Keeping up to par......

[imported_Ezra]

In the middle of the empty room he had chosen for his solitary work out. He sits cross-legged and has his Cerseas in both hands, they are crossed across his lap, and his head is slightly tilted forward. His breathing calm, serene...his eyes closed. Clad only in his tight fitted shorts that cuts off at the upper knees, he rises without placing his hands down, slowly turning as he stands upright with his arms out to the sides. His chisled body looking like porcelain. His eyes slowly opens and he brings the blades close to him in a fighting pose.

He slowly extends each arm in a different angle and then he goes into a quick excersize with his blades. thrusts and kick combos as he slowly makes his way across the floor. As he comes to his imaginary boundry, he turns and then makes his way across to the other side, this time the blades are two silvery blurrs as he spins them in both hands. His arms moving up, down, ,side to side, at angles...the blades constantly spinning. Then he runs at the wall and walks part ways up then jumps backwards in a layout backflip to land on his feet first, then drops to a back roll to end up on one knee and in another fighting stance. His unruly hair covering his upper part of his face.

[DarthHERA]

A quick scanning of the security grid holovids before she switched duty over to one of the crew brought a change in plans for her late evening.

Usually, coming off routine duty - she did her share of grunt work like everyone else in ShadowFaene - Hera would take some downtime in the bar..or perhaps somehwere closer to home, in the mess hall of the Base. Over a smooth shot of rum, she would scan the daily inventory transactions, or go over shipment schedules.. But tonight, now she would pass.

She waved the unshaven pirate who was taking her place, to help himself to the seat as she got up and leaned closer to peer at the camera displaying the activity in the Training Room.

A slow grin crept along her full lips.

Well, well....whaddya know. A Vamp work-out...

Turning around suddenly, she caught the crewman with his eyes studiously on her butt, and whacked him across the head with her hand.

"When I pay you to watch my ass - I dont mean that literally you imbecile."

Flumoxed and chastend, the crewman vigorously set himself to checking all security scanners and the like, hoping to avoid another cuff across the ear.

Hera strode off, shaking her head, smiling. That joke between them never got old. Especially the hitting part.

Leaving the security in capable hands, Hera turned into the turbolift and tapped the deck button to the same level where Ezra was.

[imported_Ezra]

Ezra was spinning his blades, and making his way across the floor when he felt another presence. He kept going with his excersize, this time changing direction so his back was facing the person who was watching him.

He ran at the wall and took four steps up it, then sprung off into another backwards layout backflip, tucking and rolling upon contact with the ground , he tumbled backwards to come up with his Cerseas criss crossed near the abdomen of the lean, shapely form before him. His head tilted up and a grin played across his face. His eyes covered with his unruly hair.

[DarthHERA]

Striking out her hand, but standing still avoiding the blades, she gripped and twisted the dark curls with her fingers, tugging Ezra's head back so that he looked up at her.

"Hello Sunshine...." she grinned back at him, "feeling energetic are you?"

[imported_Ezra]

That grin turned into a smile. Which partially showed his fangs.
His fawn colored eyes finally showing as she had most of his bangs in her fist.

"Very energentic, Hera."

He didn't move from his stance, but lowered the Cerseas to his bared feet. He closed his eyes as her fingers tightened thier grip on his hair. He opened them again, wondering what she wanted of him. Probably it was just to come down and manhandle him for a bit. He kept his eyes on hers. And That grin of her's was telling him he could just be right about what he thought.

[DarthHERA]

She loosened her fingers and changed from their tight hold to playfully tossing them through his silken curls.

Her hand traced down to caress the side of his face, and her smile turned dangerous.

"Bet you'd like to show me, wouldn't you..."

She'd given the Vampyre plenty of reason to lash out, yet he always surpressed it. For what reason, Hera could only guess at..but she was pretty sure a big part of it was so he could remain close to Lady Daiquiri.

Hera quipped a laugh. It was pathetic, really.

Ezra looked into her eyes, and, as one primally motivated individual to another, recognised the blatant challenge in her luminous blue eyes.

"Here's your chance, sweetheart....(she taunted) ....or did you want to run it by Daiq for permission first.."

[imported_Ezra]

His grin left his face as he could see what she wanted. She wanted an all out fight with him. For him to challenge her to give her a reason to do what she wanted to do in the first place. And her use of Daiquiri's name, why did she say that?His eyes narrowed a bit. He didn't need to run anything by Daiquiri, she was neither his nor he hers. And to think he'd "bite the hand that fed him", now that was absurd. His eyes closed as her hand traced along his cheek. Then they slowly opened and he spoke almost in a husky whisper.

"Hera, if it's a sparring partner you want, I'll be happy to train with you. But if it's a fight you seek, I'm afraid you are looking in the wrong place."

He could see her eyes harden and he kept his calm demeaner. Oh there were and still are times when he'd like nothing better than to "pop" her one to let her know she wasn't as intimidating or tough as she liked him to think she was, but he still respected her authority and skill as a warrior and employer. For her to test his loyalty was pretty much a slap in the face, but expected. And right now he did the "UN-expected". He stood up and looked down at her. This time it was HIS hand that did the tracing of her cheek.

"Why do you hate me so much that you must test my loyalty which I have given freely?"

[DarthHERA]

"Hate you?" her smile remained, "Now what makes you think that?"

She was enjoying herself, he could tell.

Hera was a great game-player. She loved to dance along people's psyche and push them constantly off balance.

"If I was wanting a fight - I wouldnt bother with such pleasantries."

She leaned closer, so close he could smell the soft scent of her skin and could almost feel the brush of her lips as she spoke.

"A.........spar is all Im after..."

She moved her hand to place on top of his and without warning, clasped it hard and then twisted it roughly, making the Vampyre spin so that now his back faced her, and his arm was pulled up back between them.

Whipsering in his ear, she teased, "You game?"

[imported_Ezra]

Bending slightly at the knees he lened his head back close to hers and smiled. Reaching back with his other arm he gently caressed the back of her neck and then tightened his own grip.

"Always ready......sweetheart."

He said using the word she used earlier. With that he bent forward taking her up and then using his arm which held her, threw her off of him. He spun as to not get his arm which she held broken or dislocated.

[DarthHERA]

She was forcibly flipped up and over, Hera landed on the ground with a thud.

Striking out instantly with her feet as she lay propped up alittle on one palm, Hera latched her boots around Ezra's legs and yanked them out from under him.

[imported_Ezra]

Letting gravity take over, he fell back and threw his arms out to the side to lessen the effect of the blow. Not as much of his air was knocked out of him. He brought his arms behind his head and swung his legs up over his head and then kick-flipped back to a crouch, then as he landed on his feet propelled himself forward at Hera. Tackling her and taking both of them in a tumble towards the wall.

[DarthHERA]

Rolling with him to the wall, Hera wound up on the underside of the two.

Ezra looked down to her, and she greeted him with a headbutt to the nose that caused him to reel back, and then twisted out from under him.

[imported_Ezra]

Head snapping back from the headbutt, and then falling to the side, he felt her crawl free from under him. He rolled on his side towards her and thrusted a palm strike to her side which with his vampyre strength, sent her sliding across the smooth floor.

He stood up and lightly rubbed his now red nose. He began to walk towards her, his hands clenching and unclenching. His eyes a bit narrowed now. He approached her deliberatley slowly. Allowing her to stand up. As she held her side as it was undeniably uncomfortable right now, so was his nose. To him they were now even, a hit for a hit. As he got within striking distance, he got into a fighting stance and beckoned her on towards him. And he was smiling at the same time.

[DarthHERA]

She rubbed her side as Ezra gestured for her to come get him.

She remained where she was, and instead, it was he that came to her. And not of his own will.

Hera channelled her force power and in a seemingly effortless maneuver raised the Vampyre a foot off the floor and pulled him forward.

Unsheathing her dagger, she held it out at arms length, pointy end forward and manipulated Ezra relentlessly forward, intending to impale him.

[imported_Ezra]

Feeling weightlessness take over, he knew she decided to up the ante with her force abilities. Always to that these force users....he had some knowledge of the use of the force but tended to use them for defensive purposes and rely on his fighting skills for attack. He seen the shiney steel blade and his eyes narrowed at it. Then he smirked and decided to call her bluff.

With arms swinging out in a "C'mon and do it!" type of move, he sailed right in toward her. If she was bluffing he would find out, if not then this was surely gonna hurt. Unless it was silver, then he wouldn't have to worry about a next time. There wouldn't be any if it is. His head arched upwards a bit and he decended on the blade held out at him.

[DarthHERA]

The pain that shot into the fleshy part of his body where his shoulder joins his chest was crisp and sharp.

Hera had a calculating gleam in her eye as she held Ezra pinned to her knife end, suspicious of the Vampyre's lack of self-defence.

"Is it that you cant, or you wont, protect yourself, Ezra. You could any number of ways have removed the threat of my blade. A kick, a twist, a deflecting hand - yet you do nothing....?"

[imported_Ezra]

The pain did show in his eyes.....they glassed over a bit as his skin touched the guard, his blood seeped onto her fingers. And he began to take a little deeper breaths.

"I chose not too..... to prove a point of any doubts you may have of me being loyal.....I just showed you I would take a blade for you with no hesitation or second thought. Maybe now you will look on me differently....as if Im not such the monster you take me for at times."

Then he closed his eyes and reopened them as he pushed the pain back once more.

"And to also give you what you've been wanting for a while now....to strike at a vampyre for what they've done to you.....safe to say this one wont strike back."

He coughed a bit and although he was in pain, he managed a smirk.

"So......Hera.....do you feel at least a little better now?"

He chuckled a bit and coughed again. Then he took her by the wrist, and as he held her steady he pulled himself off of the blade. His face contorting a bit as he endured the fire in his shoulder. He let her blood streaked hand go, and kneeled down where he stood. Eyes closed and his hand covered the wound, his blood ran down his porcelain skin. He could feel it healing and knew it would be a little bit till it healed fully.

[DarthHERA]

Hera understood the simple things in life.

Anger

Greed

Pain

Death

All these made perfect sense to her. They were the catalysts to everything else that was worth anything in this frelled up galaxy. They were the things that drove you, made you strong.

Ezra evoked none of these emotions in her, with the exception of perhaps anger. He served, by and large, to mostly confuse her.

He was nothing she assumed him to be. Aside of course for the undead child of the damned thing. His character was noble. But it was noble towards those who were unworthy. Herself for instance.

She had done nothing but barb and prod and stir Ezra to lash out at her since she had met him. And in return, he offered her loyalty, committment, trust.

To the Sith, it made no sense.

Were things reversed, Hera would have siezed the opportunity to lay some hits and carve some wounds of her own in her antagonist. Ezra did not.

It was quite perplexing.


And Hera hated that.

She liked things simple. She knew how she would react, and presumed - given most beings inate selfish natures - everyone would react as she would. In fact, she counted on it, and it had saved her life on many occasions.

So far, Ezra had done nothing that she had expected from him.

She sheathed her dagger angrily. More from frustration, but she would not let Ezra know that.

"You have no idea what I feel" she snarled down at him harshly.

"I suggest if you are ever in this situation in a real fight, you put aside your penchance for making such gambles and instead try to kill your opponent."

She strode from the room, stopping at the door to call back,
"Get yourself to the med-room and get fixed up."
Afraid he might get some fool notion and think she was actually concerned for him, she clarified.
"Miss any work because of this stunt and it will come out of your pay."

She left the room.... very unsettled and honestly wondering why Ezra would stay around with a bitch like she was.

[imported_Cyrus Haman]

"I'll give you a reason t'go to the med bay," Haman had been watching the little episode from a corner. He'd wanted t'meet this new addition to the SFF crew and see what this guy was made of.

As Ezra turned, to probably ask who in the hell this guy was...Cyrus Haman, 'greeted' him with a right cross to the face.

"Welcome to the crew, Sunshine," the smuggler smirked as Ezra dropped.

[imported_Ezra]

Although he was in immense pain, that punch by the little bald worm just got the vampyre miffed. His eyes turned thier ice blue and he was up in a wink of an eye with Haman in his grasp. He ran with the man ,holding him up and slammed him up against the wall just hard enough to knock the air from him.
He then brought this curr up close and gazed into his eyes with a fire in his own that spoke of unspeakable pain and death at his hands.

"THAT friend, was very unwise of you. As a member of her crew I give you this warning but once....." he growled and bared his fangs. "....because next the next time, I will reach far up your backside and yank your cue ball out of it.....are we clear with that Mogur?"

Then his eyes turned back to their fawn color and he spoke softer but still held the man firm.

" I know who you are Haman, I talk to people....So....If you want to remain her play thing I'd suggest you keep out of my affairs. Because where my personal business is concerned, I don't play well with others."

Then he dropped the man and slowly walked to one of the adjacent walls and slid down to sit. His eyes slightly closed as his head tilted to the side a bit. He then sent to her through telepathy ' You're right about one thing Hera....I don't know what you feel.....but I'm trying to understand'

[DarthHERA]

OOC: Welcome to SFF DarKnight.

Just a heads up that this particular forum is for Base Members posting only. The Base is in an undisclosed location and your Character would not know where it is. And he would also not be able to breach the security as he as to be in the room you have placed him.
I see you have posted in Poseidon's Gate also, so you are on the right track by going there. * You can see Forum descriptions under their headings for futher explanation if you need it.
Thanks!

:)

[Daiquiri Van-Derveld]

OOC:

Also, appearing and disappearing suddenly in puffs of smoke is called 'godmoding' and is not accepted here at SWFans. You might want to change that particular ability.

Thanks.

[DarKnight]

Don't worry guys, I've already removed it (with a lame exuse but hell it's a reason).
And thanks for you friendly advice.

[Daiquiri Van-Derveld]

Youre welcome and thanks for the edit :)