to tango. Thus the apology." She explains. "Acting full arch villain with someone who doesn't find it fun would spoil my own fun. I don't wish to impose."

"This is a nice piece of equipment you have there." She takes her own drone out. It is black with crimson details. "I went for the colors of my clan. I had to paint it over and do some extra tinkering to fix some stability issues. I think that its reaction times to changes of direction is also quicker now."

[Utaku Itsuka]

"It takes two to tango. Thus the apology." She explains. "Acting full arch villain with someone who doesn't find it fun would spoil my own fun. I don't wish to impose."

"This is a nice piece of equipment you have there." She takes her own drone out. It is black with crimson details. "I went for the colors of my clan. I had to paint it over and do some extra tinkering to fix some stability issues. I think that its reaction times to changes of direction is also quicker now."

"Oh, so you did some work on it too?" She looks quite interested, maybe surprisingly so, and starts eyeing the details and extra pieces that seem like they'd help with manoeuverability. A tilt of her head, and she speaks again. "Been taking good care of it, it must be a happy drone, eh?", she comments, her voice perhaps a bit motherly, although the tone is still oddly flat.

She then points to a few places on the Char. "I've been trying to get the Char to speed up faster. Manoeuvering may get a tad trickier, so I may need to compensate later, but.... so far, it's been doing fine, I think? Want to take a look at her?", she adds, pushing her open backpack a bit towards the Bayushi, then eyeing the Pinky again.

"The crimson looks meancing, suits him well. I mean... he's a he, I think?" she eyes some more parts, examines the paint. "I still think some pink would suit him, though."

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"I haven't thought about it." She replies while moving closer to see the Char from up close. "But why a boy? I would prefer to think her a girl. My good little girl that follows my instructions and doesn't want to disappoint me. And I, on my end, I take the best possible care of her. But..." She seems thoughtful. "Yes, black and pink, why not? It will fit her well."

"How about the Char? They seem happy, they know how to enjoy life and how to make your own life happier even."

[Utaku Itsuka]

"Oh? She's a she?" She shakes her head, apologetically, then continues in the same flat-toned voice. "Must have been something about the 'Pinky'. Makes me think of a plucky adventurer, foolhardy even. Almost like a rodent who wants to take over the world - or help a best friend at it."

A wan smile as she mentions a colour change. "I'm sure she'll like the new garments. The Char... she's been a dear, that she has. Not as carefree as her ancestors were... " that somehow has a slight nostalgic tone to it. "But she's a good'un, a fiery and trusty friend. And... she does stand by her friends."

The cola can now empty, she nods towards the less crowded part of the beach again. "So - shall we let them spread their wings?"

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"Yes, yes!" She exclaims and rushes to finish her own soda before rising to her feet.

Soon the banner is attached, the drone in the air and the Bayushi in full knowledge of how good of a pilot her opponent is.

[Utaku Itsuka]

"Yes, yes!" She exclaims and rushes to finish her own soda before rising to her feet.

Soon the banner is attached, the drone in the air and the Bayushi in full knowledge of how good of a pilot her opponent is.

The Char's banners are soon attached as well. "Ready", Itsuka says, cinders burning on her eyes as she looks up... then Senshu sees her eyes focus wholly on the controller's screen, rather than up. Apparently she'd chosen to pilot in 1st person perspective for this battle.

The Char started by flying higher and higher, the drone eventually tilting slightly instead of floating horizontally, somehow as if it were trying to keep its "eyes" on the Pinky Swear.

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TIme for those rolls we've done a good while ago XD

D5 MM - Rolling for duel vs Senshuken before dayflip comes around! | 7k4+9 ⇒ 58

D5 MM - Rolling for duel vs Senshuken before dayflip comes around! | 7k4+9 ⇒ 37

D5 MM - Rolling for duel vs Senshuken before dayflip comes around! | 7k4+9 ⇒ 55

[Bayushi Senshuken]

Senshu isn't used to being the prey, but against the Char she doesn't seem to have any other option. The drone is better and the opponent is a far better pilot. It doesn't take long for Itsuka to claim her banner.

The Scorpion bows, a bit lower than expected, as a way to show deference to the Utaku's superior skills. "You are fantastic, Utaku san! Do you pilot fighters?"

[Utaku Itsuka]

Senshu isn't used to being the prey, but against the Char she doesn't seem to have any other option. The drone is better and the opponent is a far better pilot. It doesn't take long for Itsuka to claim her banner.

The Scorpion bows, a bit lower than expected, as a way to show deference to the Utaku's superior skills. "You are fantastic, Utaku san! Do you pilot fighters?"

The Utaku bows as well, not much less deeper than Senshuken herself. "You're not bad yourself, Bayushi-san. Are you a pilot as well, then?"

After they're standing straight again, she shakes her head a bit. "We all train on fighters... but I was mostly a courier, even back on the military".

Here... Senshuken has probably heard of the Wherever?

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"I'm a courtier, but my father has a biplane and sometimes, not a lot unfortunately, I get to pilot the family heli. I'm more of a racer though. A professional one for the last two years. Bikes."

[Utaku Itsuka]

She nods. "A professional biker and a courtier, then. Not the most frequent combination, I'd think, is it?"

Her tone is neutral, though, absolutely no judgment. If anything, the flicker in her eyes still seems to be there, if a bit subdued now. "Where do you compete, then? And... I imagine you've met Moto Shiwahime-san here?"

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"No, no, we haven't been introduced. Is she a racer, too? I compete in the local scene of my homeworld. The World of Dreams."

[Utaku Itsuka]

"No, no, we haven't been introduced. Is she a racer, too? I compete in the local scene of my homeworld. The World of Dreams."

"Oh. I've heard of it, of course. Must be quite the scene there."

She unconsciously looks towards the sea, the sky.

"It must be.... very different from here, ne?" And from the Castle of Winds, or anywhere else she's ever been, really. "Is it... indoor racing, mostly?"

Probably not, but for some reason she had a hard time imagining anything but buildings there.

"Moto-san... I'm... not sure if she's a racer, now you ask? But she seemed very interested in bikes and racing. Seemed interested in holding a race here as well! I don't suppose you've heard anything about that?"

She doesn't mention the fact that she was equally interested, for now, even if her focus were other kinds of race.

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"You should introduce us then!" She replies excitedly. "The Scorpion cannot claim to be as accomplished as your clanmates in the field, but I can promise an interesting race."

She chuckles softly. "Not as accomplished doesn't mean that we do indoor bike racing. How would this be done?" She seems to ponder for a moment or two.

"I met another clanmate of yours. A Shinjo. Another pilot. We talked about car racing perhaps, but I don't think that it is easy to get the necessary paperwork filed and approved for a permission."

[Utaku Itsuka]

"You should introduce us then!" She replies excitedly. "The Scorpion cannot claim to be as accomplished as your clanmates in the field, but I can promise an interesting race."

She chuckles softly. "Not as accomplished doesn't mean that we do indoor bike racing. How would this be done?" She seems to ponder for a moment or two.

"I met another clanmate of yours. A Shinjo. Another pilot. We talked about car racing perhaps, but I don't think that it is easy to get the necessary paperwork filed and approved for a permission."

"Oh! I'm sure we can arrange a meeting with Moto-san", she says, taking out her comm to note down something. "Mind trading comm numbers? Makes it easier to arrange something, ne? I... take it you're staying in Shiawase for the season?"

The mention of the Shinjo is received with a small, but honest smile. "Oh. I had been discussing some things with Shinjo-san. A car race... there's often one held about this time, might have to check but you may have the chance to participate" A slight wink. "Might be a chance to test the waters against the Unicorn, maybe?"

She then looks at the sea. "Other than that... we have been discussing other possibilities. Not indoor...." she purses her lips a bit, maybe slightly abashed. "I... I've heard of indoor racing elsewhere!" Admittedly not with bikes, but she doesn't mention that. "And the World of Dreams... do you actually have place for racing courses, then??"

[Bayushi Senshuken]

"Yes, there are tracks, of course. I have never really raced with a car, but I trust my skills." She grins. "Raced in an organized competition, I mean. Friendly or not so friendly impromptu challenges don't count, I guess."

She takes her communicator out of her pocket. "Your number?" She asks.