♘.┋ CAREFUL NOW, A VOICE MUTTERS SHARPLY; increased stress staining palms with sweat, heart beating heavily. Behold, this weapon was keen to strike; behold watch its muscles working beneath layers of skin, how defined arms grew stiff under passive pressure. – expressions blank still, inert drift of eyes avoiding direct eye contact. THEY SAID: never counter the glare of a predator for you will not be able to see what their HANDS do in the meantime. Plus those deemed weak should never hope to STAND TALL in the presence of someone oh so powerful. – cue the crease of her brow, the shift of posture when hands clasped behind straightened back; usually slouching shoulders a mere memory. Oh, alerted & TENSE; weapon dismissing commonplace urge to make oneself small whilst conditioned mind already sped through strategies & murder.
She wonders: if one were to engage & break rib cage’s last few ribs, how long would LION need to counter, how long ‘til splinters of bones would pierce vital organs, how long ‘til crimson would squirt out of agape mouth, dripping down bruised lips to stain donned shirt whilst lungs would collapse & throat grow dry? How long ‘til he blacked out? How long ‘til he would perish, suffocated by own blood? Ah, Annie you already know how effective a sweeping kick would be, how easily skeletal structure would yield under the impact of an unbent limb. – SMITH’s corpse would be heavy & ungainly, most likely hard to drag & difficult to hide. Approximately 180 centimeter or more featuring a weight most likely almost doubling husk’s own … her father’s size, if she recalled correctly.
She wonders once more: would COMMANDER’s leg snap as abruptly as his?
“– depends on the situation.”
Practiced reply, stark & stoic. Languidly drawn, tone of voice matching the indifference readable on grim features. – WEAK ONE was an expert in the art of calculating & judging, grasped a scenario quicker than most thus making one versatile. Pray tell, LION why do you pry? Papers speaking of scrawny / LOST LOST LOST girl’s talents; final graduation akin to a noose around torn mind’s figurative neck. – she holds her breath for a blink, a second & eventually a moment; waging options, waging scenarios whilst TITAN BLOOD began to boil in anticipation. Could not two play this game of CALL & RESPONSE? Could not two indulge in playing dumb for the sake of avoiding exposing inner workings? Annie, oh Annie, play your part.
Slow & dull girl (’weapons don’t think’),
possessing no mind of her own.
“…I excel at combat, sir.”
atmospheric change comes with fast-moving instinct. NOTICE, NOTICE whispering telltale signs of change. she has made herself as non-threatening as possible. necessity, experience, suspicion all bring him to question the intentionality behind such posture & behind the evasiveness of her communication. he finds nothing condemning in the failure to maintain eye contact, but it begins to hint at details of character — after all, if that character should be as intentional as her stance, then perhaps evasive gaze creates a bold structure of DISRESPECT. if it be disrespect for his ( what ? what element of him & the faction he leads ? ), then he does not take it to be offensive. still, however, it does bring awareness to level up. one step, two. wasn’t this a matter of procedure ? not anymore.
her file rests next to him on oak surface, & while he acknowledges that the information obtained from recorded observation of her training contains a certain emptiness — it’s something. it speaks of style. of strengths & weaknesses & how resourceful she might be. the description in her file does support the suspicion that intentionality may be integral to her being. if his suspicious nature finds itself validated in this way, then remember, annie : YOU THINK OF HIM AS MEAT, but you know so little of him. combative style & physical endurance evades popular attention now that his accomplishments manifest themselves most within decisions made from behind his desk.
but he does have his limits, as all men do —— HOW LONG would he need to counter ? HOW LONG would it take for his physicality to collapse ? the answer is obvious : it would take as long as it would take any other man. mostly. his frame is built by the indifferent hands of mortality, of course, but adrenaline courses easily with his veins ( produced by a sheer force of determination, ambition, drive, call it what you will — ). ADRENALINE accomplishes inhuman feats & although they may be unevenly matched in some regards . . . to reduce him to meat is no easy feat.
indeed, this is not a dialogue between predator & prey.
“ so you consider yourself poor at analyzing some situations ? what’s your read of this meeting, might i ask ? “
he pauses, laughs to himself soundlessly with one forceful breath — she speaks & the illusion of her being a non-threat remains ever present. s u s p i c i o u s though he may be . . . conclusions based upon this interview cannot / should not be definitive. NONE OF THIS IS CONCRETE.
“ i see . . . why is that ? ”
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