Disclaimer: I don't own buggerall, yada yada...
-----------------
Chapter 5
Put Those Pants on and Dance
----------------------------------------------------
"With nothing to lose you'd waste away
obscure in exile
they've witnessed the times
you've gone astray
whose fault? now you're thinking..." "Heaven Coming Down" by the Tea Party ----------------------------------------------------
2 YEARS LATER
Ava ran her tongue stud over her teeth, listening to the acrylic bead click over them for the millionth time. She sat on the counter of where she worked, Hollywood Video, idly watching "The Crow". This was a movie rental store that was out of the way in a residential area, and kind of grungy, and almost always deserted. So, she would mostly sit and watch movies if there was nothing else to do. It suit Ava fine; she was getting paid for it.
Ava had changed a lot in some ways. After inexplicably leaving Zaibach via the pillar of light a few years ago, she turned up on the mystic moon, or, more specifically, in this city called Montreal. Once again, she was torn from everything familiar and plunked down in a strange place with strange people and left to fend for herself. And, once again, she had managed.
She had lived on the streets for only a few weeks when she was placed with social services, and quickly put in a foster home. For a long time Ava wanted to go back to the streets. She may have been young, but she could definitely take care of herself. She was, after all, a trained soldier. In dealing with the social isolation that life had thrown her, she mainly wandered the streets and lashed out in something of a punk/alternative way. Now, at 16, she sported several body piercing in her tongue, eyebrow and navel, as well as a tattoo of a tribal dragon on her back. She'd typically wear dark make up and baggy jeans, usually donning eclectic clothes, such as obscure hoodies and articles heavy on the chains and metal.
Being on the streets hardened her. Not that she was perticularily soft to begin with, after two years of anger, isolation and involvement In street violence, Ava was no longer the (rather) naïve and innocent girl she had been.
Due to the fights she sometimes found herself wound up in, Ava's fighting style had evolved over the years from a by-the-book martial artist, to something with an agile, street-fighting, earthian edge. Though she had a temper, she liked to keep fights non-mortal, so she very rarely used a weapon other than her body. After all, she didn't want to attract a lot of attention to herself, and landing herself in prison was a very unproductive way to find a route back to Gaia.
After she had closed up Hollywood Video, (the owner was either trusting enough or stupid enough to entrust her with keys), she headed back home. Or "home" as Ava wanted to put it. Even after all this time on Earth, it still hadn't become home to her. Zaibach was. It was her true home. Ava shifted her bag on her shoulder and looked at her watch. 12:32am. Nirvana pumped in her ears. "That's one of the nice things about the Earth. Discmans and Kurt Cobain."
Suddenly she heard a rustle behind her. Two huge men, both grungy and filthy, both holding liquor bottles, had appeared out of the shadows. They eyed her hungrily, and started towards her.
"Hey there.pretty little girls shouldn't be out here this late.you might get eaten up." The other one, with a bald head laughed, and the one who had spoken, a grubby man with a ratty face, lunged at her. She effortlessly jumped out of his path, bringing her heavy bag down on his head, knocking him to his knees. "Ooooh, this one has fire in her. I like them feisty."
Ava wretched and said, "Fuck off. I don't need this right now, and you're wasting my time. Go back to the pit you crawled out of." Baldy was next, trying to sneak up where she couldn't see him, but Ava spun around, grabbing his bottle, and bashed it into his face.
"Bitch!" he spat, blood already dripping from his mouth. Ava carefully placed her Discman on a nearby curb where it wouldn't be damaged. It cost her a solid month's pay, after all. She switched the bottle, which now had a bloody crack in it, to the other hand.
Ratty had taken one look at his wounded friend and charged at her with fury. She turned and side kicked him in the stomach, punched him in the eye, and did a roundhouse to his head. He fell to his knees once again, and this time, Ava took the bottle and brought it down on the back of his head with considerable force. He was out cold. Baldy glared at her, puzzled. "Get out of here," Ava said calmly, picking up her Discman and starting off once more. Baldy blinked once more and charged at her turned back.
Suddenly he was blinded by a light so intense that he had to shield his eyes. When he opened them again, he saw Ava surrounded by a pillar of light, lifting gently from the ground, looking astonished. Getting over his surprise, as a last resort, he ran over, whipped out his switchblade and gave her a good slash across her back. The last thing he heard was Ava shout in pain as she rose out of sight.
--~--~--
Dilandau sat in the darkness in his room. Pouring another glass of Vino, he relished he solitude and quiet. Folken had been in earlier, boring him to death with details of an upcoming mission. But now, he sat in an overstuffed chair relaxing. He looked at himself through the darkened mirror on the other side of the room, admiring his image.
There was a knock at the door.
"What?" Dilandau demanded, having worked himself into a rage. The door opened and Guimel peeked his head around the corner.
"Dilandau-sama? I have something to report."
"What is it?" Dilandau asked impatiently.
"A strange pillar of light was sighted not far from here, North-North West, probably 10 or 15 leagues. Shall we send out a small garrison to inspect?" Dilandau thought, his mind slightly clouded by the Vino, although it didn't show.
"No," he said at last. "Just go yourself. Bring.oh, Gatti with you. And report back to me as soon as you're back." Guimel bowed and left, enveloping Dilandau in darkness once more. He felt a little strange about this.
--~--~--
Guimel and Gatti coasted along in their Alseides'.
"See anything yet?" Gatti asked through the comm. "Not yet." Guimel replied. Soon they came upon a small clearing in the forest, and slowed down. This was getting close to the area where the light was spotted.
"Hey, what's that??" Gatti's voice rang out through the comm. "Got me, bud. Let's set down to have a closer look. Keep your guard up." They landed on the soft earth, and Guimel zoomed in with his telescope. It was..a person? Out here?
"Hey, Gatti, you see what I see? Holy hell..It's a chick, too." The noise of the Guymelefs must have brought her around, for she strained and lifted her head up to look at them. Guimel just about swallowed some of the liquid metal surrounding him in shock. "AVA??!" He quickly opened the hatch and jumped out, followed by Gatti. Guimel ran up to her. He knelt down beside her, realizing that there was a deal of blood on her and the ground. He looked her up and down. She had changed, that was for sure. She no longer had the juvenile, rectangular body she once had. She possessed the curves and shapes of a woman. Not only that, but she had strange metal body art in her eyebrow, and from what he could see of her exposed abdomen, her belly button as well. Her hair had grown a great deal longer, which he could see from the lengthy ponytail. She looked at him with her slenderized, more mature face, with relief and affection in her eyes. "G.Guimel?" she forced out, then passed out once more. "Jeez.. She didn't even say my name." Guimel heard Gatti say. Guimel picked Ava up, and carried her back to his Guymelef.
--~--~--~
Ava's head and back ached. Slowly opening her eyes, she tried to get them to focus. The room was dark and she was all alone. She could feel the hard table beneath her, aware of the new stitches in her back. She shifted her legs and felt something against them. Lifting her head a little, she saw a sleeping form sitting beside her bed, sleeping with his head in his arms on the edge of her bed. It was Dilandau. She sat up a little, slightly astonished after not having seen him for quite a while.
"He looks so peaceful when he sleeps..like a child." Ava smiled warmly at Dilandau's sleeping form. She gazed at him, looking at his porcelain face and feathery eyelashes. His chiseled cheekbones and strong jaw, and his lips, slightly parted as his body rose and fell with every breath. "People wonder why we fight for him. This is why. He fights for us. We're his family, and he's ours. Only nobody ever sees this side of him ." Ava took a thick, soft blanket from the pile folded beside her bed and wrapped it around his shoulders. Lying back down, feeling her head swirl with exhaustion, she said quietly "Good to see you, Dilandau-sama." --~--~--~
Ava could hear faint murmuring. The murmuring quickly grew from faint to fairly loud talking all around her. She opened her eyes. Ava squinted against the bright lights, trying to get blurry images to focus. The Dragonslayers were surrounding her, and she was still lying on the (hard) table. They all looked down at her. Guimel and Gatti were standing on either side of her head, and the rest had surrounded the table. Ava smiled. "Hi, guys." Her smile quickly faded. Suddenly, Ava was quite aware that she was naked under her blanket. Her face turned red and she grabbed the edge of the blanket, pulling it up to her neck. Dallet laughed and said with a sly grin
"Come on, Ava. You've got nothing to hide." He leaned closer, giggling, and Ava smacked him on the side of the head, smugly. "Oh, no you don't" Ava saw Dilandau standing at the end of the bed, watching her from a short distance. Her eyes met with his. A wave of emotion fluttered through them, but he looked down, and soon were covered with the indifferent, insolent look they usually had. Ava looked at him hopefully, but she was interrupted by Miguel who spoke up,
"How are you feeling?," he asked calmly.
"Aside from the fact that my back feels like it's been sewn shut with a dull needle, I'm feeling pretty chipper." Ava said with a groan.
"Are you still a Dragonslayer? After being gone all this time?" Chesta piped up. Ava thought.
"I sure as hell hope so, bu-" The doors burst open. Folken-sama strode in, robes billowing out behind him. Gatti and Chesta moved aside so he could see Ava. He smiled softly at her, which was impressive, considering that Folken wouldn't make a face if he had been kicked in the pills. "Folken- sama." she said, and gave a little bow. Dallet peeked a little towards the sagging blanket at her breasts as she bowed. He was rewarded with a cuff to the back of the head by Gatti.
"I'm glad to see you're back, Ava. I've come to inform you all that there will be a meeting the day after tomorrow regarding the trade agreement with Asturia after dinner. You're to report to my laboratory at 20:00 h." Dilandau snorted.
"More Political crap, Folken? We're not a part of that bullshit." Ava smiled. good to be home.
"Watch your mouth. But yes, I think that you'll be interested in what needs to be said, Dilandau." With that, he turned to Ava. "In the mean time, you are to undergo assessment to determine whether or not you still have a place in the Dragonslayers. I'll leave that up to the discretion of Dilandau. Good Luck, Ava. It's good to have you back." With that, he turned and strode out, flanked by Dilandau
Ava stewed inwardly for a moment in silence. I need to prove myself? She thought, annoyed. Finally she looked up to the on looking slayers. "Well then, that doesn't leave me much time to get ready" Ava said, grinning.
--~--~--~--~--~-~--~
Ava's first stop after a hearty breakfast was the gymnasium. If she was going to have to prove herself (and in what way, she didn't know), then best start to buck up now. After changing and a 15-minute warm-up on the running machine (similar to a treadmill on earth, she mused,) she started to do her rounds. Looking around at her options, she finally selected the acrobatic eqiptment, as she had little opportunity on earth to hone those skills.
Ava hung, suspended from a pair of rings, watching as Dilandau entered the room, followed by Gatti and Viole. He was wearing only his loose fitting undershirt and a pair of workout pants that were slung insolently low on his hips. He looked around the room and saw her suspended upside down, watching them.
"So," Dilandau said, swaggering up to her flanked by Gatti and Viole. "Its time to figure out whether or not you're still worthy," he said, insolently smirking. Ava inwardly called him a name, but flipped over, releasing her grip on the rings, and landed on the mat below.
"Yes, sir," she said monotonously. Dilandau's gaze hardened.
"Gatti!" he called, cold and cutting. Gatti stepped forward onto the mat, nodding.
"Yessir" he said, an edge of disgruntlement in his voice. Dilandau directed him to combat with Ava. They stood in position, face to face. Gatti's back was to Dilandau, and he made a funny face exhibiting his good humour towards the situation. Ava allowed the corners of her lips curve upward in the slightest of smiles, before darting suddenly at Gatti.
Gatti sidestepped to the right, although he had done it a little too late. Ava grappled his arm and twisted it over her head, rotating as she did so. The end result had Gatti flipping neatly over her shoulder and landing with a thump on his back.
He blinked, but was on his feet in a second. That wasn't anything the Dragonslayers didn't know; Gatti was just being sloppy. Ava stood, fight stance ready, watching him with intensity. Again, she attacked. With feline grace she darted up, outstretched hands aiming for his neck as she leapt. Gatti wasn't ready for it. He closed his eyes and awaited the painful blow to his throat. It never came. Instead, Ava placed her hands firmly on either side of his head upon his shoulders and vaulted herself over. She landed, and promptly kicking his feet out from under him, reached around to his collar bone, and grasped him firmly in a complicated grip. Almost instantly, Gatti went out cold, his head slumping and body rolling to the mat.
Dilandau looked at Gatti for a moment. Ava stood up, and waited purposefully, waiting for round two. But it never came.
"Welcome back." He said, and then stalked off to the punching bags.
Ava stood blinking for a minute in disbelief. That was it? Ava wasn't quite sure what to make of that. That was no big deal, she figured that a much more complicated process was involved, including guymelef piloting, at least. But she shook it off. Maybe he didn't want to go through all that trouble. Or maybe he just wanted her back.
----------------
Bun bun buuun! What nutty new adventures are in store? Check out the illustrations: www.geocities.com/silverchair_fanatik/fanart.htm
NEXT CHAPTER: Fun with naked Dragonslayers, Narcotic talk, and a man on a mission.
-----------------
Chapter 5
Put Those Pants on and Dance
----------------------------------------------------
"With nothing to lose you'd waste away
obscure in exile
they've witnessed the times
you've gone astray
whose fault? now you're thinking..." "Heaven Coming Down" by the Tea Party ----------------------------------------------------
2 YEARS LATER
Ava ran her tongue stud over her teeth, listening to the acrylic bead click over them for the millionth time. She sat on the counter of where she worked, Hollywood Video, idly watching "The Crow". This was a movie rental store that was out of the way in a residential area, and kind of grungy, and almost always deserted. So, she would mostly sit and watch movies if there was nothing else to do. It suit Ava fine; she was getting paid for it.
Ava had changed a lot in some ways. After inexplicably leaving Zaibach via the pillar of light a few years ago, she turned up on the mystic moon, or, more specifically, in this city called Montreal. Once again, she was torn from everything familiar and plunked down in a strange place with strange people and left to fend for herself. And, once again, she had managed.
She had lived on the streets for only a few weeks when she was placed with social services, and quickly put in a foster home. For a long time Ava wanted to go back to the streets. She may have been young, but she could definitely take care of herself. She was, after all, a trained soldier. In dealing with the social isolation that life had thrown her, she mainly wandered the streets and lashed out in something of a punk/alternative way. Now, at 16, she sported several body piercing in her tongue, eyebrow and navel, as well as a tattoo of a tribal dragon on her back. She'd typically wear dark make up and baggy jeans, usually donning eclectic clothes, such as obscure hoodies and articles heavy on the chains and metal.
Being on the streets hardened her. Not that she was perticularily soft to begin with, after two years of anger, isolation and involvement In street violence, Ava was no longer the (rather) naïve and innocent girl she had been.
Due to the fights she sometimes found herself wound up in, Ava's fighting style had evolved over the years from a by-the-book martial artist, to something with an agile, street-fighting, earthian edge. Though she had a temper, she liked to keep fights non-mortal, so she very rarely used a weapon other than her body. After all, she didn't want to attract a lot of attention to herself, and landing herself in prison was a very unproductive way to find a route back to Gaia.
After she had closed up Hollywood Video, (the owner was either trusting enough or stupid enough to entrust her with keys), she headed back home. Or "home" as Ava wanted to put it. Even after all this time on Earth, it still hadn't become home to her. Zaibach was. It was her true home. Ava shifted her bag on her shoulder and looked at her watch. 12:32am. Nirvana pumped in her ears. "That's one of the nice things about the Earth. Discmans and Kurt Cobain."
Suddenly she heard a rustle behind her. Two huge men, both grungy and filthy, both holding liquor bottles, had appeared out of the shadows. They eyed her hungrily, and started towards her.
"Hey there.pretty little girls shouldn't be out here this late.you might get eaten up." The other one, with a bald head laughed, and the one who had spoken, a grubby man with a ratty face, lunged at her. She effortlessly jumped out of his path, bringing her heavy bag down on his head, knocking him to his knees. "Ooooh, this one has fire in her. I like them feisty."
Ava wretched and said, "Fuck off. I don't need this right now, and you're wasting my time. Go back to the pit you crawled out of." Baldy was next, trying to sneak up where she couldn't see him, but Ava spun around, grabbing his bottle, and bashed it into his face.
"Bitch!" he spat, blood already dripping from his mouth. Ava carefully placed her Discman on a nearby curb where it wouldn't be damaged. It cost her a solid month's pay, after all. She switched the bottle, which now had a bloody crack in it, to the other hand.
Ratty had taken one look at his wounded friend and charged at her with fury. She turned and side kicked him in the stomach, punched him in the eye, and did a roundhouse to his head. He fell to his knees once again, and this time, Ava took the bottle and brought it down on the back of his head with considerable force. He was out cold. Baldy glared at her, puzzled. "Get out of here," Ava said calmly, picking up her Discman and starting off once more. Baldy blinked once more and charged at her turned back.
Suddenly he was blinded by a light so intense that he had to shield his eyes. When he opened them again, he saw Ava surrounded by a pillar of light, lifting gently from the ground, looking astonished. Getting over his surprise, as a last resort, he ran over, whipped out his switchblade and gave her a good slash across her back. The last thing he heard was Ava shout in pain as she rose out of sight.
--~--~--
Dilandau sat in the darkness in his room. Pouring another glass of Vino, he relished he solitude and quiet. Folken had been in earlier, boring him to death with details of an upcoming mission. But now, he sat in an overstuffed chair relaxing. He looked at himself through the darkened mirror on the other side of the room, admiring his image.
There was a knock at the door.
"What?" Dilandau demanded, having worked himself into a rage. The door opened and Guimel peeked his head around the corner.
"Dilandau-sama? I have something to report."
"What is it?" Dilandau asked impatiently.
"A strange pillar of light was sighted not far from here, North-North West, probably 10 or 15 leagues. Shall we send out a small garrison to inspect?" Dilandau thought, his mind slightly clouded by the Vino, although it didn't show.
"No," he said at last. "Just go yourself. Bring.oh, Gatti with you. And report back to me as soon as you're back." Guimel bowed and left, enveloping Dilandau in darkness once more. He felt a little strange about this.
--~--~--
Guimel and Gatti coasted along in their Alseides'.
"See anything yet?" Gatti asked through the comm. "Not yet." Guimel replied. Soon they came upon a small clearing in the forest, and slowed down. This was getting close to the area where the light was spotted.
"Hey, what's that??" Gatti's voice rang out through the comm. "Got me, bud. Let's set down to have a closer look. Keep your guard up." They landed on the soft earth, and Guimel zoomed in with his telescope. It was..a person? Out here?
"Hey, Gatti, you see what I see? Holy hell..It's a chick, too." The noise of the Guymelefs must have brought her around, for she strained and lifted her head up to look at them. Guimel just about swallowed some of the liquid metal surrounding him in shock. "AVA??!" He quickly opened the hatch and jumped out, followed by Gatti. Guimel ran up to her. He knelt down beside her, realizing that there was a deal of blood on her and the ground. He looked her up and down. She had changed, that was for sure. She no longer had the juvenile, rectangular body she once had. She possessed the curves and shapes of a woman. Not only that, but she had strange metal body art in her eyebrow, and from what he could see of her exposed abdomen, her belly button as well. Her hair had grown a great deal longer, which he could see from the lengthy ponytail. She looked at him with her slenderized, more mature face, with relief and affection in her eyes. "G.Guimel?" she forced out, then passed out once more. "Jeez.. She didn't even say my name." Guimel heard Gatti say. Guimel picked Ava up, and carried her back to his Guymelef.
--~--~--~
Ava's head and back ached. Slowly opening her eyes, she tried to get them to focus. The room was dark and she was all alone. She could feel the hard table beneath her, aware of the new stitches in her back. She shifted her legs and felt something against them. Lifting her head a little, she saw a sleeping form sitting beside her bed, sleeping with his head in his arms on the edge of her bed. It was Dilandau. She sat up a little, slightly astonished after not having seen him for quite a while.
"He looks so peaceful when he sleeps..like a child." Ava smiled warmly at Dilandau's sleeping form. She gazed at him, looking at his porcelain face and feathery eyelashes. His chiseled cheekbones and strong jaw, and his lips, slightly parted as his body rose and fell with every breath. "People wonder why we fight for him. This is why. He fights for us. We're his family, and he's ours. Only nobody ever sees this side of him ." Ava took a thick, soft blanket from the pile folded beside her bed and wrapped it around his shoulders. Lying back down, feeling her head swirl with exhaustion, she said quietly "Good to see you, Dilandau-sama." --~--~--~
Ava could hear faint murmuring. The murmuring quickly grew from faint to fairly loud talking all around her. She opened her eyes. Ava squinted against the bright lights, trying to get blurry images to focus. The Dragonslayers were surrounding her, and she was still lying on the (hard) table. They all looked down at her. Guimel and Gatti were standing on either side of her head, and the rest had surrounded the table. Ava smiled. "Hi, guys." Her smile quickly faded. Suddenly, Ava was quite aware that she was naked under her blanket. Her face turned red and she grabbed the edge of the blanket, pulling it up to her neck. Dallet laughed and said with a sly grin
"Come on, Ava. You've got nothing to hide." He leaned closer, giggling, and Ava smacked him on the side of the head, smugly. "Oh, no you don't" Ava saw Dilandau standing at the end of the bed, watching her from a short distance. Her eyes met with his. A wave of emotion fluttered through them, but he looked down, and soon were covered with the indifferent, insolent look they usually had. Ava looked at him hopefully, but she was interrupted by Miguel who spoke up,
"How are you feeling?," he asked calmly.
"Aside from the fact that my back feels like it's been sewn shut with a dull needle, I'm feeling pretty chipper." Ava said with a groan.
"Are you still a Dragonslayer? After being gone all this time?" Chesta piped up. Ava thought.
"I sure as hell hope so, bu-" The doors burst open. Folken-sama strode in, robes billowing out behind him. Gatti and Chesta moved aside so he could see Ava. He smiled softly at her, which was impressive, considering that Folken wouldn't make a face if he had been kicked in the pills. "Folken- sama." she said, and gave a little bow. Dallet peeked a little towards the sagging blanket at her breasts as she bowed. He was rewarded with a cuff to the back of the head by Gatti.
"I'm glad to see you're back, Ava. I've come to inform you all that there will be a meeting the day after tomorrow regarding the trade agreement with Asturia after dinner. You're to report to my laboratory at 20:00 h." Dilandau snorted.
"More Political crap, Folken? We're not a part of that bullshit." Ava smiled. good to be home.
"Watch your mouth. But yes, I think that you'll be interested in what needs to be said, Dilandau." With that, he turned to Ava. "In the mean time, you are to undergo assessment to determine whether or not you still have a place in the Dragonslayers. I'll leave that up to the discretion of Dilandau. Good Luck, Ava. It's good to have you back." With that, he turned and strode out, flanked by Dilandau
Ava stewed inwardly for a moment in silence. I need to prove myself? She thought, annoyed. Finally she looked up to the on looking slayers. "Well then, that doesn't leave me much time to get ready" Ava said, grinning.
--~--~--~--~--~-~--~
Ava's first stop after a hearty breakfast was the gymnasium. If she was going to have to prove herself (and in what way, she didn't know), then best start to buck up now. After changing and a 15-minute warm-up on the running machine (similar to a treadmill on earth, she mused,) she started to do her rounds. Looking around at her options, she finally selected the acrobatic eqiptment, as she had little opportunity on earth to hone those skills.
Ava hung, suspended from a pair of rings, watching as Dilandau entered the room, followed by Gatti and Viole. He was wearing only his loose fitting undershirt and a pair of workout pants that were slung insolently low on his hips. He looked around the room and saw her suspended upside down, watching them.
"So," Dilandau said, swaggering up to her flanked by Gatti and Viole. "Its time to figure out whether or not you're still worthy," he said, insolently smirking. Ava inwardly called him a name, but flipped over, releasing her grip on the rings, and landed on the mat below.
"Yes, sir," she said monotonously. Dilandau's gaze hardened.
"Gatti!" he called, cold and cutting. Gatti stepped forward onto the mat, nodding.
"Yessir" he said, an edge of disgruntlement in his voice. Dilandau directed him to combat with Ava. They stood in position, face to face. Gatti's back was to Dilandau, and he made a funny face exhibiting his good humour towards the situation. Ava allowed the corners of her lips curve upward in the slightest of smiles, before darting suddenly at Gatti.
Gatti sidestepped to the right, although he had done it a little too late. Ava grappled his arm and twisted it over her head, rotating as she did so. The end result had Gatti flipping neatly over her shoulder and landing with a thump on his back.
He blinked, but was on his feet in a second. That wasn't anything the Dragonslayers didn't know; Gatti was just being sloppy. Ava stood, fight stance ready, watching him with intensity. Again, she attacked. With feline grace she darted up, outstretched hands aiming for his neck as she leapt. Gatti wasn't ready for it. He closed his eyes and awaited the painful blow to his throat. It never came. Instead, Ava placed her hands firmly on either side of his head upon his shoulders and vaulted herself over. She landed, and promptly kicking his feet out from under him, reached around to his collar bone, and grasped him firmly in a complicated grip. Almost instantly, Gatti went out cold, his head slumping and body rolling to the mat.
Dilandau looked at Gatti for a moment. Ava stood up, and waited purposefully, waiting for round two. But it never came.
"Welcome back." He said, and then stalked off to the punching bags.
Ava stood blinking for a minute in disbelief. That was it? Ava wasn't quite sure what to make of that. That was no big deal, she figured that a much more complicated process was involved, including guymelef piloting, at least. But she shook it off. Maybe he didn't want to go through all that trouble. Or maybe he just wanted her back.
----------------
Bun bun buuun! What nutty new adventures are in store? Check out the illustrations: www.geocities.com/silverchair_fanatik/fanart.htm
NEXT CHAPTER: Fun with naked Dragonslayers, Narcotic talk, and a man on a mission.