Vaan jumped ever so slightly as the door opened, acting the part out perfectly. Looking upward, she quickly noticed signs of recent mourning, though for the moment pretended to be as oblivious as possible. It was probably a good thing.

"Um, hi," she said, fidgeting with her bracelet a little, "I was wondering if I could get some lessons... I want to learn to defend myself...and my mom. I can pay..."

Lucas narrowed his eyes. Of all the times....

He stopped himself. This young lady wanted to help....and she needed help. "The first lesson's free, and I can give you a few pointers. Come on in....my name is Lucas."

Vaan's eyes lit up with excitement as she smiled and followed him in. "Nice to meet you, Lucas-san. I'm Mina Yang." She said. In truth, Vaan already knew how to defend herself...and others, when need be. But most of her defense maneuvers usually meant several broken limbs or death. That was something her mother didn't want, and part of the reason she was here. The other reason was to keep track of Lucas..if only for a bit.

"I can't tell you how much this means to me, Lucas-san," 'Mina' said, bowing to Lucas.

Lucas nodded as he waved her into the training area. It was empty since all the students had gone home, and Grace had left as well.

There seemed to be a slight admiration in the girl's voice when she spoke of how much this meant to her.

"Before we get started, I just have to ask: how did you hear about this dojo?"

'Mina' paused for a moment, looking unsure of herself, "Uh...well, y'see, a buncha gangsters were trying to trash my mom's shop for not paying protection, and...uh, I kinda sorta got in the way and got beat up. A friend of my mom's came by and told me to find this place," she said, looking slightly embarrassed. She was coming up with the story on the fly, but it could be considered the "short version" of the story.

Lucas eyed the girl warily for only a moment. Her story seemed contrived, but Weston was known for its "wildlife," i.e. the street toughs that tried to prove themselves as the alpha dogs of the city.

The girl did appear to need help, at least with some of the self-defense aspects. And she seemed to be fighting for a cause other than herself.

"All right..." he said nodding at the young lady. "I'm going to show you some basic techniques that can be used in both an offensive and a defensive matter. The name of the art I practice is Goju-Ryu....the discipline has both hard and strong aspects."

Lucas then began to show "Mina" some of those techniques, including ones that allowed for a block/counterstrike as well as a two-pronged attack.

"Mina" watched the maneuvers, and when it was her turn to replicate, she had to hold back her typical maneuvers. Where a block-counterstrike was performed, she had to resist the urge to follow through with a quick double kick aimed at weak spots. Even a two-pronged attack she had to resist following up with a palm strike charged with the Flow.

The restraint did help, though. She didn't want to kill some degenerate who tried to mug her simply by muscle-memory. Hunter trained her well when it came to war, but in a time of peace, killing was looked down upon, not a necessary precaution.

Lucas continued to "teach," but noticed that the young girl had some skill that she seemed to be holding back. Clearly, there was more to this person than she let on.

"Not bad. If you build on what we've learned as a foundation, I believe that you and your mom will have nothing to worry about," he said to her, somewhat aware of her skills but giving no verbal indications as such.

He smiled at her for a moment.

"As I said, no charge for the first lesson. You're welcome to come back if you'd like. Now if you'll excuse me...there are some personal things that I need to attend to."

'Mina' smiled, bowing to Lucas once more, barely looking as if she went for a half-mile power-walk. It was obvious she was conditioned, to say the least, if not a downright machine. She'd been in a war before, simple practicing was just like waking up in the morning.

"Thank you, Lucas-san. At least my mother and I will be safe. I can't say the same for our neighborhood, but at least I won't have to visit the hospital again," she said, turning to leave.

"Good. Then I'm glad to have been a small part of that," Lucas said, holding the door open for her. "Take care of yourself, and if you'd like to come back, know that you are welcome."

Teaching had been somewhat therapeutic for Lucas, keeping his mind off of all that had happened. But the emptiness was still there, as his face looked slightly downcast.

'Mina' smiled, thanking him again. As soon as Lucas closed the door, Vaan dropped the act, Her eager and beseeching look melting away to slight annoyance. Having to boil her fighting style down to the basics was frustrating, but what came next almost ensured her satisfaction.

Weaving the mysterious energy known as the Flow around her and effectively obscuring her from view, Vaan phased through a section of wall on the side of the building. She would appear as a slight shimmer, or a bright figure of Chi depending on how you looked. Mom wanted to keep an eye on Lucas, huh? Well, stealth practice was hard to come by, and Vaan needed to stay sharp.

As soon as 'Mina' was gone, Lucas sighed, sitting back down in the training area. He looked up to the ceiling, tears welling up in his eyes, his sorrow all too evident for anyone who may or may not be watching.

Vaan looked at Lucas, watching from the shadows but not doing anything. As much as she didn't want to, she could empathize with Lucas. When the bullets weren't flying, when your life or others lives weren't in danger, you think about the people you lost. Vaan had lost more friends in the war in the future than most, but the loss of a love...even Vaan couldn't truly relate to. Sure, a few crushes here and there, but nothing as serious as what Lucas seemed to be projecting.

While Lucas let it out, Vaan took the time to put on her gear.....slowly. Carefully. Soundlessly. Black fore-arm and shin-guards, loose pants tucked into tabi-boots, A half-face wrap to conceal who she truly was. All was done with little to no effort, and almost completely soundless.

If she were discovered, Lucas certainly wouldn't suspect innocent little Mina had snuck back in to spy on him, nor would he suspect that she was there only to keep an eye on him.

The grief was still there, and Lucas had been physically pushing himself to his limits. Limits that even he had trouble with, despite his excellent physical condition. Exhausted, both physically and mentally from the events of the last few days, he laid on the floor looking up at the ceiling, unconsciousness taking him on a much needed rest.

  A figure appeared not far from Lucas, and bent, scooping the supine form of Lucas Martinez up into his arms, and then shifted, big, batlike wings spreading wide then wrapping around them both, the horns on his head an a whippy, spike-spaded tail showing he wasn't as human as he appeared, before he vanished, taking the unconscious Champion with him, cradled gently in those muscular arms.

------->> Vic's Place

Vaan had been waiting, and as Lucas drifted off to sleep, Vaan released her control of the Flow, letting the energy unwind around herself and continue in it's normal patterns. In the shadows, Vaan was very unlikely to be seen, unless it was by a bat.

And then a demon appeared out of nowhere, swooped Lucas up, and disappeared, startling Vaan, who countered with a second too late slash with a tanto blade stowed away. Lucas was gone, and dead for all she knew. The demon had gotten away, but not without leaving a trail within the Flow. A trail Vaan could follow.

Wasting no time in readying herself for what could be a straining sprint, Vaan disappeared in a blur, following the trail that was left behind.

--->Too: Sutra's Apartment
This message was last edited by the player at 00:51, Wed 15 Aug 2012.

From: Sutra's Apartments

Vaan faded into view in front of the dojo, calmly opening the door and walking in. A quick sweep confirmed that she was the only one inside as she unclasped her bracelet and watched as it reconfigured into it's standard form: A futuristic helm that acted as a heads-up-display. Putting it on and watching as the piece of tech booted up and oriented itself, Vaan moved to stand in the middle of the training room.

"Link up with nearest connection and bring up a map of Weston, including notable Yakuza locations from the organized crime unit in the city." she said, the training room lighting up with an extremely simulated map of Weston.

Then she started planning. If she was to act in Dragon Fist's stead for now., she would need to know more about his projects.

Vaan's map brought up several potential places where the Yakuza could strike from. There was a place also in Chinatown, a business establishment in Downtown Weston, and another out by the docks.

Vaan grimaced as the program drew up three possible scouting locations. If the Yakuza were in town, a business in downtown would be too public a place to stage an assault. It would be good for intelligence gathering, little more. The docks would most likely be where the muscle of the Yakuza were staying. It also probably meant that they have a boat, possibly full of supplies.

And Chinatown. A place to easily blend in, collect dues, revel, and other things the big players in the Yakuza would want to partake in. Not an easy mark, but it would be simpler and easier to blend in than if she were in the other two areas. That, and she missed the buzz of Chinatown. Even in the dystopic future, Chinatown had always been left fairly untouched, save maybe the absence of gangs.

Smiling and reconfiguring her helm to switch to a sunglasses setting, Vaan took the time she had to gear up. Unshouldering the bag that Meg had given her, she clasped her knife belt around her waist, as well as stowed a plethora of other violent and deadly arms, before finishing with her now-washed and good as new trench-coat, which hid all but the knives wonderfully.

If she were to go around Chinatown looking for the Yakuza, she needed to look the part of the Dragon Lady...especially if she was going to be one of their...benefactors.

-->Weston city's Chinatown

>>>>>>>After the timeskip>>>>>>>>>>

After the wedding, Lucas went back to his rigorous routine of training, running the dojo, and taking time to visit the Gysbournes as well as young Diantha (who would not take no for an answer). Criminal activity in Weston wasn't as hectic as usual, allowing Lucas to take somewhat of a break, even if it only lasted for a short time.

Today began like most of the others, with him getting up early, and training, honing his body through meditation and exercises.

After mentally conversing with Meg, Lucas left Grace a note indicating that he would be in and out for the rest of the day. Armoring up, he then soared in the air, making his way to meet up with the New Age Defenders.

>>>>>>>>>To the DPA>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>>From The Timeskip>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dragon Fist had been working pretty hard, considering that it seemed that emergencies would just "crop out" seemingly out of nowhere. Such was the life of a citizen of Weston City.

Now it seemed that there were those who were interested in rebuilding the Legacy....or starting anew with it. Knight Errant seemed to be one of those. He had an admirable demeanor, even if it had gotten him in trouble at times.

After messaging Hotwire (who seemed grouchier than normal), he made his way over to the building the Legacy were using for their HQ.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>To Legacy HQ>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>>>>Timeskip>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Lucas worked out in the dojo as he always did, right after class wrapped up. It didn't seem that things were slowing down however, so he was enjoying this brief moment of respite before anything else happened.

And the respite passed. Both he and Kimeran sensed a disturbance elsewhere. And so a shimmering portal appeared. Lucas sent out a quick text to the "Network," and a quick message across the Wormnet.

Both he and Kimeran went into the portal, and vanished from sight.

>>>>>>>>>>From The Museum>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dragon Fist soon arrived back at the dojo. Going in through the rear entrance, he retracted his armor, and made his way to the office in the back of the structure.

It felt good to be a part of a team. It had been a long time since the Legacy disbanded in where he had worked with a person or persons. A long time since....Friday....Mirage....their deaths still haunted him. One of them happened away from him, the other right in front of him. Both immensely painful.

He looked at the calling card that was provided by one of the young heroes at the museum. Perhaps he would call on the services of this...Mittens...seemed like a nice enough person.

But that would be for another time. For now, he would need to do what he always did. And that was to center himself....to calm the raging spirit that dwell inside of him. He then sat down, closing his eyes, and began to meditate.