deercountry | You're The Best Around : Karate War Training Montage Log

[One might see Maul hovering around the edges of all the various training going on. He's not participating for a very good reason. Maul was trained that when he got into a fight, the goal was to kill the other person. Fighting just for fun or in sparring matches is something he's not really gotten used to. Much as it would be interesting to participate, he knows the chances of him getting carried away and accidentally permanently maiming or even killing someone while fighting against another person are very high. Hell, he managed to kill a Jedi back in his own universe with just one good kick from his metal prosthetics. So no, he's not gonna risk that.

But still he's curious and so he watches things with an impassive face. At points, he's even munching bits of dried meat the way a human being might be munching popcorn while watching something interesting going on in front of them. If asked for his opinion, he'll give a frank, blunt assessment of how he thinks the other person is doing. Usually, that involves something along the lines of telling them how much they suck. If asked to spar, he'll shake his head.]

I don't think that's a good idea. [He's not looking to add to his murder count right now.] But if you want to learn a different method to help expand your fighting repertoire or how to do something like staff fight, I would be happy to oblige.

[Weirdly enough, for all that Maul is a psychopathic Sith Lord who has trouble interacting with people on just a social level, he's a surprisingly good teacher when it comes to passing along the knowledge he already possesses to others.]

[Johnny saw Maul observing the class and had to admit he was a little surprised to see him here. He didn't exactly like Maul, the asshole had killed him on his first day here. But after the thing with the frogs and their last conversation on the network there was a part of him that felt kind of sorry for the prick. He didn't know much about the world Maul was from but not knowing how to fight for anything but to kill- That fucking sucked and he toll that could take on soldiers. He wasn't one, of course, but his mentor had been. And while he had a lot of hate for Kreese he could at least understand that much about him.

Which is why he let's Sayo and Paul take lead on the rest of the lesson as he moves to join up with Maul.]

I'm not one for using weapons much, but sure.

Why don't we trade a lesson for a lesson. Maybe a couple of old dogs can learn some new tricks.

[Maul isn't sure he liked Johnny all that much but that is par on course for most of the residents of Trench. Most people don't like him and Maul is fine with that. Besides, he figures that they're even after Maul had killed Johnny for insulting him. The great thing about people coming back to life here is that murder tends to calm Maul down when it comes to dealing with people he otherwise might want to kill on a daily basis. Doing it once gets it out of his system in a way.

Maul nods, brightening up a little and no longer looking ill at ease, although he does look curiously at Johnny with the use of the word 'old'. He's not very good at judging the ages of human beings to begin with. Johnny looks older than him but he acts about seventeen most of the time, so Maul has absolutely no idea how old this guy is supposed to be. Maybe he'll ask about it later if it is still on his mind.]

How much do you know about staff fighting?

[Johnny was honestly pretty prickly and his friend group was pretty small outside of a few high school buddies and his students. He didn't really hold a grudge over the whole dying thing but it still sucked and it probably wouldn't stop him doing it again.

But he did know what it was liked to be disliked and treated the way Maul did. Which maybe bought him a few points out of sympathy. One day he'd figure out how he actually felt about the guy.

Still he feels a bit of a smile come up when the other guy brightens up.]

Probably enough to get by against someone who doesn't know shit about what they're doing in a fight.

My sensei taught me a little bit when I was doing lessons but it was never really the focus.

[Considering one of Johnny's students whipped his staff across the room and knocked over a trophy case his skills probably weren't great. Penis Breath or Mitch wasn't his best student but it still said enough.]

That has always been my specialty. Many know how to fight against swords and even traditional lightsabers. But fighting against a saberstaff? That is something else entirely.

[He goes off and grabs two wooden staffs. Looks like Maul came prepared. He tosses one over to Johnny, holding his own in his left hand right in the middle for the moment. He goes into the usual fighting stance Maul has when beginning a fight and gestures for Johnny to make the first move.]

Go on. I want to see what I'm working with here.

[As Sailor Moon, her weapon of choice is a staff. She was beyond capable with it.

As Usagi Tsukino, however, she was lucky she didn't smack herself in the face just being near it. She looked up when she heard Maul and lifted a brow at him.]

How many times do I have to say we're not sparring? [She retorted, moving the staff back into the weapons case before going back over to sit with him. Maul had, perhaps not surprisingly, asked her a couple times to spar with him as Sailor Moon. It always got a resolute "not a chance" from the blonde.]

Do I want to know what kind of meat this is? [She didn't wait for an answer before she plucked a piece of jerky from him and bit in.]

Well, I thought asking one more time wouldn't hurt.

[Maul's hoping to wear down his wife by sheer annoyance at this point really. He thinks this is a great idea even with the very high probability Sailor Moon would thoroughly kick his ass.

Maul glances down at the dried meat and gives it a sniff.]

Hmmmm, frog I think.

[It took a lot of them to get enough meat off of to make it worthwhile to dry out for food but Maul is fond enough of the taste to make it worthwhile.]

[Wearing someone down with your personality and annoyance is HER specialty, Maul.

She idly sniffs the meat as well before taking another bite.]

Huh, never had frog before, I don't think?

Not bad.

So, is this going to make you turn your cult into a martial arts school so you can participate next time?

Savage is good at catching them. We both dry the meat and spice it to our tastes.

[You know what they say. The longer a couple spends together, the more they start acting like one another. He shakes his head.]

Doubtful. I was taught when you fight, you fight to kill. And that's what I've taught my followers. That's why I didn't enter myself. Too much of a chance of getting carried away.

[Even if he didn't kill someone, the chances of permanently maiming someone were extremely high. Better not to take that risk at all. Then he smiles a little.]

Besides, do you really think I'd let myself be put under the tutelage of any of these buffoons?

[He's got too much pride and arrogance for that.]

You? Tastes? [She grins nudging him with her elbow as she takes another bite.]

Oh, guess it's a good thing I don't ever fight your cult, then. [Because while she does hold back in fights against clearly possessed mortals and humans, she absolutely will kill in self-defense if she must.] Besides, if your cult sees you lose to me they might become MY cult and I don't want one. [She grins even bigger.]

And Sasuke is not a buffoon. Neither is Amaterasu. The other two... [She makes a noise.] I mean, I don't know the other guy and Johnny is... I mean at least TRY to be nice. You clearly came here to watch.

Well, one cannot subsist on straight meat alone. You need some other flavors now and then.

[And he's discovered quite a number of new spices here in Trench. Her elbow barely reaches his waist and Maul grins back a little.]

Now, now, I'm not that foolish. And you'd hardly know what to do with a bunch of people following you around and obeying your orders.

[For all that it was a bit alarming Maul has a cult, he actually hasn't done anything harmful with them. He may be power-hungry but he's also aware the cult is not a toy and there are a lot of responsibilities that come with leading people, no matter how big of a group they are made up of.

He snorts softly at the mention of Johnny and Terry.]

I am never nice. You already know this. [Well, he could be, but those times were far and few in between.]

[She pauses and then realizes he doesn't know her future, then again, she's not shared, and he's not asked. She smiles at the idea. But no, he's right, even now, the idea of having a whole planet turning to her, looking to her. Her gaze goes distant, thinking of the future that awaits her.]

I know it much better than you think. [Not even a planet. Just the Senshi alone, willing to die and protect her, she gave so few orders but she was their princess and future queen nonetheless.] You don't give me enough credit.

You are and can be. You choose not to be. [But she wonders, if people knew him as she did, if he allowed himself such a thing, if he'd feel even more powerless, so many to protect and unable to in a world like this.]

Then enlighten me. What do you know about ordering people around? [Now he's genuinely curious as to what Usagi means by all those cryptic statements.]

If people were nice to me, I would be to them. But they usually are not. [Maul's personality puts off a lot of folks, or like Johnny, they start off on entirely the wrong foot with him right from the very start. First impressions tended to stick with Maul and he had ended up with lifelong grudges because of them before.]

[She looks around and even though no one is paying attention to them, she bites her lip, feeling uneasy at the idea of revealing that particular truth where anyone can just hear her.] I will tell you at a later time if you remember to ask. [Is all she says.] But that said, I have plenty of practice ordering YOU around, don't I? [She pokes him in the ribs.]

That's not how that works. [She moved to wrap her arm around Maul's cuddling him and resting her cheek on his shoulder.] We talked about how you like playing the monster, so people expect what you've conditioned.

Edited 2022-06-14 05:24 (UTC)

[He nods silently, making a mental note to do just that. It seems like there is a story there Usagi might not want everyone to hear, so he'll use discretion right now instead of pressing the matter.

Then he scowls and playfully swats her hand away.]

Only because I've learned you are a pain if I ignore what you tell me.

[So it's better just for him to give in. That scowl doesn't go away when she talks about him playing the part of the monster.]

When I let my guard down, people take advantage of my vulnerability. I won't have that happen again and again.

That's because I'm right. [She boops him on the nose because she can and she is by no means terrified of Maul.]

You don't have to let down your guard to still be a decent person, you know. Which, you're doing, and I'm proud of you, but I think you can do more than what you've been doing.

[If only everyone saw what Usagi did in him, than no one would ever be afraid of Maul anymore. But too many only see what is on the surface and so they remain terrified of him.]

I'm already doing as much as I can. Don't ask me to do more.

[He says gruffly. Really, he's been pushed out of his comfort zone a lot in the past three months or so and it makes him feel like there's a layer of skin that's been peeled back, exposing raw flesh that others could use to hurt him if they got near.]

You're not, though. [She knows if she pushes or points out he's doing the bare minimum that he'll get defensive and regress because when he feels attacked he lashes out. So she sighs and stops pushing, for now. Maul moves at a snail's pace as it is, forcing him would just make him dig in his heels.

It was deeply frustrating and not all that surprising when people gave up. But Usagi has a unique sense of scope. She's seen the good he can do.]

But I will leave it at that for now.

[He's fully expecting another lecture and is surprised in the best way when Usagi just lets it go. Maul is grateful she's not pushing him right now. Too often he feels like people expect too much of him too fast, that he's somehow magically come to the conclusion overnight that he needs to become a saint. But that's just not how this process works.

He wraps Usagi up in a hug and presses a brief kiss to the top of her head before he rests his chin there.]

Give it time. I'm still improving day by day.

[She's in no mood for a lecture, certainly not in front of all these people geared up on fighting and competition. She does blink in surprise at the sudden hug and kiss.

Sure, SHE'S physically affectionate at all hours of the day but for Maul, outside of her house, he was VERY hesitant to show physical affection.]

I know. [She also knows people wish he did it faster.] You've come a really long way.

[He's getting a little better at being able to show his emotions. Plus, they're in the middle of people training to fight. Maul will kick the ass of anyone who mocks him for being affectionate with his wife.]

Thank you for saying that. I often have many doubts about what I'm doing and if I'm doing it properly. But I am trying.

[A small, amused smile comes to his face as he makes a joke.]

After all, it's been almost three months since I killed or maimed anyone.

I know you're trying. [She smiled well aware of where he was and where he is now.]

Hopefully we get you to a point where killing or maiming is your very last option. [She bit her lip.] Because I hope you understand, I do know that it is an option. It's not my first action. It's... it's the last possible action I go to, but I go to it. [Pretty sure even the Jedi resort to it when they absolutely must.]

I've had others tell me that as well. I'm not sure I like it.

[Mainly because that means changing a very core instinct that he's possessed for a very long time now, almost his entire life. Undoing or modifying that part of himself is going to be an uphill battle and he almost doesn't want to bother with it all.]

Yes, you have told me as much before.

[He knows if Usagi didn't believe he could be redeemed, he'd spend his entire time here as a squid with brief moments of returning to the beach before she obliterated him again. She sees something in him that can be redeemed unlike others she's dealt with in the past. That means a lot to Maul.]

You don't have to like it, but you are strong enough to do it, even if you don't believe you're strong enough.

[She reached out and took his claw into her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.] I've also told you that you don't have to do this alone.

[He doesn't say anything to the first part. No, Maul truly doesn't believe he's strong enough to go without immediately resorting to killing as an option. That's just not how his instincts are made up. But he'll try for the sake of others who believe in him.

He gives her hand a gentle squeeze back.]

I know. And I've been trying to rely on others when I need help even if I don't like it much.

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You're The Best Around : Karate War Training Montage Log

Darth Maul | OTA

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