...
A toothy grin emerged from beneath Lancer's snout, a mischievous smile making its way to his animal face, "Reheehee! If that's what ya want master, don't come cryin' to me when you get it!"
He jumped to his feet atop the rock, spinning his rake dramatically, "I hope yer ready! Ooiiinn-" He leaped forward towards his master at blinding speed, his straw hat falling off his head and his rake alight with golden light and ready to strike "-KU!"
Heping was already in a defensive stance, and her mind rushed to calculate whether to dodge or block. Lancer's attack radiated both benevolence and hostility, a unique aura she'd never encountered, but still she placed her faith in her iron defense. She raised her arms in front of her face, preparing her body to harden in the moment before the attack struck as she had a thousand times before. Perhaps the 'Buddha Palm' technique, channeled through his rake, disguised his intent, as Heping couldn't have predicted his feint.
In the moment just before he would've brought his rake down on top of her, he swung it down in front of her, missing her entirely, but summoning a great gust of wind. Having focused her defense in her arms, her lower half was entirely unprepared for the sudden force, and she was thrown back farther into the brush, tumbling across the ground before getting her feet back under her, and landing in a crouched position.
-But Pigsy was ready. As she tumbled, he landed and dashed across the ground. In his right hand, he held his rake, the head glowing with the same golden light and spinning rapidly on the shaft. On reflex, she brought her arms together to protect her head, but her head was never the target. Even in her crouched position, Pigsy's short body perfectly placed him to send the head of the rake directly into her unprotected abdomen. She hardened her stomach to the best she was able, and while the physical damage was held off, something much more disastrous worked its way through her.
White fire shot across her veins as fast as a bullet, flying to the furthest ends of her body and uniting it in an all-encompassing, searing pain. Her hardening, her tensed muscles, released suddenly, and she fell forward onto her hands and knees, Pigsy removing the rake the moment he saw her falter.
"Whoa-ho. I was goin' easy on ya and you still go and do that? Don't tell me I overestimated you -oink-?"
-But the pain was too much. Her body screamed, her already sore muscles melting under the stress. It took all her will not to scream, not to shout, not to groan, not to fall over, not to fall unconscious. She clung desperately to the coattails of her sanity, doing all she could to pull herself back from the brink. Even if she could have responded to the confused Lancer, she wouldn't have heard him past the ringing in her ears.
"Wait- you alright? What's goin' on? I didn't hit you that hard did I?" His eyes narrowed, "You're not a demon, are ya?"
She coughed and sputtered, hardly aware of anything, her eyesight spinning and making her dizzy, "My body -cough-... is on fire."
"Ah, jeez. What's this all about?"
Her arms and legs shook, but she steadied her mind, bending her body to her will. Forcing her vertigo to fade, forcing her arms to push herself off the ground and back to her feet. Her pride rose along with her body, and by the time she finally stood tall, a cruel smile had made it's way to her face as she glared down at her Servant in spite of her wet eyes and flushed cheeks, a concoction of anger and joy rising to the challenge, "Do not worry... that will not happen a second time."
Pigsy matched her expression, "Keh-oink-. We'll see about that."
Heping took a deep breath to affirm her control over her body, and reached down to peel off her shirt-
"Woah!" Lancer's pig-face turned a bright shade of beet red as he gawked at her exposed midriff, "This ain't that kind of party!"
She threw her tank down into the dust, and shifted back into her ready position, leaning forward and out with one leg back. In a moment blue light moved along her leg in circuit patterns as she dashed forward at near-sound speed, planting her mana-hardened foot directly in Lancer's rotund body and punting his ball-like body into the sky.
As he spun backwards through the air, she called to him, "Pay attention, Pigsy! I thought you were not going to hold back!?"
He deftly spun his rake, slowing his ascent and earning an upright position, "Alright, I see how it is! Get ready!"
He flipped his rake in his hand and shot it behind him. As if bouncing off an invisible wall, he pushed off the air itself, jettisoning himself back towards the earth at rapid speed.
"An' one more thing!"
He flipped the rake over his shoulder as he approached the ground, positioning it at angle the earth and, as the natural lever of the shaft leaned him forward with his momentum, he pushed off the rake itself, leaving it bouncing backwards over dust as he transferred his speed forward, launching himself towards his master, palm out and ready to strike.
"-Don't call me Pigsy!"
His hand lit up with the same golden energy as before, a true Buddha Palm, and once again aimed for her exposed stomach. But his Master was ready. She knew where he would strike and how: she knew not to cover her face, and not to worry about her arms, so she cast them aside, inviting the attack. She hardened her core as much as she physically could, and, in the millisecond before his attack landed, blue light- the same light as before- carved into her abdomen: the mana hardening technique nearly all mages as self-defense. But she wasn't finished, a second layer of blue light flew over the first, turning it deep indigo, and then a third highlighted the pattern, until her stomach was covered in a matrix of black light.
The 'Buddha Palm' struck true with the sound of a clanging cymbal, and the same white-fire struck through her body, even through her Black Turtle Hardening, in fact, the fire shot faster and with more force than before, as if propelled by her hardened mana circuits. It hurt, it hurt like Hell, and her vision once again started to blur-
-But she was ready this time. She knew exactly what she wanted to do. She let the attack hit, and allowed the white fire to dissociate her mind from body; she didn't need to think. Instead she allowed her body to move of it's own accord, in line with her spirit. As the pain shot, she allowed the spirit of Asura, of destruction, to move through her. She focused on the pain, the frustration, the desire for revenge, for justice, the feelings of helplessness and the anger it inspired. The hatred moved with the black matrix into her right hand, closing into an obsidian fist. As Pigsy rebounded off her steel-stomach, she brought her strike down onto his head, sending him firmly into the ground at her feet.
His small body bounced off the earth and back up- he was disoriented. Her mind began to reconnect with her spirit, and her heart swelled as her pain faded. Pigsy was her friend, and now, he was her mentor as well. Mercy welled up in her body, and she channeled that mercy into her left hand, alongside the black matrix. She didn't want to hurt him- but she did want to subdue him. With an open palm, she sent her blackened hand forward and into the back of his spinning body and sent him tumbling away as he had to her the moment before.
He tumbled back across the ground before pushing himself up and into the air, landing a few feet away on top of the head of his abandoned rake, sending it flipping up into the air for him to catch, "Whew! What the Hell was that about?!"
She granted a small smile to her friend as she caught the breath she'd lost, "I told you that... that it would not happen again."
His straw hat that fell off before was at his feet, and he picked it up, "Pfft- not that you jerk! Your circuits are frickin' black!"
She was surprised, she couldn't help it. She hadn't interacted with many people outside her military upbringing, and she sometimes forgot that her raising was abnormal, as people tend to do. She remembered when she'd first been reintroduced to her family, and had been asked to demonstrate her abilities as a mage. Her specialized hardening was all she had, and even calling it specialized felt odd- every one of her peers could do the same, though she had been told hers' was better than most. Her father had been with her at that time, and all he'd said was, 'I suppose I'll have to work you harder to- erm- make up for lost time. It won't be easy for you,' and that was the end of it.
"Hm? Yes. The technique is called 'Black Turtle Hardening'. I suppose you could call it a skill of mine; the only skill I possess, to be honest. Is it so abnormal?"
Lancer placed his hat back on his head and bounced his rake on his shoulder, his chin raised and lips pursed in some form of deliberation, " 'Only skill', huh? No wonder..."
Heping let her stance fall away, as her eyebrows and concern rose together, "Pigsy?"
He grunted in frustration, "Don't call me Pigsy -oink-." He scratched his chin, "I've seen similar stuff before, but never this bad. You've only ever learned that technique?"
"It was the focus of most of my upbringing. I have learned some Pyromancy, but I am not any good with it."
He sighed, "Makes sense. Your circuits are damaged-oink- or maybe 'disfigured' is a better word. They're hard, rigid. It's allowed you to do some pretty impressive shit, but at the cost of everything else." He snapped his fingers with sudden revelation, "That's why the Buddha Palm hurt ya so bad -oink-. There was nowhere for the energy to go, so it had to force its way through ya!"
It was hard for her to think. The adrenaline, the situation, and all the new information sent her mind crawling from one thought to another. It wasn't a total surprise, she'd always had to wonder why it was that she could never do proper magecraft, and the explanation made sense to her. Whenever she'd try to perform the most basic spell, it felt like a dam forming and breaking within her body, as if mobilizing even an ounce of mana built up uncontrollable pressure- literally uncontrollable, as the burn scars across her arm attested. But among all these thoughts and considerations, one question took priority over the others:
She spoke with a note of sadness, as the hope and joy that had built within her throughout the evening threatened to collapse like the house of cards they were, "Will it interfere with my learning? Is it impossible?"
He scratched his chin again. Her Servant was not the thoughtful type, anyone who knew even a sliver of his legend would know the same, but she hoped that at least some of the wisdom of Heaven would've rubbed off on him enough to give a correct answer.
For her, it really felt as if her life hinged on this; her heart seized as he spoke, "Actually... -oink-." His voice rose, "This could change everything!"
The anticipation was a knife in her chest, "How?! What is the problem?!"
"No, no, no! No problem! See, magecraft is based on controlling the flow of mana in yer body, right? But spiritual techniques ain't about control, it's about direction, alignment -oink-! One of the problems people have is controlling their emotions, 'cause their emotions make their mana all wonky," He opened his arms, "-but you ain't gotta worry about that! Your mana doesn't change, it's incapable of changin'!"
"What- what do you mean?"
He smiled with pride, though she could only guess whether it was pride was directed at her or himself, "You hafta channel yer spirit through your mind and body in alignment with karmic energy, but yer body is rigid! It doesn't change, -oink- and the mana can only flow in very specific directions! That means you only need to focus on mind and spirit; body'll take care of itself!" He placed his hands on his hips and laughed, "Reheehee! Ain't I the best teacher?"
"So..." the house of hope in her heart began to settle, "I can do this?"
"You could always do it, master, but this could be a big head start. Most people hafta wrangle their hearts so they can focus, but you oughta be able to do the same with only a fraction of the effort!"
Heping had mixed feelings. Her hope was high, higher than it had been in a long time, but her pride was hurt. She didn't like the idea of taking the 'easy way', but the advantages were undeniable, and, perhaps, granted some fleeting hope of being able to grasp the techniques, or, at least the idea of the techniques, soon enough to actually help her before the war was through. She found herself scratching her own chin, but, eventually, the honor of her heart would give way to practicality. After all, if it was a problem with her body, then there wasn't anything to be done about it in the first place. No matter what her ideal was or ought to be, it couldn't change who she was, or the way she'd been raised.
A sad, but satisfied smile rose to the ends of her lips, "Very well. This is good news." She couldn't help but laugh, "I suppose there is no reason to hold back any longer, if the end is in sight."
"I was thinkin' the same, and we ain't gonna get anywhere if you keep kickin' me around like some kinda pigskin!"
She didn't know what he meant, but accepted the complaint.
He began to roll his shoulders, yet, his confidence seemed to diminish, and worry touched the edges of his small eyes, "Ya need a proper sparring partner -oink-, and I can't cut it the way I am now. You need someone who can take one of yer punches without flying halfway across the globe." He hesitated before continuing, "I-I can do that for ye. I just- I need you to promise me."
Heping was used to being confused. She never understood her military instructors, or her classmates who listened to them without questioning. She never understood her parents, she never really understood magecraft, and even regarding her brother, Shenghuo, who she was closest to, she was often left at a loss. She didn't understand half of what went through Pigsy's mind, and even most of what he actually said and did, but he was simple, predictable; in a good way. Even if she couldn't understand him, she was never surprised by him. He was childish, he was a glutton, and he was a pervert, but, more than that, he was a really, really good friend.
She couldn't help but laugh to herself. Lancer's youthful character was impossibly endearing, and moments like these only endeared him to her even more. As young as she was, she couldn't help but wonder who was more youthful in spirit, herself, hardly an adult, or the immortal trapped in an animal form, "And what do you need me to promise?"
His snout trembled, "I... I need you to promise me that ya won't run away, and you won't be afraid. I wanna help, but it's no use if you don't want to be around me."
To the surprise of herself as much as anyone else, she knew exactly what he meant, both in what he intended to do, and why he was afraid. Naïve as she could sometimes be, there had been a question that had continually occurred to her since she had summoned her Servant, and the answer was right in front of her, with both 'what' and 'why'.
She was unaware of the soft, even maternal smile that she had; too focused on her friend in front of her, "This is to help me, correct?"
"Y-yes -oink-."
"Then why do you need my permission? I trust you."
He jumped, as if he'd been shocked, and his face turned a shade of pink, "S-shut up! You don't even know what you're talkin' about."
"I do not need to." She walked forward, halving the distance between them, and brought her hands together, "I will not back down."
"Okay... just... Dontchya say I didn't warn ya, alright?!"
"Yes, sir!" She nodded, her smile never faltering.
"Right... here we go... I guess -oink-."
He took a step back, and raised his left hand.
-Beng!
He smacked his belly, and the strange mark upon it. Oddly, it made the sound of a banging drum. He smacked with his right hand, and continued to do so, to the point that a beat was made, reminiscent of the banging of war drums. Wind began to swirl around him, red-pink light starting to emerge from his stomach, growing to encompass the whole of his small body. In the darkness of evening, the blood-violet was all the brighter as it moved through him and obscured his form, his form which began to shift and grow behind the blinding glow.
It was awe-inspiring. His form began to stretch and expand, becoming an incomprehensible mass before finally beginning to settle into something altogether new, and altogether fearsome. As the light retracted into his belly, the previously red-violet seal was grayed out, ashen, and all the more visible on his massive form. His rake and clothing had grown in size to match his new shape. Despite her words before, she couldn't help the note of fear that rose in her chest as Pigsy, who must've been half her size or less, now towered over her, perhaps double her own height. She almost stepped back from the shock- but stopped herself.
There, underneath his hat, were the same, small, kind, cunning eyes that were always there. As much as he changed, that much was the same: he was the same Pigsy he'd always been.
He twirled his massive rake in his hands, each rotation whooshing through the air like a turbine, "Are you ready? Tell me if I go too far. -grunk-"
She readied herself, entering an aggressive stance, "You took the words from my mouth, Pigsy."
His smile gleamed even through his extended tusks and snout, his increasingly animalistic features, "Then don't make me regret this-"
She dashed forward, her hand a fist of black light, aiming for his massive belly, as he had to her, smiling as wide as ever.
"-An' don't call me Pigsy!"
....