First Reply Shoot ‘Em Up

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla braced her boot against the turret's footrest, knuckles bone-white around the trigger of her weapons system. The aging Corellian gunship bucked and groaned beneath her, hull plates rattling with every glancing hit.

Through the durasteel canopy, space was chaos: a swarm of Sith fighters darted like angry wasps, each one pouring blistering laser bursts into the ship's flickering shields. Alarm klaxons whined in her headset, red lights danced on her console, hit she ignored them. Red was bad, but being shot at was by far the worst. It could wait.

"Turret three! Hold them off or we're on the scrap pile!" A pilot's voice crackled, raw and frantic. She felt her pulse quicken, her eyes strained as she locked in her next target.

Kayla gritted her teeth. She swung the barrels, tracking a fighter banking hard across her arc. She squeezed the trigger, as turbolasers stitched the void in searing blue lines. The fighter split apart in a satisfying burst of debris.

Two more filled the gap immediately, one peeling high, the other screaming straight at her viewport. She cursed under her breath, fighting the turret's recoil as she tried to pin them both down. The shield flare bathed her face in harsh white flicker; too bright, too thin. The sensor display at her bottom right displayed fifteen more star fighters closing in-too many, not enough time to-

A blast thundered through the ship. Metal shrieked. Her harness snapped open under the sudden jolt, pitching her backward into the cold deck plating. She closed her eyes as a flash washed over her.

A heartbeat later, and everything vanished in a blossom of fire and static white.


Location: Holodive Arcade, Coruscant

Kayla groaned, opening her eyes and removing the visor on her face. This game was harder than she remembered.

The arcade machine above her flashed a crimson ‘GAME OVER’, as a clear ripoff of the ‘Last Starviper’ soundtrack blared through the cheap sound system. Disgruntled, she began to remove the headset, ignoring the sounds of the kids as they babbled some sort of nonsense. She just put her initials in and waited to see her final score.

Kayla sat up, ribs aching more from pride than impact. Around her, a knot of kids gawked at the high score list spinning above her head:

#0024-KOS-15,273,890,431 pts

A freckled boy, no older than ten, leaned closer, eyes wide behind oversized goggles. His voice was giddy with excitement. "You almost cleared the Sith fighter squadron! Nobody gets past wave seventy four!"

Kayla raked a hand through her hair, a crooked grin tugging at her lips. She felt like she could have done better, as she got to her feet, fixing her hair. She felt her hands doing the shaky thing again, and over a damn holo-game.

This was getting ridiculous. She shoved a hand into her pocket, and felt the remove against her thigh. She continued to hide it from the rabble near her.

"Almost, huh? Guess I'll have to come back tomorrow and try again."

She forced herself upright, ignoring the flicker of her heart still convinced she'd died thirty seconds ago. Trying to banish the tremble that was slowly working out of her system.

These sims were getting too realistic for her. Or, maybe she was just getting too old for them.

The starship alarms had faded, but her pulse hadn't slowed one bit. She took in several breaths trying to calm herself, her hands coming together, trying to make the tremble that they made.

It wasn’t real, calm down…

She told herself, and that almost made it feel better.

Almost.

She could hear the children about her as the ran off, a young Twi’lek girl teased one of the boys chanting:

‘A girl beat your score, a girl beat your score!’

She had to smile, shaking her head slowly as she walked away from the machine. She ran a hand along side it, and caught the faintest recollection of when her mother showed her how to cheat the software to get a higher score.

It was a good memory.

Maybe that’s why she was here.

….did you seriously just cheat at a children’s holo game?

She winced, waving her hand to the side. As if it would dismiss the unseen speaker.

Not now, having a moment.

She gave a huff, and with that, felt the disembodied voice of her ancestor take the hint.

Now, what should she play next….


Tags: Open to Anyone

 

[Klar]

​

CORUSCANT​

Holodive Arcade​

It was common knowledge that the punching machine in any given arcade was not only the most rickety, beaten-up piece of junk in the entire place despite being right by the door, but also that it cheated. Aggressively. A duplicitous, miserly machine designed to separate good souls from their hard-earned credits, the siren song of the punching machine was one answered only by fools and those desperate to impress. Klar was not a fool, usually. And she had nobody in the arcade to impress. But she nevertheless found herself squared up against the enticing bag, the mocking scoreboard, the ever-hateful punching machine. It'd already taken her coin. She wouldn't let it have her pride as well.

Bouncing on her toes, the four-armed Coodru-Ji shook out her hands to loosen up. She'd spent too much time playing Alley Brawler ALPHA DX TURBO and while she could acknowledge the need to give her wrists a break... some other girl had been tearing it up on the battlesim Klar ACTUALLY wanted to have a go at. Really impressive stuff, too. Wave seventy four was a solid twenty five waves further than Klar had ever managed to get to, and that'd been on an exceptionally good day. And she liked The Last Starviper enough to read up on and practice it.

She must've been a professional, Klar figured, because she hadn't seemed to be having much fun at all.

Re-tying her hair, the plainclothes Padawan took a deep breath and squared up with the punching machine. It gave a helpful countdown timer. She cracked her knuckles, dropped into a sturdy stance, and sent a whistling haymaker at the bag - the sort of move that twisted her whole body into the blow, that could leave you off-balance in an ACTUAL fight. Klar slammed the bag with every ounce of her strength, sending the bag rattling against the upper case of the machine.

'SCORE - 1519! ANEMIC RANCOR'
'TRY AGAIN??'​

Klar bit back a curse and turned away from the machine as the countdown music attempted to taunt her into wasting more credits. Luckily, Last Starviper was open. At least for the moment. It was crawling with kids eager to emulate Kayla's gameplay in an attempt to outdo each other. Klar wouldn't, couldn't deny their enthusiasm. Besides - why emulate when you could get your info from the source?

As Kayla walked away from the machine, Klar saw her opportunity to approach. She placed herself in Kayla's periphery with a friendly smile and wave, her lower hands stretched behind her back. "Hey! That was pretty amazing." She chirped. "My name's Klar. I've been stuck on fifty for weeks - got any tips? I'll trade you for an iced coffee." She offered eagerly.

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla was in her own world for perhaps for all of forty seconds. She pondered if she was using her time wisely, if she should even be here, and yet she couldn’t think of anywhere else that might have been more demanding. Them, before she could decide on her next game, the actions of a shorter Coodru-Ji caught her. For a moment, she looked terrified, herself a grown adult, caught playing in an arcade; she would be mocked relentlessly for this!


Though it soon faded as the woman asked for tips. Another moment passed before Kayla played it off, a blush that threatened to crawl across her face was banished back to where it came. She fiddled with her flight jacket, shrugging her shoulders, trying to removing even a hint of her lingering shakes that she had from earlier. Though her right hand refused to yield. She kept it in her pocket, looking the woman in the eyes with her steely grey gaze. She tried to get a read on this woman, but for right now, she seemed pretty casual.

Maybe Kayla could ride with that.

“Kayla, it’s a pleasure and…I mean I can….just one iced coffee though?”

She asked coyly, shifting her posture a tinge. “I mean I got a few tips really, though, shouldn’t ruin it for the space cadets over there.”

She remarked, motioning behind her to the kids clambering at the game she just finished with. She found it a bit hard to believe someone would offer her an iced coffee for some tips on an arcade machine…but then again, stranger things have happened.


Tags: Klar

 

[Klar]

​

CORUSCANT​

Holodive Arcade​

Klar gave the woman a slightly surprised look, head canted at a slight angle - not unlike the canine she'd once been. "Two it is." She agreed after a moment of thought. The blonde grinned and fired off a brief finger-blaster. "But you're on your own for the cookie things. Those are WAY too rich for my budget."

Like most good arcades, there was a place nearby to buy the staples of a normal gamer diet. Fried things, easy drinks - most of which where some variation of energy-based - and snacks. Klar skipped it entirely, breezing past the line on a quest for the nicer and slightly more chic coffee place across the the plaza from the arcane. She was already fishing a membership card with several punches in it out of her wallet as they walked. Sometime in her next two visits, she'd be entitled to a free froyo. Klar already had it marked on her calendar.

"Those kids wouldn't know good advice if they heard it, I think." Klar sighed, mildly petulant. "I asked brown-haired one of the how he'd managed to blaze through the lower waves so quickly, and he told me I should use the double pistols more." She gave Kayla a mildly incredulous look, as though imparting news of some political scandal of mild but not critical importance. "Come to find out! Double pistols are awful! I watched him play, and he used a sonic shotgun for the first twenty waves!" The Coodru-Ji gesticulated wildly as she complained, though her complaints were quickly drowned out by easy laughter.

"C'mon. The place across the way has way better iced coffee than here. I love the mocha mint." Klar invited, walking backwards through the open arcade entrance. She walked with a bounce, her mouth and hands never really stopped moving. She was transparent, simple even - eager to share her nerdy habits with another person around her age and maybe learn from the experience.

"I've never seen somebody play The Last Starviper so well in person. Are you excited for The Rise of Starviper next year? I'm a little apprehensive about some of the changes, but I mostly play at a lower level, obviously, so it'd be great to ask a pro."

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

She was absolutely thrown off her game as the woman agreed to take her to get coffee. What was happening? “I would never try and get someone to purchase those outlandish things…”

She would start, not ready to admit that she was part of the problem; she couldn’t help it, she loved them so. This woman was prepared as well. Kayla found this increasingly difficult to not believe this was a set up. Then the talk of shooting games distracted her from the possible red flags.
“Double pistols are a trap. It makes you think you’re doing more damage because you’re firing more shots, but you do less damage and are less accurate. I never pick them if I can help it.”

She explained with the confidence of a seasoned pro, which maybe she was by this point. She nodded in agreement with the woman’s assessment, that double pistols indeed sucked.

As her new friend took off, Kayla stammered for a moment, before following. Coffee and talking about arcade games? She was hooked. “I mean, I am but I’m concerned they’ll try to innovate too much, you know? My mother taught me how to play it when I was younger-she was a real pro. Unlike myself, I’m a mere, guess padawan if we want to come up with a scale system.”

She trailed off, doing a deep think now on how she would rate her own gaming skills now.

Klar

 

[Klar]

​

CORUSCANT​

Holodive Arcade​

Klar laughed merrily and layered two hands over her heart, spinning as though she'd been stuck. "Only a padawan, she says! I must be a child scrabbling at bugs by comparison!"

Recovering her balance - though she did teeter slightly, In flashed a grin while crossing the plaza. "Absolutely, though." The blonde agreed with her usual animation. She went from walking backwards slightly ahead to properly beside Kayla, hands behind her back and in her pockets. "Every time I see a good franchise get handed to some new face who wants to 'put their own spin on it' or whatever, my bones go on the attack." She babbled. "It's like - if this thing was good enough for a second part, don't muck it up or you'll change what made it great!' Or WORSE, they're just using the branding to do an entirely different thing that should have been its OWN thing."

"That said." Klar pantomimed taking a small box and setting it aside. "Some of my favorite stuff is because of new ideas so I guess I shouldn't complain TOO much."

"It's really great that you have that connection with your mother." She noted warmly, sounding only a little envious but mostly genuine. Like most of what Klar said, her tone was fairly easy to read. She gave Kayla a thoughtful look, visibly trying to decide if she should ask about her new friend's mother situation or risk stepping over a landmine like estrangement or death. She chose the safe path, saved by the proximity of a tidy little coffee shop near to the arcade.

"One iced, spiced chai with two shots, please." Klar ordered politely, pulling out her card while she made a slight 'ta-da' motion towards Kayla. "I've got hers."

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla listened with an amused twist tugging at the corner of her mouth, the rest of her expression relaxed in that quiet, observant way she tended to carry herself. Klar's spinning and little pantomimes earned a low, soft laugh from her chest; she didn't match the animation, it was a bit much for her in truth.

"You and my mother would get along frighteningly well," She teased gently, nudging Klar's arm with the back of her knuckles as they approached the counter. "She called it 'the parasite of franchise fatigue'. Don't ask, I don't know what it means, but alot of people just nod and say that makes sense."

She ducked her head politely toward the barista, then back to Klar's offer. Seems she was serious about paying for her coffee, was always nice to be pleasantly surprised.

"I'll take an iced plain latte. Double shot too, since you're being so charitable."

Kayla's eyes flicked back to Klar's warm, curious look; reading her hesitation with a subtle softening at her own edges. She let the moment pass unchallenged, as if telling Klar that not asking was the right call without having to say it outright. Was better to not bring up her mother when she could.

"You keep spinning like that, though, and you're going to end up making me work. Life of a medic I tell ya."

She said with the hint of a joke, but she was partly serious. Which of course left her pondering the medical issues this species must have, with having two sets of arms; working out must have been a pain.

Klar

 

[Klar]

​

CORUSCANT​

Outside Holodive Arcade​

"You're a medic? Like a proper nurse, doctor, therapist, whatever?" Klar asked excitedly. "That's amazing! I wish I had the talent for that. I thought I might, and took some first aid classes just in case and I just couldn't do it." She sighed, shrugging her shoulders in mild defeat. "It was a little embarrassing, honestly. Military decorum? That I can do. But they had us watch a holofilm about somebody patching a little boy back together in front of his mother and my heart broke. Knew right then that I wouldn't be able to keep a cool head in that sort of crisis." She confessed sheepishly. It'd been sobering for her, and something she'd had to make her peace with. As compassionate as she was, it stopped being a virtue when it paralyzed you - but Klar's respect for the profession was clear.

As they waited, she kept her hands on her hips and folded comfortably. "Have you seen the trailers for Legendaria Dragoon?" Klar asked curiously, head tilted to the side. "I heard it was going to launch last week, but because of the Blackwall they're delaying until... maybe forever. Which sucks. I've only been playing Legendaria since Resonance, but I was really excited to finally be part of the newest installment."

The Codru-Ji girl accepted her drink from the barista droid (Botrista?) with a murmur of thanks, dropping a couple more credits in the tip jar. She didn't sit down to enjoy it. After all, there was still a Holodive Arcade RIGHT THERE! Waiting for her attention! Who wanted to sit in a quiet little cafe listening to the pink of spoons against tables and the clack of datapad inputs when they could be listening to the first thirty seconds of PSYCHOS OF TERAS KASI: TURBO laid over the wail of skeeball machines, josticks getting mangled by rough play, Prance Prance Devolution, and at least two birthday parties in close proximity? Not to mention that one game that was just beating on a drum to music that never seemed to be played by anyone with any sort of rhythm.

On second thought.

The plaza had a nice spot near a fountain midway between the arcade and the cafe, and it wasn't a horrible day out. Sure, it was a bit cloudy and looked like rain - but when wasn't Coruscant a little cloudy? Walking backwards again, Klar gave Kayla a questioning look while pointing to the arcade, cafe, and fountain.

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla's mouth curved, a phantom of a smile, at Klar's confession. She shifted her weight, flicked a glance at the Botrista droid, then back to Klar, studying the Codru-Ji's bright, eager face for a heartbeat before answering; after collecting her own drink of course.

"Proper medic? Depends who you ask," She said dryly, rolling her cup between her palms. "I'm licensed enough to cut someone open if I have to. Stitch them back up if they're lucky. Sometimes I remember the counseling bit, but-" She tapped her temple lightly with two fingers. "-being honest, not a big fan of feelings."

She paused, her gaze softening just a fraction. It wasn't the whole truth, but close enough if you asked her.

"You made the right call, I guess. Patchwork isn't for everyone. Some people see an injured person and freeze. Others get high on ideas of heroics and forget they're not invincible. Either way, more bodies for me to fix. Or bag. Usually bag."

She shrugged once, light and dismissive, as if the weight of that truth didn't cling to her every day.

At the mention of Legendaria Dragoon, she huffed out a short laugh. "Yea, I've seen the trailers. Looks fun enough. Can't say I've got the reflexes for those dives anymore. Besides-" She added, giving Klar a look full of dry mischief, "-being honest, with how often on the move I am, I usually end up stealing a copy by total accident."

She followed Klar's gesturing hand, weighing her options with a small, thoughtful expression.

"Might be a bit hard to hear in the aracade," she said finally. "But the fountain's fine. Cover, fresh air, and less chance of some kid running face-first into me."

She tipped her chin toward the plaza, already moving.

"C'mon. You can tell me why the obsession with giving dragons laser cannons in some of these games. And I'll pretend I understand. Don't say Hapans though, that's like, cultural appropriation if anything."

Klar

 

[Klar]

​

Gasp! Video game piracy!? Klar covered her mouth with two of her hands (which left her two free to clutch the pearls she didn't have) at the terrifying revelation that she was in the presence of a certified slicer, game smuggler, and IP thief! The gesture was clearly exaggerated, though, and Klar could only maintain it for a moment before snickering into the back of her hand. "If you ever find yourself with an extra copy..." Klar trailed off with a cloying smile. "I could make it worth your while! Somehow." She flashed a grin, striding over to the fountain.

With little ceremony, Klar sat near the edge of the water with her coffee in hand, flicking a credit into the fountain for good luck. The gesture was practiced and almost seemed autonomic, the sort of thing one might do as naturally as taking their shoes off at the door of their home or shrugging into a well-loved robe.

She briefly considered commenting on the darker commentary, the mention of body bags, heroics, and locking up in a crisis. but how? Kayla was a capable person, by all accounts. She knew her business, and business was morbid. She even brought up counseling, and specifically stated that she wasn't a big fan of feelings.

Klar WAS a big fan of feelings, but as with the mention of Kayla's mother, felt that the best move was to not pry. They'd only just met, and if Kayla was dropping lines like that (and the gratitude from earlier that Klar hadn't asked more), chances were she both needed somebody to talk to AND wouldn't be comfortable doing so. Thus, Klar decided that she should simply do what she did best - remaining a source of positive energy and support for the people around her until they asked for more.

"I don't know why you'd think I have any idea why dragons with turbolaser batteries are cool." Klar laughed, leaning back on her lower hands as she sipped her coffee. "I think it's like more like Huttball or smazzo - it's just one of those things you get or you don't!" She explained helplessly. "I PERSONALLY think it's cool, but I'd really like, struggle to articulate why. I like flying games in general, and I think a giant beast with a huge gun is different and kind of more rad than a like, starfighter."

"My favorite is fighting games, though." Klar emphasized cheerfully. "They were one of the first things I did when I got thumbs. 'Specially Faulty Fang: Twelvard. Probably my favorite of all time. I'd totally cosplay Bol Sadguy if I had the build for it!" The blonde snickered. "How about you? What's your favorite?"

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla gave a low chuckle at Klar's dramatics; this woman amused her, and she was warming to her.

"Oh no," She said deadpan, settling beside the fountain. "You've discovered my dark secret: I've been robbing holo-devs blind since I was fifteen. Some rebel kids sneak death sticks. I snuck cracked ROMs through Coruscant firewalls."

She flicked a credit into the water with casual precision, her eyes following its ripple, then landing briefly on Klar's grin. She felt the judgement, and perhaps a bit of amusement

"If I dig up a copy, I'll let you know. Just don't sell me out to Corpsec.”

Kayla sipped her caf and listened, head tilted slightly, as Klar spiraled from dragons with guns to fighting games and cosplay. The corners of her mouth curved; it wasn’t quite a smile, but close enough. It was like sitting in a sunbeam and pretending not to notice the warmth.

"Bol Sadguy," She trailed off, tone amused. "Didn't peg you for a fan of a six-armed crime boss…." She paused and studied the woman, giving an amused smile. "Actually, I can see it now."

When Klar turned the question around, Kayla hesitated for a moment; not because she didn't have an answer, but because it was unexpected.

"I personally like old school stealth sims," she said at last. "The really difficult ones. No HUD. No health regen. Like if they see you, you ran. Or restarted. I like those." She shrugged slightly. "Something about being invisible, I guess. Just….really like those."

Another beat. Then, after a pause she would add:

"...used to like co-op survival too. Before it started feeling a little too familiar. Kinda hard to explain that I guess."

She glanced at Klar again, then looked away toward the plaza, her voice lightening just a notch.

"But, if you must know, I main Sub-Carbonite, I just think his moveset is awesome."

Maybe they could try a match sometime….
Klar

 

[Klar]

​

The fact that Kayla Ordo-Shan saw ANYTHING in her similar to Bol Sadguy filled Klar with a bubbly exuberance that lit her from deep within. She very nearly demonstrated her further readiness to play the burly, byronic antivillain of the fighting game by jumping up and barking her most threatening 'Gahn-Flame!'. But that'd be a weird spaz thing to do in public. Klar wasn't nearly brave enough for that kind of thing. "I would NEVER sell you out." Klar promised earnestly, even though she was pretty sure that wasn't a legitimate concern on Kayla's part.

"I wish I could be good at stealth games." Klar confessed honestly, sounding mildly exasperated. "I always wind up getting impatient and trying to run-jump-fight my way through after failing like three times - but I do like the sort where the game is really mean and randomizes every time you die." She chirped. "Most of the time, you're only playing for about thirty minutes so it's easy to squeeze in a bit between other stuff, and you really get a sense of mastering the game when you start living longer." The blonde explained.

"I've never really played survival games?" Klar added, a brief inflection suggesting she wasn't entirely confident in this assertion. "I played Cubeminer a bit, and made a little castle - but I didn't make it much further than that. I guess it'd be more fun with friends, but none of mine play that sort of thing." Klar mused.

"Eww, Sub-Carbonite?" Klar teased, wrinkling her nose. "I'monlyjoking. He's super rad. I wish they'd stop re-writing all his lore with Scorpid every game, though. Also I main Shadow Kong, how do I stop Sub-Carbonite from beating my butt all the time?" She asked hopefully, clasping her hands together in a supplicating gesture. "I've lost my last THREE PROMOTION matches now, I'm a little desperate!"

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla tilted her head, watching Klar's bubbling excitement with a mild, unreadable expression, as she sat against the rim of the fountain. If Klar was familiar with reading body language, Kayla would read like someone with a lot on her mind.

Which she did, pushing back memories of nostalgia. She was starting to drift towards thoughts of her mother, and knew better than to do that. Especially here.

"I mean, I hope not, you don’t seem the type to do so," She said, voice low and dry. "I mean, especially if I say pretty please."

She liked this girl, she was high energy, and amusing. Maybe they’d link up again sometime….

The mention of stealth games got a faint breath of something close to nostalgia.

"Well, you don’t have to be patient, depends on the game. If you figure out how the AI accounts for perception, you can run circles around them rather than sneak. Both work I guess." She sipped her caf again, more thoughtful now. "I had an interesting upbringing on Kashyyyk I guess, survival games make me think about it."

She felt herself starting to drift, a flicker of a memory, and a whisper.

You can’t hide what you are, Kayla Shan.

Her eyes lingered briefly on the fountain-not quite distant, just measuring. Then Klar's game rant pulled her back. Kayla blinked once and gave a small shake of her head, almost smiling. But not quite.

"Shadow Kong? No wonder you're getting folded…" She shifted posture, casual now, elbows on her knees as if they'd settled into a well-worn rhythm. "Sub-Carbonite punishes overextension. You want to bait his freeze frames, burn his momentum with ground feints, then counter, typically with grapples. He's style makes him slow to adapt if you force him to play to your strengths."

She looked over, deadpan.

"Also, don’t try panic-jumping. It plays to his strengths and he will freeze you in the air, and just cycle you."

She eyes the woman, silver glint holding, before she continues.

"You'll get your promotion. You just need to be less predictable."

Another sip of her caf.

"Might be a stretch, but feel like being subtle isn't your strong suit."
Klar

 

[Klar]

​

"Subtlety is not my strong suit." Klar agreed sheepishly, though her smile couldn't be wider. Would her life have benefit from having a less open face and a more circumspect nature? Probably. Was it something she could change about herself now? Probably not. She hadn't been able to form speech until she was fourteen, after all - languages were still new and exciting toys she was eager to play with that she'd spent her childhood able to understand but not use.

"Thanks for the advice. Sincerely People usually tell me to get more hours in quick match before I try jumping into ranked, but like??" The blonde Codru-Ji trailed off, shrugged, then laughed. "I don't wanna?? How am I gonna get better if I'm not playing against people at my level?"

Klar was bursting with questions about growing up on Kashyyyk, but also seemed to be a sore point. She resolved to ask about it once they had a stronger rapport, because Klar absolutely wanted to cultivate a strong rapport. Kayla was cool, had great taste, slick fashion, and spoke with the sort of calm confidence and competence that Klar aspired to emulate someday. AND she thought that Klar could pull off Bol, so her loyalty had basically been bought outright. There'd be no getting rid of her now.

Spinning the ice in her empty cup idly, Klar leaned forward a little, aimed and carefully pitched it into the waiting maw of a trash can. A clean shot at 3 meters! "Woo!" She threw her hands in the air, then erupted into laughter. "Essentially unbeatable galactic record, there. Wanna go throw down for a couple more games, ooor...?" Klar asked, gesturing towards the Holodive.

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

"Subtlety's overrated," Kayla said, voice low, she was kind of lying to the woman; least from what she herself believed. She watched Klar's grin with a faint tilt of her mouth, acknowledging it without quite smiling herself. "Galaxy's got enough people trying to sell their life advice, just go and make your own with their scraps."

She swirled what was left in her caf, watching the dregs settle. "And you're not wrong. Best way to get better is to fight people who can kick your ass. Makes you learn faster. Makes you learn smarter, too." She tapped a finger lightly against the cup, as if marking the point. "That's how it kinda works out in the real world too."

Her gaze flicked toward the trash can as Klar sank the shot, her eyebrow lifting slightly at the celebratory cheer. The corner of Kayla's mouth twitched, the closest she came to an actual grin.

"Impressive," She deadpanned. "If the galaxy ever comes down to a trash toss at three meters, I know who I'm betting on."

At the gesture toward the Holodive, she went quiet for a moment, rolling the thought between her teeth. Part of her itched to say no, to default back to distance. Holodive arenas were loud, chaotic, full of flashing lights and memories she didn't need poked at. But Klar's excitement was almost gravitational, dragging at the edges of her caution until it frayed.

She exhaled softly.

"Alright," She said at last, standing and tossing her empty cup in a clean arc to the trash can; a near-miss, as it bounced off the rim before dropping in. Kayla gave a small nod, satisfied at her feat, then looked back to Klar.

"Couple games. But if I lose, I'm expecting a rematch. Might be here for a bit.”

She gestured toward the Holodive with a tilt of her chin, her posture relaxed but alert, ready to follow Klar's lead into the neon din.

"Lead the way, Bol Sadguy."
Klar

 

[Klar]

​

Klar smirked as Kayla sank the shot as well. "Looks like I've got a perfect wingman for that three meter shot." She pointed out slyly. "If we can work out a good layup, we've got a six meter range to work with."

It was nice to have her gaming habits validated by somebody like Kayla, somebody so clearly put-together and in the know. Klar had run her head into the wall repeatedly while trying to improve, to the extent that she could frustrate herself. Some had suggested she'd be better off simply playing for fun, but what did you do when improving was the fun? Watching the little number go up that old you how good you were, trying to work out what strategy would help you climb ever-higher - that's why she was there.

The blonde woman hopped up from the fountain, taking a moment to re-tie her ponytail. As before, she spun on her heel to ensure she was being followed before continuing. It was hard to not be exuberant and a little validated. It was hard not to think about how many crunches she'd need to do to have a set of guns like Bol Sadguy. Maybe some sort of elaborate chestplate to squish down her bits and give her abs and pecs. That might be cool. Maybe even doable.

Of course, she could just dress up like Bol. Bol Sadgirl didn't have the same appeal, though.

"I mean, we could always play something less competitive to spare you the indignity of losing..." Klar teased idly as they re-entered the clamorous neon hell for pocket change, Holodive Arcade. "...but I don't think I could get you to set foot on a Prance Prance Evolution pad if I tried, though. And there's really only one thing I want to pay right now."

Grinning with challenge, Klar spread her arms like a grand, villanous duke welcoming the virtuous hero to his elaborate trap while backing towards a retro game cabinet. The august and respected, oft-imitated and never-duplicated grandpappy of fighting games: Marbel Versus Klap:Com Two.

"Now that we are acquainted, Kayla..." Klar began dramatically, in her deepest and most ominous Evil Voice. "...shall we greet each other... as warriors?"

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla lifted an eyebrow, the corner of her mouth twitching upward as Klar began to back toward the cabinet like a holo-serial villain in the glow of neon lights.

"Oh, indignity, huh?" She raised her arms above her head with ease, stepping forward as the din of the arcade washed over them; pings, beeps, and the distant warble of Prance Prance Evolution pads stomping in uneven rhythm.


She tilted her head slightly, eyes glinting with challenge. "You talk a lot of game for someone who just admitted to three straight losses."


Kayla let the smirk widen just a touch, dropping her jacket onto a nearby stool. She rolled her shoulders, posture casual, hands loose at her sides, like someone who was absolutely going to take this seriously despite pretending she wasn't.


"Don't worry, Klar," She added dryly, "I'll try to make it quick so your ego survives."


"Just so we're clear," she said, her voice low and even, "loser buys the next round of caf."


She glanced sidelong at Klar, the faintest grin breaking through her usual calm.
he stepped forward, letting the neon hum fill the pause, boots scuffing the sticky arcade floor as she stopped beside Klar, eyeing a Marbel Versus Klap-Com: Two cabinet with practiced appraisal.


"You know, Klar," She continued, her tone casual, "You're not wrong. I'd rather walk barefoot across hot coals than step onto a Prance Prance pad."


Kayla's lips twitched into a small, crooked smile. "But I'm not above handing out a free lesson in the classics."


Kayla cracked her knuckles, rolling her shoulders out as she fired up her muscle memory, moving over to the cabinet, fishing out a credit chit to start their match.


"Hope you're ready to fund my caffeine addiction," She added, her voice low with playful threat as her thumb hovered over the start button.


For just a moment, beneath the calm exterior, there was a spark in her eyes; a reminder that, even if not everything had to be a competition, this could be. Stepping up to the cabinet, she tapped the edge twice with her knuckle. "Marbel Versus Klap:Com Two, huh? Haven't touched this one in a while. Let's see if muscle memory still counts."

Kayla leaned in, selecting her character with precise, deliberate flicks of the joystick, her eyes narrowing just slightly as she locked in her choice.

"Just so we're clear," She said, her voice low and even, "Loser buys the next round of caf."

She glanced sidelong at Klar, the faintest grin breaking through her usual calm.

"Hope you're getting paid this week."

Klar

 

[Klar]

​

Kayla Ordo-Shan

"Psh. I hope YOU'RE ready to take me out for coffee very day this week!" Klar crowed confidently, bouncing over to the opposite position on the cabinet. She stretched her arms out while sliding her credstick, shook her hands out, bounced from foot to foot to limber up. "I might even go easy on you for a round or two, give you a chance to catch up. No promises, though." She blonde boasted. "I'm going hard from the start, so no holding back!"

She then locked in Role, Helpbot, and M. Yak. Truth was, the game was rigged from the start.

Klar wasn't BAD at MVC2 by any means. She had a good understanding of the actual logic and tempo behind fighting games, she wasn't mashing buttons wildly or making mistakes constantly. She hit her combos when she needed to, and only rarely fumbled inputs. She'd clearly spent a lot of time at, if not specifically MVC2, other 2D fighting games. Nobody could take away from her that she had solid fundamentals and some skill.

Not enough skill to make up for her apparent affinity for the worst characters in the franchise against somebody who played at or above her level, though. After losing a couple of rounds with her Alpha team, Klar switched to her backup plan: Captain Taris, Sabersteeth, and M. Yak again. It didn't go much better.

About the time her Holodive credstick ran out, Klar was laughing at herself so hard that she could barely stand - leaning heavily on the arcade cabinet, ready to collapse after using %120 of her brain for the entirety of a half hour of embarrassing loss. "Mercy! Mercy..." The blonde pleaded, holding her sides and giggling furiously. "I acknowledge... your strength..."

 

[Kayla Ordo-Shan]

Kayla cracked her neck as she leaned back from the controls, a smug, lopsided grin on her face as she watched Klar collapse in a giggling heap against the cabinet.

"Hey, you said no holding back," Kayla shot back, folding her arms, eyes glinting with playful challenge. "Or I inferred that’s what you mean, but the important part is, I won."

She nudged Klar lightly with her elbow, letting her posture relax for the first time since they stepped into the arcade. The glow of the cabinet lights reflected off her eyes as she glanced at the final KO screen. Her team of Doctor Loom, Crysta Flux, and Crimson Drider stood victorious in the end. Her grin softening into something closer to fond amusement.

"You weren't bad," She admitted, flicking her hair back with a practiced, casual motion. "Just…not on my level."

She looked down at Klar's flushed, giggling face, and snorted.

"And I will absolutely be collecting those coffees," Kayla added, tone light, but a spark of victory flickering across her expression as she turned back to the machine to grab her credstick. She held it up, waggling it between two fingers. "Better hope I don't get a hankering for caf. Could bankrupt you by the end of the week."

She let Klar catch her breath before leaning in, dropping her voice just enough to add a conspiratorial note:

"But hey," She said, "Next time, I'll let you get me down to my last bar. Just so you can feel like you had a chance against Karthak's 'Shadow Maelstrom'."

Then she pulled back, one eyebrow cocked, lips quirking in a teasing smirk as she gestured toward the exit.

"Come on, Boi Sadgal. Let's go find you a consolation pastry to go with that first caf you owe me."

Klar

 

[Klar]

​

Kayla Ordo-Shan

"Augh. Absolutely without kindness, you are." Klar complained good-naturedly, collecting her wits as she got to her feet. "And don't you DARE!" She warned cheerfully, pointing an accusatory finger at Kayla. "Don't you dare ALMOST let me win and then just crush my hope! That's absolutely monstrous!" She giggled furiously. "Lunatic behavior. You're demented."

Klar made a show of deeply inhaling and exhaling, if only to steady the laughter. She then cleared her throat and produced her datapad, waggling it as an offer to exchange contact information. "We'd best keep in touch, then. This is likely to be an extended process, after all." She explained, flashing her most winning smile. Like most of what Klar did, it was more than a little dorky but entirely earnest. "Maybe you can help me practice over the Holonet."

Entirely happy to follow Kayla away from the MVC2 Cabinet, Klar gave it one more longing glance... and spared a glance a the Prance Prance pads, which she actually DID like quite a bit. They were occupied at the moment, though. "I might need two pastries to recover from this indignity." She sighed in dramatic fashion, swinging her upper arms as she clasped her lowers behind her back in a mildly coquette pose. "I'm sure they're your treat, right? Out of what I owe you. Of course."

Klar tried to sell this with a transparently hopeful grin, framing her cheeks with two hands as she struck a deliberately cutesy pose.