Description: There's something about that girl. There's something in the way she moves. She's a mechanical lady, and she's caught Riko's eye. Oh yes. Riko wants her. Wants her bad. She wants to take Candy home and open her up. Unfortunately...this is not a euphemism.
CLOSED FOR CLEANING.
The nearest public restroom is located --> .
The management apologises for the inconvenience.
Or at least, that's the sign that -was- sitting outside one of the female restrooms along Southtown's main suburban shopping street. A little plastic standee in bright yellow, with words printed in cheerfully apologetic black letters, accompanied by a comically cute picture of a mop and bucket. Because this is Japan, and comically cute pictures are almost required by law.
It was there until a few moments ago, before someone dressed in coveralls and rubber gloves came along and removed it. The crowd moving down the avenue didn't really pay that much heed; after all, protective wear and a uniform effectively makes a person invisible to the average urban dweller.
And so, there's now nothing obstructing the door to the public restroom.
There hasn't been a surge of ladies looking to empty their bladders, though - it's still early in the day, and the main crowd hasn't yet hit the pedestrian mall.
All according to plan.
It can simply be called recon. The diminutive machine is dressed as a normal woman. She has a purse. Her hair is well set. Her body is a-ok, even if it's just a teeeeny tiny bit off here and there, the holograms cover any .. machine based impurities.
Her main goal was to observe. In time this data may prove to be useful. Candy would collect info of the fighters. The students. The townsfolk. All of them serve a part in this city. One which is just like the next, to her.
But Candy does not disobey. She has been 'awake' for many an hour. She has hit most of the stores. She has spied a few students moving around. The one called Karen may have been in a dressing room. She could only hear the words 'Sakura will NEVER look better than this'. But from data, it is 99% likely.
But all things must come to an end.
Her destination, the restroom. The Holograms will not last forever. Everything runs on energy. She is likely the same. It will take 5-8 minutes to recharge. Considering the time a female spends in the restroom, Unit Candy assumes she has more than enough time. She will just be one far faster than the others.
She opens the door.
The hologrammed woman closes it, Candy stepping inside and heading over to a stall. She will sit in it and recharge. A simple endeavor.
And unlikely to go noticed by anything or anyone. Because it /is/ a quiet time of day, and the public restroom is relatively unoccupied. Freshly cleaned, it all but gleams, floor, counters, sinks and mirrors smelling of just the faintest hint of disinfectant.
There is, though, one occupied toilet stall. The door to the cubicle is closed and locked. But the other two are vacant.
In the empty bathroom, Candy's footsteps are audible against the tiled floor. Which of the two stalls will she head for?
It doesn't really matter.
Because the second she closes the door to her chosen cubicle, the moment she approaches the toilet...the new pump feeding to the cistern will gurgle to life.
Before the bowls - both of them, in both cubicles - explode in a spray of water and razor porcelain.
Skuld help the poor android if she actually sat down.
Inside the one locked stall, the only one unaffected by the explosion, a slim hand rests on a flushing lever.
The door closes. And as it does, Candy stands. For a moment, she lets the hologram fade. Her feet are covered in shoes. There is no hologram there. She is safe.
Sensors detect growing force.
Candy looks down, scanning. It is obvious.
The eruption of porcelain and water is caught as the hologram systems, already primed, force forwards, creating a wall of light. It is a brief show, directing the force everywhere but around her.. a brief, slightly simple, prevention.
The machine that she is, Candy does not simply accept it is chance. Her scanners begin next, a wall of water and materials crashing to the ground as the hologram is ended. It is in that that Candy backs up, the door collapsing at the slightest touch. The machine reacts immediately, turning towards it.
No.
In the silence, there is but a few noises.
Breathing. No matter how shallow, Riko would be forced to do such a thing. Candy's gaze turns towards this unknown assailant, almost as if she was looking through the box. "Your attempt has failed. You will cease your assault. Further actions will meet force."
It is as if Candy is attempting some restraint.
It is more than Candy not being in a situation she recognizes.
There is no more to it. This could have nothing to do with NESTs.
As slim as the chance is.
"Saaaa," murmurs the girl inside the closed toilet stall.
The door unlatches with a click, then swings open on its hinges. It wobbles slightly as it moves, the cubicle partitions being faintly damaged by the sudden explosion.
Riko steps out into the bathroom proper, her boots splashing against the water now seeping from the shattered toilet bowls and cisterns. The mess has just utterly ruined all the work gone into cleaning the floor - and for that matter the walls and ceiling. Bits of debris and droplets of water now saturate almost every surface in the restroom, courtesy of the sprung trap.
Riko doesn't seem particularly concerned by this, even though the place surely must have been cleaned by her own hand. She's still wearing the utilitarian coveralls, with rubber boots, gloves, hairnet and face-mask...though the last of the items is hanging loose round her neck by the elastic bands.
"Impressive," Riko observes, tilting her head slightly, "I underestimated your capabilities...Candy-chan."
That woman. She had seen her in an SNF. "Riko." She states, as she walks calmly out, into the bathroom. Bits of debris and droplets are about. Candy has never cared about her outwards appearance. Especially as it is down by 94%. EVEN IF. Candy still is silent, save for the whirring of the machinery in her now.
Clearly, if the bathroom was not closed for repair before, it will be now. The 'battlefield' has been set. Riko wears what she always has. Candy.. is made of metal. And shoes, it seems. Because that seems to be it for now. Riko observes. So does Candy, glancing towards the girl as she leaves. "You have set the trap. Intending harm upon me is to be met with harm in response." The machine states it's programming. It is not necessary. Candy is just informing. A machine is always helpful.
"Affirmative. Unit functions better than expected against similarly strong opponents. However, your interest will be met with force."
Truly, she has talked much about it. But this time, Candy makes good on her words. "You do not have clearance for that." A simple statement that also is a beginning of sorts. The movement of the machine is quick, the watery ground giving her intentions away. It does not matter. A moment later, the machine's hand is thrusting forwards, grasping it's tonfa, and thrusting it towards Riko.
The machine believes she has made a crucial error. Riko .. clearly has other ideas.
COMBATSYS: Riko has started a fight here.
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Riko 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Candy has joined the fight here.
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Riko 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Candy
COMBATSYS: Candy successfully hits Riko with Medium Strike.
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Riko 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Candy
The steel weapon slams hard into Riko's torso, driving the teenager back a step. She lets out an involuntary 'whuff' of air, breath escaping her lungs forcefully as the weapon strikes.
The /thing is/...
It doesn't seem to have hurt her all that much.
Oh, the girl's knocked back a step, water sluicing round her rubber boots and splashing on the tiles. But she doesn't fall, doesn't go all the way back into the toilet stalls. Nor does she meet the ground. She remains on her feet, albeit a bit winded.
"Hah," Riko laughs, cheerily, looking up at the now-obvious robot girl.
She lifts a gloved finger, waggling it from side to side.
"It wouldn't be Grand Theft Candy-chan without breaking and entering, ne?"
As she speaks, her other hand slips behind her.
With a sharp wrenching sound, a toilet cubicle door comes away from its hinges. It flips up, around, as Riko swings the big rectangle at Candy.
COMBATSYS: Candy blocks Riko's Fierce Strike.
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Riko 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Candy
It's as Riko is driven back a step that Candy finds her stride. The machine letting her fall backwards..
And interestingly enough, she notes as things begin to 'fix' for Riko. Her motions, despite falling back a few steps, do not coincide with the information that she knows for those who move, or fall.
She can see the status beginning to rise. The warrior ince again being able to fight. It is as Riko looks towards her, from below, that Candy eyes her. The gloved finger, waggling, makes an interesting phrase with it. "Negative. But you will have nothing." She notes, as Riko slides backwards, and brings the door forwards Candy.
The metal strikes against metal, and dents her rather nicely. The machine is capable of damage, but it is not quite reliable against other metal sources. Or if they are capable of assault. She will have to pick and choose.
But falling back due to such a weapon, Candy takes the time, shaking out her servos, to stare towards Riko. Eyes bringing up information from the last fight. Cycling through the info, through her appearances, and through NESTs database.
Likewise, information about Riko, from her frame, her actions, is taken and stored.
She will need it.
COMBATSYS: Candy focuses on her next action.
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Riko 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Candy
"Oh?"
Riko pouts, sticking her lips out. She places her gloved hands on her slim hips, giving a disappointed toss of the head. Her right foot rises and falls, tapping gently against the restroom tiles - making little splashes with each movement.
"You're so mean, Candy-chan," Riko retorts.
The girl returns Candy's analytical stare with a look of faux hurt. Such a juvenile expression looks odd, given that she's made up to look older than her teenage years...she's dressed in janitorial coveralls, the garment tailored for her frame - nowhere near loose enough for it to hide much in the way of weaponry. That's reasonably unusual for Riko, a fact that should be evident with only cursory examination of the data on her. She's missing her trademark long coat full of weapons, or her chunky in-line skates.
Perhaps that anomaly could be attributed to the need for disguise. After all, she must have prepared the trap in here, and not everyone is so fortunate as to have holographic disguises like Candy's.
On the other hand, there might be a reason why she's scruplously kept even the slightest trace of metal off her own person.
Riko makes a slight flick of the wrist, releasing a tiny, tiny, amount of electric-element chi. Manifesting not so much as a spark, but as a broadcast signal.
Behind Candy, something in the restroom wall...comes to life.
The mirrors over the sink are, well, mirrors. Large polished sheets of silvery reflective substance covered by a thin layer of glass. In this case, though, they also conceal the flat panels of powerful industrial electromagnets, of the sort used in scrapyards to lift nothing less than cars.
Getting them into the space behind the walls must have been a trick and a half.
It would explain why Riko's suddenly smiling so broadly, as she leans forward to thrust her hand into the torso of the - hopefully - suddenly immobilized Candy.
COMBATSYS: Candy fails to interrupt Isometric View from Riko with Diamond Cutter.
- Power fail! -
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Riko 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Candy
As Candy attempts to 'assault' Riko, Candy just glances forwards. She doesn't seem to care of Riko's words, or actions. A machine is impartial to the world around them. And no matter what she is doing, or saying, it is just collection of data. Her world revolves around it.
Yet as Riko continues, the chi manifesting behind Candy, the woman realizes too late. The machine watching as Riko moves forwards, towards her. The force behind her somewhat ignored. "Negative. I am merely defending myself." The machine responds.
And what happens next is unexpected. She had not noticed that.
As Riko thrusts, Candy grasps forwards, before being pulled backwards, her own metal limb striking against her body, crashing into her heavily, before she is stuck against the wall.
What use.. can she possibly fight back in this situation? The machine is incapable of moving.
She continues to struggle, but this time, wordlessly.
Error.
Cannot move body. Please check to clear joints of materials and try again.
Unfortunately, Riko is not an authorised service agent, and Candy does not really contain much in the way of user-servicable parts. And it doesn't look like Riko is at all inclined to wait for NESTS customer support, oh no. The fact that popping the seals on Candy would probably void her warranty must be known to the little ninja...
...but she doesn't, y'know, really care.
The lights in the bathroom start to flicker. The public restroom isn't the most modern of buildings, the wiring really not designed for an array of electromagnets. Certainly not ones of such power. In another second or two, the fuses will cut in. In another moment, Candy will be free.
In the meantime, Riko'll press her advantage.
The robot girl's pinned awkwardly to the wall above the sinks. Just at about the right height for Riko to launch a high spinning kick at the machine's torso. Her foot is covered in a cleaner's rubber boot...but that doesn't make the blow any softer.
Percussive maintenance.
COMBATSYS: Candy fails to interrupt Light Kick from Riko with Crow Bite.
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Riko 0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0 Candy
Candy is incapable of moving. Which leaves her at a disadvantage. Her attempts to fight back are limited. In order to move, she needs to be capable of it. And Candy lacks such an ability at this point.
The wiring must be a bit strong. She cannot escape, at least for a bit longer, and as Riko presses her advantage, the machine continues to fail, as if designed to do so. Candy's use, while combat capable, is lax. Her purpose is simply to exist for Kula, and to record data.
If she were taken, there is a chance she would only be 'replaced' in the bare minimum. 'Candy' would only be programmed to remember Kula.
It is rather simple.
Yet Candy fights because she is capable of it. The high spinning kick attempted to be taken, and Candy pulling off the wall, only to be launched once more against it. The machine hits the wall again and again as it tries, and meanwhile, is struck in the face from the assault.
She is rather harmless, at times.
She also begins to malfunction. But it is hardly important. It is simply the damage done.. that she is lent go after hitting against the wall, metal hitting the wet floor as she staggers forwards.
"So," Riko murmurs, "water doesn't seem to short you out. Electromagnet doesn't seem to have harmed your processing functionality, just mobility."
She sounds rather bemused as she brings her foot back down, in the follow-through from her brutal kick. Riko casually takes a step to the side, moving away from the stumbling robot girl. She continues speaking out loud, documenting her observations...as she reaches to the wall, where the dryer rests.
The device has a picture on the front, indicating that one should place their hands beneath the vent. Little squiggly lines indicate that hot air comes from the nozzle. The dryer, though, completely fails to come to life when Riko touches it. Perhaps that's because the lights overhead are still flickering, the electrical system in the restroom quite disrupted.
Or perhaps that's because it produces quite a different sort of heat when Riko actually switches it on.
She tears it from the wall - it comes away without much protest. The box flips in her hands. She holds it in both palms as she presses very close to Candy, nearly against the robot's torso.
"Let's test your heat tolerance," Riko says, cheerfully, as the massive burst of flame roars forth.
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Candy with Improvised Tactics.
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Riko 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Candy
The machine gets battered. Literately. It's attempts to take the strike and keep coming are rather poor in this retrospect. Her actions.. failed. Her attempts.. failed.
She continues on, because a machine attempts to follow their directives to the end.
It is as Riko continues to speak, that Candy .. doesn't. Her words are meaningless. Data simply processed and spat out. An unfeeling machine is what the people in NESTs called her. In truth. It is simply that. The machine .. does not care. She does not have feelings.
And it is as Riko switches on the dryer and then tears it away, and erupts it against Candy. The machine is forced to fall backwards again. There are no feelings. She has no words. Truly, there is no real response.
She does not feel the heat. And so she stays where she is, before she claws upwards, to her feet.
It is a slow, yet steady, climb, part of her body melted from the flame. It is quite a lot of flame.
As Candy rises, however, and eruption of light sends a heavy tendril of guided light, bending through the air towards Riko.
The light is an attempt to turn things around. As impossible as it may be.
Attempting to drill into the woman, perhaps.
COMBATSYS: Riko interrupts Critical Shoot from Candy with Dragon Seal Blue EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > / ]
Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\======-\1 Candy
"Pity," Riko remarks, her voice sounding almost impossibly distant, "I was hoping your shell would be more resistant...but Seishirou-sama's already secured technology in that area, I suppose."
She remains where she is, standing by Candy as the blast of energy races towards her. Riko watches this impassively.
The burst of light crashes into Riko, destroying the improvised flamethrower held in her hands. This has the effect of igniting what residual fuel remains in its tank, but Riko ignores the sudden singing cloud, much as she ignores the actual coherent light itself.
She leans /through/ it, stretching out one of her now free hands to full extension.
Such that she can, just barely, make contact with the energy emitter on Candy's body.
For a moment, nothing happens.
Then, the tiny knot of chi Riko infused into the touch...unravels.
Riko's chi is of the lightning element, with a demonstrated ability to function in a manner practically indistinguishable from real electricity.
Candy is a machine.
"Sleep," Riko says.
COMBATSYS: Candy focuses on her next action.
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Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\======-\1 Candy
COMBATSYS: Candy has reached second wind!
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Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\======-\1 Candy
Candy's burst of light is unfortunately only half successful. It is as Riko ignores the light.. stretching out, and making contact with the emitter on Candy's body. The touch causes Candy to suddenly erupt in electricity. The machine doesn't even stagger. The shell is lacking any grounds. There is no point to contain such. There would be no way to measure anything if it is completely there.
Candy collapses backwards, sparking, as she hits the ground hard.
The tiles crack. Candy suddenly shuts off, eyes flashing off. But there have been a failsafe built. One or two. Incase such a thing happens.
The machine begins to whirr. It is a slow whirring at first, before the eyes light up once again. It should not do this.
The machine rises again. Yet there are many errors. Too many to correct completely. And it begins to flood. The rise is not a normal one. Candy leaps to her feet, and pushes herself away from Riko.
"Get away GET AWAY!"
These are not the words of a machine. "IF you come any closer I'll make you regret it .. I don't care why you came here... JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"
Her 'focus' is that the only thing her attention is getting is Riko. And just because she is experiencing an error. This fear, panic.. does not mean she is no longer capable of her robotic capabilities.
"Get.. away." Her words begin to return to the dull tone. The machine takes over once again. The errors under control. "Unit will take what measures deemed necessary in this situation."
Riko tilts her head left.
Riko tilts her head right.
She blinks, twice, her eyelids fluttering. Her lips part, her mouth opening in a look of faint wonder. She lifts the hand she used to send electricity into Candy, her fingers brushing the air.
"Interesting," Riko whispers, "is that a sign of emotion or a clever programmer's artifice? You are fascinating, Candy-chan. I am almost sorry."
A pause.
"Almost," Riko repeats. This time, her voice is hard.
She drops, low, shifting her hand so that it just barely touches the restroom floor. A surge of crackling blue jumps down her arm, the crack of ozone filling the air. But that's just spillover, for most of Riko's energy is in what goes into the layer of water flooding the toilet, sloshing over the tiles. An effective medium for the propagation of energy.
COMBATSYS: Candy reflects Light Fantastic from Riko with Access Violation.
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Riko 0/-------/-======|=======\======-\1 Candy
It's times like this, when the error handling is completed, that Candy is potentially the most dangerous. There is a lot she can still do. A lot that is possible to achieve. But most importantly.. she is at her best defense against what she fears the most.
"You cannot be sorry." The Machine states, Candy going on. "Because I am not alive. Unit Candy is an object." That is the statement.
"It would be a mistake to feel sorrow for something unliving." She does not hear the whisper over the noise produced by her own generators, whirring.
Because as Riko drops low, shifting to cause a cracking blue surge.. ozone fills the air. And that is simple to detect when you are a machine. Her scanners detect this buildup. And the sudden burst of energy causes Candy to .. suddenly burst.
The spillover of energy, flooding around the water, around the tiles.. is suddenly prevented. The shell of light, woven about her body below, pushes the force outwards, shielding her from it.. before the barrier is expanded to the entire room, the solid wall spreading outwards, crashing into Riko after overwhelming the energy and pushing onwards, against the wall.
Perhaps Riko would enjoy hitting the wall, as well.
Candy certainly didn't mind.
Plaster dust and flakes spill from Riko's back as she drops free of the wall, nearly falling forward before she catches herself. She bends over, spine arching, legs flexing at the knees. Her head's bowed, and she breathes heavily.
It's a moment before Riko looks up, leaning against a sink for balance.
"Oh, I'm /sorry/," Riko repeats, between gasps of air, putting particular stress on the word.
Her fingers wander to the side, roaming past broken shards of mirror and cracked tile on the restroom counter, over the smooth bowl of the sink - to the dusty metal length of the faucet. This comes off in her hand, her fingers wrapping around the curved surface in a neat grip, Riko once again demonstrating her remarkable propensity to weaponize bits of the environment.
Of course, the fact she was lying in wait for Candy helps that, somewhat.
The faucet isn't all that long, but it -is- somewhat more solid than Riko's fist.
Useful when you're trying to deactivate an errant machine.
The loud /whirring/ Candy made just a moment earlier has given Riko at least some clue where the critical power supply and drivetrain is in the android's torso.
Riko lunges forward. It's no hammer, it's no wrench, but it might be a good enough calibration tool.
COMBATSYS: Candy dodges Riko's Quick Strike.
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Riko 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Candy
Sorry? "You should not be." Candy states in a bit of monotone. "You should cease this action. You should return to whoever sent you." That's what she wants. That's what she states. But as Riko's fingers wanding, sliding to the sink .. and yet.. it's interesting to see a fighter use the environment. Candy takes important notes on this. It seems that Riko is .. different from many of the others. Her actions are pre-planned. Her motions, not expected. Quite different.
But she is still fighting a living computer. Her attempts are seen before she can truly act.
Riko lunges, and Candy brings a hand to deflect it while kicking off the wall, landing, water droplets splashing as her spring-laden impact against the wall, a pistoned foot, leaves a small hole.
"It will only continue to hurt you, if you continue." Oh what logic. But she is a machine based on logic.
She knows no other governing force.
Yet this majestic dance of Candy is no different than anything else. It is simply computer based. Logic checked. And a run through, following her actions. "Please do not make this continue." The pistons fire once more, energy low, as she spirals at Riko, foot extended, in a low, quick spin.
The other foot spirals, attempting to slam into Riko's side.. or perhaps.. body.
COMBATSYS: Riko blocks Candy's Lay Spin.
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Riko 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Candy
The kick doesn't land. Because in her own way, Riko's a mistress of precision as well. Perhaps the human mind can't calculate things with the cool objectiveness of an electronic brain. Perhaps it can't effortlessly process those numbers in the blink of an eye...
...but Riko isn't any ordinary human. She's a fighter, with all that entails. Strength. Speed. /Reaction time/. Even as the mechanical limb pistons towards her, Riko twists, lifts an arm. She intercepts the kick, flesh and bone meeting steel. The deflection hurts, as it must, but Riko doesn't show any sign of pain.
Instead, her mouth curls into a grin.
"Saaaa," Riko murmurs, "but I'm human, Candy-chan."
The two are locked in close contact.
And then Riko moves. Forward, forward, explosively so. Tackling the robot with furiously rapid acceleration, water spraying in her wake. If she has it her way, she'll crash into and carry the android bodily through the partition walls of several toilet stalls.
"We're supposed to be," Riko finishes, "irrational!"
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Candy with One Hit Wonder EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > / ]
Riko 1/-------/=======|=======\===----\1 Candy
As Riko demonstrates this reaction time, Candy tries to pull away.. but the tackling is too much. Water sprays all about, and Candy is carried through the many partitions, hitting the wall. Her body sparks once more, her foot having slipped on the ground.
The average human fighter.. is no match for Candy. Yet she is in a line of work where that hardly is important.
No human in it is ever average. In the end, she generally is the one in trouble.. the one incapable of continuing, when it comes time. The machine tries to pull the hands off, but it is too weak. A machine lacks any drive. She can only do as programmed.
Gripping at the fist is useless. Pulling away, equally so.
It is as she gives up.. the generator whirring as an oddly spear like eruption of woven light lances towards Riko, from such a distance. She might realize it from the whirring. Yet as she spins, it begins to slow. And slow.. and slow.
The whirring stops for a moment.. likely to stay off.
Candy's grip weakens.
Again. She dies.
But was she ever truly alive?
COMBATSYS: Candy can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Riko 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Riko dodges Candy's Fatal Exception Error.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Riko 1/-------/=======|
The lance of light speeds straight for Riko, flying bright, flying true. The girl watches this with a still face, her eyes cool, dispassionate, showing only the faintest hint of interest.
It goes straight through her.
And explodes, in a brilliant burst of energy, shattering a restroom sink and mirror.
"Mm," Riko muses, rubbing the side of her head with slender fingers. She stands offset to the side, the afterimage left by her displacement technique lingering for a moment before finally discorporating in a release of crackling blue.
It'd be almost casual, if it wasn't for the rise and fall of Riko's ribcage, and the lungfuls of air she's drawing in with every breath.
The teen ninja gives a small shake of the head. She walks over to where Candy is, slowly, warily, as if not quite convinced that the android is truly inactive.
She's already been surprised once, after all.
Finally, Riko lifts a hand, slowly, leaning over to touch the mechanical statue.
"Ahhh, Candy-chan," Riko says, to the robot's motionless features, "you were after all -built- by irrational humans, to look and act like one."
Riko narrows her eyes.
"...surely that must mean something...ne?"
COMBATSYS: Riko has ended the fight here.
Log created on 20:38:32 10/24/2008 by Riko, and last modified on 21:10:25 10/27/2008.