thepurpleone | Cyberformed [] Inbox

[Anila lights up and hops to her feet in one fluid motion.]

Great!

[Okay, chill it out a bit. But it's hard not to want to counter the gloom that has fallen over them with blazing brightness. She's all too aware though, that sometimes that kind of energy can be off putting.

She offers a hand down to Donnie.]

Have you trained with Cal at all?

[Again he shakes his head as he gets to his feet, taking her offered hand.]

We talked about it, especially since he said he was familiar with using a staff-style.

[She tilts her head, tapping her fingers against her hand again as she thought, leading them out of the room.]

Well, not much can stand up to Lightsabers other than other lightsabers and beskar, mostly. It'll be cool to test your magi-tech though, but that staff of yours probably won't hold up.

[She looks at Donnie and drifts down to his arms.]

Probably best not to test the gauntlets.

[This comes as a conclusion to an unknown conversation she had with herself in her head.]

Not like I have my staff on me anyway. Cal did mention beskar. I doubt you have the molecular formula on hand...

[He glances at his hands, curling his fingers in. He bets they could probably hold against a lightsaber but when it comes to testing such things that are actually a part of him, he's not as eager to volunteer.]

Mystic-tech it is.

[She makes a face.]

Definitely do not.

[Anila looks at him curiously, folding her hands behind her back.]

Would you be able to make some if I did?

[Donnie looks a bit sheepish at being called out then. He stuffs his hands into his hoodie pocket, not at all still silently entertaining how well they'd hold up.]

Yeah. I could just change something else into it. That's how I upgraded my tech-bō from titanium to Cybetronian-grade metal.

[For all that Amalgamous Prime was a jerk, Donnie hates to admit that being able to change things into other things is...pretty convenient.]

[Fingers tap against palm in a flittering pattern as Anila thinks.]

Well, I'm not all that smart when it comes to all that sciencey stuff, I'm not even sure Beskar even exists in this universe, but I wonder if there is a metal that does? We at least know that whatever Cybertronians are made of is still susceptible, but I wonder if there's something stronger?

Guess that'd be a science project for another day. Testing metal samples against your lightsaber. Wonder if Cal's already come across anything.

[Tap tap tap]

I don't know. We can certainly ask. I haven't found anything but I haven't really been off the ship much and have had reason to use my lightsaber even less.

Which I guess it a good thing.

You're smart, could you like... I don't know, reverse engineer? Study the lightsaber and know what's strong against it?

[She didn't need to bring up the fact that this last mission was the most she had needed to use her weapon since arriving on the R2.]

Reverse engineer? I don't think that's how it works. I mean, I know how one's constructed, I took a bunch of pictures when Cal took his apart.

So really, the best way to test what's strong against it would be applying its power against other things.

[Right, of course he would have all the info he needed from Cal.]

Of course. Maybe I'll test some things next time I'm off ship. I'll report back if I find anything. Cal probably knows more than me though.

[Blessedly, they finally make it to the training room and Anila takes it as an opportune moment to change the subject, adding a little bit energy back into her voice and grinning at the teen.]

Hope you're ready!

[It's been an effective enough distraction, and even if Donnie's still bottled things up, he seems more...normal than he'd been.

He looks around, mostly to see if any damage from the time he and Leo decided to test out Shockwave's cannon remained. That thought draws a flicker of...something across his face before he turns, nodding at Anila.

He holds his hand out to the side, purple lines of neon tracing out to form the intricate parts housed in the eventually shaped shaft of the tech-bō he uses. Spinning it with ease, he twists it the way he would to activate the naginata blade, the slim thing sprouting forth with its delicate curve as he slides into an at-ready position.]

Whenever you are.

[Anila grins and unhooks the handle of her lightsaber and activates it with it's distinctive buzzing whir.

She spreads her feet and holds onto it with both hands, the blade at an angle, ready to swing.]

I'll go easy on your for now. Don't want anyone to get hurt.

[As serious as the statement is, there's a bit of teasing there.]

[That finally manages to pull something of a faint smirk from him.]

If you say so.

[As much as he's a fan of plans, when it comes to battle, he actually isn't much of a strategist so much as a reactive fighter. Truthfully he can be pretty reckless- and as it turns out, he's not afraid to try and strike first.

Donnie moves in, glowing staff twirling as he brings it around for a broad swipe to get things started out.]

[Anila grin. It's natural that she isn't exactly a fan of violence, per say, but she was always a fan of a good spar. It just felt so nice to let her body move and react, to clear her mind and focus only on the moment. Exhaust her body, quiet the mind.

She circles him a moment, before making the first move. Impatience? Upper hand? It's hard to tell when a rod of burning laser light comes flying at you with an expert swiftness.]

[He's not a Jedi, but he's been trained just as young as Anila has, and a staff is practically an extension of his own arms.

Donnie shifts his footing, staff spinning tightly parallel to him as he brings the bladed end up to meet Anila's lightsaber. Not to completely block it, but to help it slide past him before he gives a light tip of the opposite end, the way he'd follow up with a smack to the ribs, but since this is a spar and he's not aiming to hurt the Jedi, he's trying to be mindful of the force behind it.]

[Anila isn't surprised by Donnie's ability. She hadn't seen much of him in a fight, but she was aware enough of his upbringing to expect some sort of training, even if it was so different from her own.

She bends like a gymnast, agile and quick, careful of her own weapon and the damage it can cause if she isn't paying attention. Even an unintentional touch can leave severe scarring.

Moving out of the way of Donnie's attack, she turns on her right foot, crouching down a little as tentacles swing behind her and she darts in for her own attack, making sure to deactivate the lightsaber before it can actually make any sort of contact.]

[There's a brief spark of something almost akin to panic, but then Donnie's always been all too aware of his personal weakness that any sort of attempted attack from behind is always cause for double concern. More so when he's only wearing his hoodie, and while inwardly he knows Anila would never hurt him intentionally, the fear there is reflexive and very real.

So too is the response as he twists around sharply, letting his grasp loosen on the staff enough to let it slide towards the end to give him more length and reach as he swings the shaft up in preparation for deflecting a lightsaber blade.

What he doesn't anticipate is there to be no blade, and likewise nothing stopping his staff's arc.]

[There is a ripple in the Force, a spark in her gut as she finishes her attack, knowing well it will do nothing to hurt him. She shifts back again giving him some space.

He was scared. That feeling was all too recognizable. Anila doesn't think it's of her, they were doing fine just seconds ago, having fun even, if she wanted to push it that far. This fear was panic, sudden and sharp.

Anila lowers her guard, letting the hilt of her lightsaber hang loose in her hand at her side. She's all for a good spar, but both parties have to be on the same level. Nothing about this is going to be enjoyable if she is going to end up frightening. Sparring takes trust, with ourself and with your opponent. It's her fault for not making sure that was as established as it should have been.]

Donnie? Are you okay?

[Donnie swallows, his weapon vanishing in a flurry of pixelated light. He winces at the question, bringing a hand to his chest as he tries to calm himself down.]

Yeah, I.... S-sorry. I didn't think you would, but I don't have my battle shell and...

[He shakes his head.]

Maybe this was a bad idea.

[Anila just as soon holsters her own weapon and holds out a hand.]

Hey, it's alright. I didn't know either. We were just trying to have fun.

[He's probably right, this was not her best idea and she feels guilty for suggesting it.]

I can help calm you down, if that's okay. Would it help if we got your battle shell? I didn't realize you didn't have it.

[If she's being honest, she didn't quite realize it came off at all, but she was known to be a bit ignorant about obvious matters at times.]

No more fighting.

Maybe. I don't know. That circles back to the 'lightsabers versus Cybertronian metals' topic.

[Donnie doesn't look too disappointed about stopping their sparring session, even if he feels bad that he'd spoiled the mood. He'd looked forward to it, a bit.]

...my shell isn't hard like my brothers'. That's why I built all my battle shells and weapons, so my brothers wouldn't have to worry about me getting hurt.

[He breathes out a laugh.]

Guess I haven't really fixed that problem here, have I?

[Anila looks at him for a moment.]

I was suggesting more as a comfort, clearly it's something you're used to having, so I thought it might help calm you down.

[She breathes in deep and lets it out in a quiet sigh, her posture relaxing even further.]

Do you really think it's a problem to fix? Sure your shell may not be hard like theirs, but that's not something that needs to be fixed, that makes it sounds like it's a broken thing that doesn't belong, but it's still you, isn't it? Maybe we can think of it more as... adapting, or something like that. Besides, I don't have a hard shell either and there's a constant fear that one day I'll slip up and lose an arm from this thing. [She pats the lightsaber hilt at her hip.]

And even with their hard shells and their ninpo and their weapons, you still worry about them just the same. That's a natural part of having brothers I think.

No, it's fine. I'm better.

[Kind of. He's mostly calmed down from that initial spike, at least.]

I...

-no, it's... [Donnie sighs, frowning.] It is adapting. And...I know, it's dumb, I've realized that, humans don't come equipped with built-in armor and stuff but when it's us and we're fighting and things, I'm still the one they look out for and I know it's because I'm the soft-shell. Raph always does it. Mikey does too. Leo's probably just better at not making it obvious.

Having a battle shell helped a lot. I mean, nothing would keep Raph from trying to shield me either way. But it's one less thing for them to think about- for me to think about. And then I found out the hard way that there are bad guys that can actually shred through that armor so...

That definitely sounds tough. I can't exactly say that I can relate. We are taught from a very young age the control it takes to harness a lightsaber, but that doesn't mean the fear leaves completely. In a way, it never should. There's a respect, for what it can do, the harm it can cause, and so you must always be careful.

[She starts tapping her palm, not really looking at him.]

I don't really know where I was going with that, but I think it's something like... it's a natural part of love to be afraid. But it's when that fear controls you that you start having issues.

[Anila gives a small huff and if she had any of those fuzzy hair strands that some organics had, they might have fluffed up from her face a moment.]

None of this is helping. I don't know why I pretend I have all the answers. Any of the answers. Sometimes, as a Jedi, it feels like I should, you know. But that's not the point here. My problem, not yours.

All I'm trying to say is be careful, but don't let fear be everything. And maybe we can up move 'finding a better material for your battle shell' up the list or something.

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