ximilialog | open 🗡may staycation

Entry tags:

open 🗡may staycation

CHARACTERS: andy + open!
LOCATION: various station spots
DATE: post vrefesea mission
CONTENT: misc downtime feat an axe
WARNINGS: temporary burns and gnarly injuries in closed starters

I 🗡 QUIT YOUR JOB

[ after the initial arrival back on the station, the kaiju blood is clean and her skin is ✨ clear ✨, but she lost track of joe in the chaos, and there are others she wants to check on now that there isn't a lizard monster determined to tear everything up. her clothes are a bit of a mess - torn from the fight, holey from the blood, revealing pockets of unmarked and uninjured skin as her ex-archeologist attire is no longer fit for service. but she is deeply unconcerned in the immediate about any exposures, especially now that she's rid herself of the acidic blue sludge. ]

[ her axe is neat on her back in its holster, guns tucked away, and she looks remarkably put together for a woman who just double-team killed the train monster. mostly she is moving through the orbers, but she'll stop at anyone who looks worse for wear, or at anyone she already knows even a nominal amount. she can't believe how concerned she's getting for these orbers. ugh. ]

You good? [ injured? in need of a snack? a literal lift to the infirmary?? ]

[ after the visits to the infirmary, andy makes her way to the kitchen. her axe is still at her back, her clothes are still a mess, but she wants a goddamn drink. for once in her life she doesn't steal the whole bottle of vodka, popping it open and pouring herself a full glass at the counter instead. it is roughly the size of a beer mug. ]

[ and then she just starts to chug it. water break?? no. this is better. snacks will be next. ]

II 🗡 LIVE IN THE WOODS

[ andy, as always, prefers the sunlight room. ]

[ perhaps today she is sitting beside the stream, barefoot with a smatter of tools scattered around her as she scrubs and cleans her axe. she made sure the kaiju blood was removed quickly and immediately, but it was a good reminder that it's probably due for a good fixer upper. the sun is warm, and she's in a dark tank top with black leggings, expertly wiping it down. at some point she switches over to sharpening it. ]

[ it's old as balls, just like she is, and it does not have the same healing properties. but she handles it with both great care and expertise. ]

[ if she's not with her axe, she is probably just sleeping. her feet dangle in the stream and she lays flat on her back, eyes closed. the sun feels nice on her face and she enjoys the quiet, save for the sound of the water. she won't miss anyone approaching, but she'll give it a minute to see if they pass before saying anything. ]

Come on in, the water's fine. [ the water is in fact chilly, and maybe she's not entirely asleep despite all appearances. there is also zero sign of injury, despite most assuredly coming in close contact with kaiju blood. ]

III 🗡 WILD CARD + POTENTIAL TRAINING

[ throw something at me or lets chat!! you can find me at communism or romanitas#5368 @ disco! wildcard me or we can do a custom thing! c:

[ definitely open to training stuff, especially if we've talked about it before, but i'd prefer to write up a custom thing given andy + weapons etc so hit me up if you'd like and lets plot! or drop one of your own design! you wanna learn to use any weapon at all?? andy's ur girl. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

（ she saw susano'o, in the dreamscape — he is not surprised the crows do not startle her. ）

Mine is rather less impressive. I am not often caught off my guard enough to force a defensive technique of that nature.

[ it might have, if she hadn't known what itachi was already capable of. the crows feel so minor in comparison. ]

[ she's still grinning though. ]

What can I say? You pick up a lot of stuff over the years. I like to multitask.

Evidently.

（ his tone is faintly amused, and he cocks his head to one side as he looks at her. ）

Do you have much experience against 'magic'?

（ using that word pains him, as it does not accurately describe the nature of shinobi techniques, but it is an analogy that most seem to understand. easier, to call it that than insist on something he must then explain. ）

[ she shakes her head. ] Just whatever we've come up against here. We don't have magic or powers on my Earth.

[ it's been months and she still doesn't think of her immortality as a power. but a few months on a space station where people might do so themselves isn't going to change thousands of years of her thinking. she hears magic and thinks what itachi does, or what daisy can do. much more flashy than healing. ]

But I'm a fast learner.

（ it is curious to him that she wouldn't think of it so — immortality drove orochimaru to learn as many techniques as he could, in the hopes that one would be the secret to unlocking permanent life. so terrified of his own mortality that he inflicted death on countless others. he would be galled by her attitude.

itachi simply finds it interesting. ）

If you would like to practice, I am not averse. I can use elemental techniques that are less likely to harm you, so that you can become accustomed to counteracting them.

（ immortal or not, he doubts she enjoys the pain of injury. ）

I've been thinking I should probably do just that. [ she's largely been winging it - most of her encounters with magic and the like have proven her healing works with them too (save the pulsefire, and perhaps the wings in giva), but it doesn't mean she wouldn't prefer to learn how best to counter these things. ]

It doesn't matter if they harm me. The kaiju blood was fucking awful. But plenty of these worlds end up having strange magic. What elemental shit can you do?

I can utilize fire, water and wind in combat. Fire is the greatest of my proficiencies, as it is in alignment with my own innate chakra nature.

（ he has a marked tendency to undersell himself and his capabilities — he has no desire and no purpose to pretending arrogance with andy. ）

But not all of the techniques I use are purely elemental.

（ he raises a hand in a simple seal and vanishes from sight, appearing behind her so immediately it is as if he has teleported. ）

This is called shunshin, for instance.

Right, the volcanos. [ he'd explained some of this to her already, and some of the details are fuzzy - but not because of disinterest so much as her faulty memory. ]

[ she feels him behind her as soon as he appears and turns quickly, reaching out to touch him - the gesture non-threatening and intending to see if he's solid or an illusion. ]

Your ninja shit's been a little rarer than the elemental, so maybe we can start with the latter. For now. Someone getting in this close just means I can reach them in the same breath they might stab me. [ it would not be the first time she killed someone who thought they were killing her. ]

（ there are precious few fights that immortality could not win by attrition. there is a reason it is so coveted a thing.

he is stock still, as her hand makes contact with his shoulder. one might get the sense it is not often he permits others within this near range, for reasons not entirely dissimilar to what she elaborates on. he is a long-distance specialist by preference, not only because it allows him to end fights decisively on his own terms, but because it minimizes the danger to both himself and his opponent. genjutsu is simple. if one can steal into an enemy's mind and torture them with a decade's worth of pain in an instant, they often lose the will to fight on. breaking his opponents has meant, historically, he could let them live.

to her comment — ）

Ninjutsu is a very broad category. Some of it I expect you would have no trouble with — weaponry use falls under its umbrella, for instance — however, even if you do not care if you come to harm, it is not my preference to employ pain as a teaching method.

（ there is something about the way he says that, a faint tightness to the corners of his eyes, that suggests something deeper there than a simple matter of preferences. ）

Attack me. I will make it difficult for you.

[ someone tell her it's coveted!! or better yet just take hers!! ]

[ solid. so some kind of... super speed magic? it doesn't concern her in concept. being faster than her doesn't mean she won't come back from a speedy fatality. ]

[ she shrugs, because while getting hurt still in fact hurts, andy has become numb to so much of it. she was stabbed in the chest in scorpion's bend and still made the kill herself before ripping it out. but if itachi has his preferences, she's not going to argue. ]

[ instead she just attacks again. immediately coming down hard with her sword. ]

（ idk, there's probably a fight here.

very likely badass

long, involved, drawn out.

things like crows, replacement jutsu, shunshin make an appearance, as does the occasional summoning scroll with an uncanny amount of weaponry stashed in a single piece of paper.

it's very clear that he relies more on speed than strength. misdirection, sleight of hand. he does not go all out — this isn't that sort of fight. but he does give her a broad range of techniques and abilities to fight against, giving her time to acclimate to it and adapt before moving on to the next.

but his stamina — improved now from all those months ago — is still not perfect. once he can no longer maintain the sharingan, he holds up a hand. ）

I believe we should stop here for now.

[ the most important part is to have fun and be yourself!! and it isn't that andy doesn't find itachi dangerous - because he is and he's very skilled - but she gets a thrill from it too, from the newness of what he's capable of and the way the flames lick at her skin. she spars recklessly, with seemingly little concern for her own health, but it's not dissimilar to how she is in a regular fight. ]

[ it's good, she's happy. ]

[ she stills as soon as he holds up his hand, vaguely tired in her own right but none of the bruises or scrapes have stuck around, so the the physical pieces of the fatigue fade fast. she'll be fine with a nap. ]

Same time tomorrow? [ from the grin on her face, she's teasing. mostly. ] I would like to do that again sometime.

（ he inclines his head faintly — ）

Should you wish. I am available at most hours.

（ he has his time that he dedicates to his own training, some several hours a day during the small hours of the morning, but he is never one to turn down a bout. ）

You need only ask.

[ he's so studious. and serious. this is not a surprise, but suddenly andy feels a new determination to eventually crack it that she hadn't really had before. it'll be a work in progress. ]

It was half a joke, but I would like to maybe make it a regular thing. Especially the magic parts. That was fun. [ she pauses. ] I know people use it differently and not everyone's a ninja, but even knowing what it feels like could help.

'No preparation done is ever wasted', hm?

（ there's a reason he has spent his life trying to plan for all possible deviances from most to least likely in any given situation or circumstance. he is not always correct — but that has been, thus far, mostly a matter of hindsight.

he studies her for a long moment. he took care not to injure her overmuch, but it is the nature of fire to burn, and such things are not always so easily avoided. the mark is gone, leaving only a smear of ichor against charred clothing, and he tilts his head curiously. ）

How complete is your healing?

Edited 2022-07-02 15:16 (UTC)

Yeah, more or less. It's not often I find something new anymore. [ and she's always fascinated when that happens. it's nice to find new things, after so long feeling like she'd already seen it all. ximilia is full of surprises. ]

It's completed. [ a beat. ] As in already finished healing, unless that's not what you meant?

[ it occurs to her they've never really talked about it before. neither of them are really the type to push each other on personal shit. ]

Ah, no — I meant in the sense of, what all does it heal?

（ he has not seen her take fatal damage — yet, given what he knows of her age... it is not difficult to imagine the two might be related. ）

Everything.

[ she finds she doesn't mind talking about it, mostly because itachi was already aware of it, however tangentially. she maybe took it for granted a little bit. ]

There are no limits. I've regrown limbs. Bullets, blades, doesn't matter. I heal from any wound. And before you ask, I have no real explanation for it. [ she knows itachi likes to know things. ]

（ like senju tsunade's creation rebirth, except there is no knowable limit. it is not tied to chakra, the user's own will, or the rapid aging that accompanies forced cell division. true, perfect regeneration, without cost.

he finds himself faintly surprised — not often an emotion that plagues him.

(and yes, her callout is not incorrect. he finds himself annoyed — though not at her — at the unknowable nature of such a thing.)

he cants his head faintly to one side, considering. he's more scholar than scientist — he lacks utterly orochimaru's tendency towards vivisection — but he is curious. ）

I see. May I ask a personal question?

（ more personal than... about the healing in general, he means. ）

[ she searched for answers for so long to no avail, she had to give up. she was too tired to keep looking. she was immortal, that was it. maybe it's out there, but after almost seven thousand years, the secrets are hidden too well or don't exist. she went with the latter, for her own sake. she just doesn't stay dead, it's a fact of life. ]

I can't promise an answer. [ half teasing again, but also true. ]

Edited 2022-07-03 16:14 (UTC)

Naturally not.

（ he is much the same — it is something they know well of each other, and have both taken care to respect. ）

Have you produced biological children with this same trait?

（ it is where his mind first goes — kekkei genkai, the same manner of thing that saw the sharingan become the pride of the uchiha and their downfall. but there is no guarantee that children are possible in a body that must be constantly in a state of cellular regeneration to maintain one's physical state in its prime. ）

No. We can't have children once it starts.

[ only booker had ever had them in the first place, all before his first death. it made his agonies a little different, she felt, having to outlive your children, knowing what it was like for him to suffer both that and their hatred of his eternal youth in the end. ]

And we aren't born with it, if that's what you were thinking.

'We'?

（ he does not immediately jump to her referring to others aboard the station — many people here are the only ones from their home, after all — but it does make him think there are others like her in her world. ）

There are a few of us. It's not common, but I'm not the only one.

[ not anymore, at least. ]

Hm.

（ 'once it starts' suggests a catalyst. even if there is a genetic component, it may not activate if those conditions are not met — as with the uchiha. even among their clan, not all full-blooded members ever awaken the sharingan, and of those that do even fewer the mangekyō.

he is silent a moment, as he walks over to where the training dummies are, erecting one that had been knocked askew during their match. ）

I cannot fathom what it would be like to be unable to die. It must be very lonely.

（ he has wished for death for the better part of a decade, and when it came to him he was satisfied with that end. even now, he is still not terribly enthused by living — it is purpose that drives him forwards, and when that purpose is finished he no more expects to survive now than he had that final showdown with sasuke. but the loss of loved ones, the knowledge that you will bury them and mourn their deaths, the way love could shift to hatred if they carried any envy for you... it would be torture. though — ）

You told me once you were 'old'. I presumed at the time you were being coy as you did not trust me with the answer then. （ so blunt. ） Do you now?

（ he had decided initially that it was perhaps a minimum of a hundred years, but no more than three. but he has spent more time with her sense, and even in her fighting alone... the use of her skills, how they bleed into one another... it would take even a man like hatake kakashi, the copy ninja, decades to amass that ability to shift seamlessly between so many variable styles. without an aid such as the sharingan, perhaps he ought to revise his upper determination. ）

Edited 2022-07-03 22:46 (UTC)

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cw: discussion of children/fertility

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cw: suicidality