Book Searches and Brawls

[Mara Ackart]

Closed to Sulley

Mara found her way to the market area. She'd done a bit of exploring elsewhere and now it was time to see this place. There were little shops here and there and of course some street vendors as well. Of course her trip here served more than just an exploratory whim. Mara needed to know her surroundings of course but there was also the need to identify as many of the mutants as possible.

She could better protect herself around here if she knew who was who. Everyone had to come here sometime. If she came here often enough she could get to know a fair amount of the mutants here. It was an entirely selfish motive but if she played her cards right she would only be perceived as friendly and curious.

Above all other motives for coming to these shops however was one other: the love of books. Mara knew she'd go insane if she was going to be stuck here without something to read. All logical excuses aside Mara was here to try and find some books. She perused the shops slowly, looking for any sign of the printed word. Of course she chattered amiably and took in as many of the other mutants around her and their conversations as well. That however was just something that came naturally to her.

She had just left the sixth shop of her search when she heard the noises break out nearby. Angry words and shouting were swiftly followed by the sound of fists and feet. She would have simply ignored it and continued on her way but the sounds drew nearer and now there was the unmistakable sound of explosions.

"Oh great someone can make explosions. Fantastic." she grumbled.

An explosion detonated not a few feet in front of her and Mara realized that if she didn't move soon she'd end up more than a little hot. Without time to focus her power she simply boosted the area around her in the opposite direction of the fight.

[Sulley]

It wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Really.

Sulley had been wandering aimlessly through the shops of Freakopolis, stopping by booths that caught his eye but otherwise merely browsing to pass the time. He’d already finished everything he’d planned to do that day. He always had too much time on his hands. It was infuriating.

Well, as the case was, a particularly attractive woman happened to be going about her business similarly to him. She walked with a royal air and touched things that interested her with gentle fingers. Once she caught Sulley’s eye he didn’t let her go. To say he’d been stalking her would be blowing things out of proportion. He just happened to be walking in the same direction as the woman, fancy that. There wasn’t anything creepy about it at all. Okay, maybe the fact that he rarely looked away from the back of her head except to avoid bumping into something was a little weird…but…so what? God didn’t put beautiful things on the earth to be ignored.

So when the woman stopped at a booth to take a rest, sitting in a lawn chair and chatting with the shop owner in a friendly manner, Sulley took that as his cue to draw her attention. He didn’t care about her, really. She was just a good looking woman who he thought he’d played around with. And why not? Can a man not indulge in activities that delight him while inside a hellish camp?

Sulley looked around for trouble. He wanted something big. He had to make sure she’d at least look, if not approach him. He found his answer in a shop owner’s hand.

“Can I have that apple?” Sulley managed a charming smile—at least, the closest thing to it that he could manage. His angled features and stern brow made it look more like a malicious grin. With a shrug the woman gave him the fruit. He thanked her and then sharpened his finger, using it like a chisel to carve a swan. The next time the beautiful woman looked up from her conversation, she saw Sulley passing the figure onto a small child who took it with a giggle and skipped away excitedly. And then he just happened to look over at her. There were fireworks when their eyes met.

Literally.

An explosion that sent sparks shooting into the air erupted directly beside Sulley, exactly where the little girl had been standing. He instinctively covered his head and ducked low, moving in a crouching to hide behind a barrel. Even through the dust that clouded the streets he peered in search of the woman. Where had she gone? It was as if she’d disappeared.

As the air settled he stood and saw the culprit behind the explosion. A bulky man with a disgustingly thick neck and multiple tattoos stood face to face with none other than the woman. Sulley could still only see her backside—he didn’t complain—but from the way she stood he knew she wasn’t afraid. Her status gained a level in his mind. It was nice to see a strong woman. Then again, the weaker ones were easier to impress and provide for. Maybe if he started getting the better hand in their fight Sulley would step in and cut things up.

With the inspiring thought, he began to step forward…

..and then he was suddenly not there anymore. The area around him had abruptly changed. The realization and speed of the trip took a moment to catch up, but when it did he collapsed onto his knees and held his throat with his hand, breathing hard. His eyes bulged, and he stared at the ground, still trying to comprehend.

[Mara Ackart]

Mara looked around her. She'd gotten away from the fight fine but it would appear that she'd accidentally brought along a souvenir. A man was collapsed on the ground nearby trying to recover from her boost. Being used to it she had no problem with the excessive speed she'd used to get away from the doofus that had decided to start a fight.

However that also meant that she tended to forget that other people just weren't used to anything much over ninety miles an hour at the outside. She moved over to him and slowly laid a hand on his back. She was no fool. He was a mutant and mutants could be more than a little dangerous if approached too quickly when in pain or danger.

"Sorry about that. You'll be alright in a minute. Super speed travel has that effect on those that aren't used to it." she bent over to look into his face, "Normally I'd have just boosted myself but I wasn't too keen on ending up a piece of KFM, Kentucky Fried Mutant. Didn't have time to just focus on me."

Mara really did hope he wouldn't hold it against her. She didn't want to be making enemies this early in her internment here.

[Sulley]

Sulley tensed when he heard someone drawing near, and managed to turn his head to see a woman he'd passed at one point at the shops. He wasn't sure what she had just done or planned to do, but it suddenly didn't seem important. His world was off balance. Who cared if she killed him? The pain and pounding in his head was more important. He shut his eyes and willed her to do his worst.

A hand on the back. That was an unexpected surprise. He just barely contained a shiver. When was the last time he'd safely let a person touch him? On top of that, a woman? It was a pleasant surprise, he wouldn't deny it.

Trying his best to suck it up and be a man, Sulley twisted over onto his bottom and plopped down, exhaling roughly, hurting his lungs. He didn't grumble like he wanted to. Not in her presence. He couldn't manage to suppress his grimace, however.

"You should warn a person before doing that." He said gruffly, heating his glare and turning it up to her. It was an effort to keep it from melting away. Suddenly the woman from the market place had competition.

Sulley was bad at being inconspicuous. He stared openly.

[Mara Ackart]

Mara smirked at him as he sat up and held in his pain. He seemed to be on of those tough guys that tried to never let you see him when he was weak. She barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes at him. These types always treaded the line between amusing her and annoying her.

"I said I was sorry didn't I? Anyway I'll just let you get fried next time you're in a bind and I happen to be nearby." Mara said with a definite sarcastic sneer in her voice.

Mara felt his eyes on her but didn't act offended. Why should she? The smirk on her lips from his tough front remained there as she stretched and ended up with a hand on one hip.

"Like anything you see?" she remarked in a candid but clearly amused tone.

[Sulley]

Sulley grunted at her smart remark. So she was impulsive and had a mouth. And a pretty face. And a nice body. And an attractive smirk. And...

"Apologies are immaterial." He stated blankly, frowning because she was watching him check her out. Maybe bold wasn't so great after all. Sulley never liked to feel like his position was being challenged. It made him react in the way an alpha male would approach a cur. "And if you thought I was in a bind then you must be new. It's good to know I've sampled at least one cookie from the new batch."

With another grunt, this one far different inflection from the first, Sulley placed his hands on his knees and pushed himself to his feet, clenching his jaw tightly to keep the sudden urge to puke down. He made a face.

"You'll have to ask me that again in five minutes. I'm still seeing stars."

[Mara Ackart]

Mara waved off his remarks. This guy would never admit he was in trouble even if he was rent in half and crawling around blindly using only his arms. At least thats the vibe that Mara got from him. She stood and looked him over. Aside from the attitude he was actually pretty handsome.

"Boy you're a charmer aren't you? Oh well. Name's Mara. The other name is Slipstream for obvious reasons. Yes I'm new. You must be one of the alphas around here, judging from your personality. Either that or you've just got an ego." Mara quipped.

She proceeded to stretching out her legs. Boosting from a stand still always left her a little sore so she figured she'd stretch out her muscles before it set in so that she could boost away from this guy if he turned out dangerous. Well, dangerous to her anyway. Everyone here was dangerous somehow. The only question was who they were dangerous to.

[Sulley]

The other name is Slipstream for obvious reasons. Of all she said, that was the comment that stuck in his mind. Mara? No. He'd call her Slipstream. The name fit with everything. Not only her mutation, but her personality, her demeanor, and her movements. She seemed to be hiding behind her words, as if she needed to play tough to prove to herself that she could survive. Although that would normally mean she was weak underneath it all, Sulley didn't believe in crap like that. The fact that she even tried to be a survivor proved her will and determination. She was definitely someone he could use.

"All men have egos." Sulley said quietly, not in a submissive manner but with a subtle undertone that said that anyone who thought differently was a moron. He rubbed the side of his neck, bending his head appropriately to stretch the muscles and expose them to the prodding of his hand.

"Where do you stand in this barrier?" Honestly, he didn't want to waste time on some flowery Dreamer who would try to persuade him that this was a better life for mutants. Actually, it was partly true for him. There was nothing for a convict in the real world. But for some reason Sulley couldn't overcome the feeling of being caged. Prison had been different.

He watched her stretch, thinking of how much better he would feel if he followed her example.
Sulley refrained.

[Mara Ackart]

Mara eyed him with one brow raised. Where did she stand in this barrier? The question brought all those responsible for putting her here to her mind. That in turn made her furious. Her smirk warped to a snarl and her eyes flared with pure anger.

"Where do I stand?" she asked as though it was the stupidest thing he could say, "I stand ready to crack open the skulls of the idiots that put me in here. I'd love to break the lot of them in two and then get the hell out of here. You don't strike me as the type that wants to be here too particularly much either."

Mara took a moment to breath and quit her stretches. She knew that normally one would think more than this when making such an alliance but right now she didn't care. He looked strong. She could use him. At least until they got out and she went after the people responsible for Freakopolis.

"Shall we help each other out? I'm not too fond of this place and I'd wager you aren't. We work together until we get out. I'm not gonna say some idealist bull like 'We'll always help each other' or something like that. We work together until one of us decides otherwise. Deal?"

[Sulley]

Sulley's expression remained level throughout her rant, and even though he could have sworn spit from her fury landed on his face, he didn't make a move to wipe it away. It was only his eyes that complimented the woman, noticing the venom behind her words that would have stunned him if he hadn't been so used to seeing such passion behind a cause.

"You've been struck accurately then." He told her, ignoring the twitch in the corner of his mouth that threatened to bring on a smile. Sulley crossed his arms over his chest, sizing Slipstream up. "I'm Sulley. No doubt you've heard about me from Darius. He always points me and Ava out along with himself to help newbies adjust." It easily could have been taken as a brag, but if so then it wasn't done intentionally, not that he cared anyway. Sulley didn't care about a lot of insignificant things.

"Work together? I'm not so sure about that." He strolled, as if thoughtfully, and his path happened to take him in a circle around the woman. "I don't need you as much as you need me, and you know that." His eyes judged her. She was intelligent. "In the case that you did join with me," he reached out and brushed a patch of dust from her shoulder, a repercussion of the earlier explosion, "I would always be at your beck and call, whether or not the favor was returned. Once on my side, always on my side."

He stopped in front of her, head on, feet spread, chin dipped, eyes narrowed, as if challenging.

"You follow me. I'll get you out of here. You betray me, and I'll cut your throat myself." He slowly extended his hand. "Deal?"

[Mara Ackart]

Mara took a moment to absorb what he'd said. She knew deep down that he was right of course. She wasn't a fighter. He'd manage fine without her where as she'd need to find some sort of strong ally or perish. The fact was unpalatable but she wasn't one to balk at such things.

What surprised her more than anything though was the fact that claimed he was a loyal leader. It...made her respect him actually. She hadn't expected him to say that he'd help her no matter what if she joined him. She supposed it showed on her face but she didn't care. She was being frank here.

"I'll admit. You surprise me. You're an interesting guy Sulley." she said and then her voice dropped to a mutter,"Maybe I won't be needing those books after all..."

She studied his hand a moment and then took it.

"Deal. You got yourself a follower. You got my respect but not my trust. Not yet anyway so I'll refrain from making hollow promises of loyalty."

She looked Sulley in the eyes. For better or worse she'd cast her lot in with him. Where that would take her was anyone's guess.

[Sulley]

Sulley's grip on her hand was firm, but he intentionally tried not to hurt her. A power like hers would be coveted by others. He was glad he'd gotten to this little piece of gold first. But he was also surprised at his own willingness to respect her as well. It wasn't often that he saw another as an equal, but she was frightfully close. He'd make sure not to show it.

"Good." Keeping her hand for an extra moment, he was tempted to yank her into him and threaten her again. Women always needed to be reminded, and they seemed like the ones who were most affected when they thought their lives could be on the line. It would be a pleasure. Not only would he have a warm body against his chest, but the thought of the fear that would spike up her spine and bring a warm rush of heat to her cheeks as she quivered in fear---

Sulley hastily ripped his hand away from Slipstream's, looking down at it for a flash as if it were a foreign part of him, and then looked up at her. Hot dog. They'd only known each other for five mintues and she'd already seen him stumble. He hardened his gaze.

"Don't do anything stupid. I don't want to be pulling burrs out of my feet because I stepped too quickly." He was sharp with is words, obviously still recovering from his previous slip. "And..." Sulley blinked stupidly, unaware of what else he had wanted to say. Had he even been planning on saying anything? Words seemed to be the best way to covered everything up. Unfortunately none were coming. So he did the most reasonable thing.

Sulley turned and walked away.