14510/Training Day: Birdgirl vs. Mustardgirl

Training Day: Birdgirl vs. Mustardgirl
Date of Scene:	13 August 2022
Location:	Barker Island, North Hempstead
Synopsis:	Kory kicks Canary's ass. In the most literal way she can. Canary gets her revenge on Kory's ass. Again in the most literal way she can. Sex is offered and gently (though with much embarrassment) refused. The sun is taken on in a task of savage battle.
Cast of Characters:	Black Canary, Starfire

---

Black Canary has posed:
"OK, I think we've each got a good grasp of the other's style," Dinah says after an entertaining romp in the realm of hand-to-hand combat with someone faster and stronger than herself, who's had actual training and can't therefore be casually flicked aside with raw skill.

No, it was hard work to flick Kory aside. And it wasn't so much 'flick aside' as it was 'labour very hard to move Kory about 3mm to one side'.

It was tough work, in short, and Dinah was showing it: out of breath, clearly favouring one arm, and something about her left side seemed to be bugging her after that one unfortunate counter-kick from Kory.

And yet she looks almost rapturous. Like she lives for this.

"So, let me get my breath and we'll do phase two where I learn about experienced fighters with flight as part of their arts."

She rubs her face and releases an exaggerated groan.

"This part is going to be so damned embarrassing."

She winks at Kory, then, and gestures that worthy's way. "I set the rules for the last one: which was basically 'no rules beyond no killing or maiming'. You get to pick the rules for phase 2. Select them with an eye toward a lesson."

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r looks concerned after Black Canary's health. "Thank you for the instruction so far, Dinah. I do need reminding to keep focus. It's just not in my nature to hold back from living in the now, something is always distracting me. Training helps counteract that. But are you sure you're alright to go on? I didn't mean to do you any permanent harm."

Kory's hair lights up into fiery contrails at the tips as she takes flight a few feet off the ground. She taps her chin "If you're still good to go, then here are my rules: Your voice box has been 'damaged' by a toxin. No using your Canary cry. I will weaken my Starbolts as much as I can, but if one tags you, you lose. And we might need to use the Tower medical facilities... You get a 30 second head start, then you must evade my attacks however you like for... how long do you think you can manage? Ten minutes? If you can ground me, you win. Good luck with that. If I can't tag you and you can't stop me after ten minutes, 'reinforcements' arrive and it is a tie."

Black Canary has posed:
"I've had worse," Dinah says, dismissing the concern. "It's all part of the trade. You get hurt sometimes, and this is minor. Two days and I won't even remember it."

Then the bravado.

"Besides, you'll need *something* to help you take me down!"

Yep. Sounds like she's accepting the rules.

"No Cry. I get tagged, I lose. Thirty seconds to flee. Then it's escape/evasion for ten minutes. If I can ground you I win, otherwise draw."

Repeating it isn't just confirmation. It's a vocal reflex used to give her time to scan the surroundings and plan.

"When you say 'no Cry' you mean the attack or all vocal abilities?" she asks, further stalling while her mind races at the tactical options. (The giveaway is that she's not looking at Kory while talking to her. Her eyes are scanning everywhere around her.) "Like can I make noises?"

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r grins a bit sharklike at Dinah's bravado... she raises up into the air as the other woman looks around and guages her options, ten feet, then twenty. "I mean the scream attack, primarily. You may use it for sounds no louder than regular spoken conversation. The toxin has given you a terrible sore throat you see."

Star closes her eyes "Time starts now. 30...29...28..." As she counts down she's focused on listening with enhanced hearing to Dinah's heartbeat and any footsteps she may take.

Black Canary has posed:
It's awfully hard to follow heartbeats or footsteps when someone is playing a truly irritating saxophone quartet. Like the worst hipster sax quartet conceivable playing nonstop. And Canary doesn't even have the decency to giggle her position away as the saxophones play around Kori like the players are standing right next to her. Up in the sky.

In the end the only sound that Kori can hear is, fifteen seconds in, is a light sploosh somewhere in the vicinity of the docks. Then another sploosh, slightly heavier, more in the area that has the sea reeds in clusters along the shore.

When the 30 ends, Dinah is nowhere to be seen, and two rings of waves are near the end of their lifespan out at the ocean, being quickly stifled by the swell.

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r jerks in shock when saxophones play all around her. She didn't know that Dinah could do that! What a versatile power! She winces as her hearing is superhuman and she was focusing on it when that cacophony sounded.

When time is up Kory's eyes open and she ascends up to a hundred feet. She has enhanced senses but not to something like Superman's level so she can't just scan the world to find Dinah. She follows the clues over to the water.

First over to the smaller ripple where she will peer down for any disturbance. Then over at the larger ripple. At both locations she will use her laser eye beams to shoot the weakest possible version of her energy downward in a series of concentric circles. It's still a laser-eye beam, so it can cause a painful burn from the radiation and heat, but the blast effect is basically nil, a good thing since blasts are amplified underwater.

Kory waits one minute to see if there is any reaction to that.

Black Canary has posed:
~Well, shit...~ Canary thinks to herself from her little place of concealment on the patch of mud under the pier, right up against the top. ~That would have sucked if I'd been there.~

It's time to be a mouse, not a bird. Dinah freezes, barely breathing, willing her heartbeat to a near standstill as she watches and waits for Koriand'r to act.

~She'll do the rookie mistake.~ Canary confidently asserts this to herself, mostly to reassure herself she's not in way out of her league. ~She's got fighting down pat. She's good at it and is fast and strong. But tactics are hopefully going to be her weak point. Book-learned but not field-honed.~

She gets ready to take advantage of youthful inexperience and also begins to resign herself to drawing, not winning as she'd originally planned...

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r sees no reaction and pauses her spray of energy from her eyes, thinking for a couple of quick seconds with her head tilted to the side.

Then she smiles and.... just waits. Hanging there in the air. Perfectly still. Hearing is unreliable, Kory ignores it. Eagle sharp eyes watching for every motion. Every unnatural flicker of water. Each time so much as a fish makes a splash a laser eye beam pulses downward at the precise spot. Her accuracy with those beams is uncanny.

She hasn't had a search challenge this good in a long time, not since some of the specialized war games on Tamaran. And those always involved fliers. This is new.

Black Canary has posed:
Well that tears it. She's not going away and Canary is trapped beneath the pier, a very tenuous position that could be discovered in an instant. She really needed to be under that water, but ... not when it's being exploded.

Canary wracks her brains before she has an idea. It's desperate. But so is her situation. She thinks back to the emergency systems that responded to her Cry-amplified challenge.

What did they sound like again?

In desperation she makes the sound of the Titan Tower alarm siren. She can't project it; that would break the rules for volume. But Kory is high enough in the air she may mistake it for being a trick of the distance.

~Just look toward the tower, orange one!~ Dinah prays. ~Maybe even fly in that direction for a bit!~

And then the sound of the Titan Tower's intruder alarm sounds. From Canary's throat.

~If this doesn't work I'm screwed.~

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r's eyes widen at the sound of the intruder alarm... she almost falls for it.

But Canary has just minutes ago demonstrated the ability to make sounds other than the famous cry. Custom tailored sounds.

Her mind racing. What are the odds of someone invading the tower at this precise moment, versus the odds of a sound controller trying to trick her? Pretty damn low for the former, essentially guaranteed for the latter.

Wait. Could Canary's sounds project through water with perfect modulation to adjust for the change in sound from water to air? Perhaps. The woman is clearly a master at her power's use.

But the odds just went up that she is actually above the water somewhere. But likely still near the water. Kory's eyes shift over to the only significantly sized object, the pier.

She smirks and flies down a bit lower, perhaps down to 50 feet, but angled far to the side of the pier so she can see underneath.

"Got you." she whispers before a scattering of low powered eye beams shoot at the lump of mud she can see, which just so happens to be person sized. They are aimed above, below, to each side, and right directly centered at the mass of mud.

Black Canary has posed:
Canary knew it hadn't worked the moment Kory's head only partially turned before turning back.

~I've got about ten seconds. Tops.~

She evaluates running out of cover and just moving unpredictably. Rejected as not sustainable for the time required.

1...

She looks hastily around her place of concealment.

2...

She considers a slithering slide into the water. Rejects it. Considers bare-facing it and remaining in place. Rejects it.

~She's not stupid. Never assume the opposition is stupid.~

3... 4... 5...

Proving her point, Kory descends to 50 and opens the distance to get a good view under the pier. Her cover would be blown in no time.

6... 7... 8...

Then the desperate move. Before Kory could get that clear view, Dinah forces herself up, fingers curled between the slats of the pier, legs spread and poised against the pilings, pushing herself desperately at the top of the pier's walkway.

~God, don't let my hair dangle!~ she prays as she clings, forearms and core screaming in agony at the unnatural plank hold.

9... 10...

And all Hell breaks loose beneath her as Kory saturates where she was with eyebeam fire. Canary suppresses the cry of fear that even the low-powered eyebeams elicit when they do their shock and awe routine peppering where she'd been only seconds before.

~Let her come closer to check out if I'm OK. She'll have just a soft enough heart to do that...~

Starfire has posed:
Starfire is in battle mindset mode, the challenge and excitement caused by such a skillful opponent making her work so hard to win keeps Kory's tender heart at bay.

She knows her eye beams at their lowest power will not *truly* debilitate, they will merely be very painful like a stovetop burn. She knows Dinah is a tough girl who can take it, and will probably stubbornly refuse medical help.

After the fight is won Koriand'r will be all apologies, but for now, the master tactician has fully engaged, which was not quite true in their earlier spar. One of her strengths is that shift in personality from bubbly caring mustardy-lover to the cunning, patient and sideways-viewing war master.

Kory does not fly closer. The lump of mud has vanished. Her eye beams could not have done that much damage to it. She saw no ripple in the water. The answer is obvious where the bird-themed superheroine is.

Kory waits her out. How long can she hold herself up under there? The minutes tick down approaching the ten minute mark. Kory begins to be slightly worried. But the safe path is to go for the ranged win and only risk a draw. Acceptable. Closing and risking a loss. Unacceptable.

The instant she sees Dinah drop, if she does, more laser blasts.

Black Canary has posed:
~Dammit, you heartless bitch!~ Canary immediately feels bad for this, but those are the first thoughts she has when she recognizes that Kory isn't coming in to check on her health.

~She's good. She's very good. And I'm...~

She pauses the mental monologue to take stock. Forearms are on fire, but still holding strong. She was proud of her grip endurance, and justly so. Similarly her abs were on fire, along with her gluts, from flattening herself on top in a reverse plank, but again, she has endurance aplenty there.

No, her problem was down further below. Her legs. Yes her thighs were muscular. Yes she had more endurance in them than likely any other muscle in her body.

But right now they were spread wide and cramping of the adductors was a very real threat. And if that happens, she's screwed.

Canary grits her teeth and wishes her watch was visible. ~When is this ten minutes going to be up!?~

The adductors start their pre-cramp twitching. She's got maybe another minute before she drops and gets lasered.

Well, shit.

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r waits... and waits... and waits...

She becomes increasingly more impressed with Dinah's incredible strength and endurance. That must be agony for her, surely?

There is a shifting sound from under the pier as out of Kory's view Canary's legs begin to give out and the woman is too concentrated on holding on to nullify every little sound she makes. Not that she's making very many at all.

Just as the final seconds tick down and Kory is resigned to a tie, Dinah's legs finally fail her in that cramp-causing hold, and she falls. Kory's eyes flash, reacting immediately. A painful blast right on Canary's bottom... just precisely when the timer hits 10 minutes.

Star immediately swoops down to rescue Dinah, whose muscles must be aching fiercely, not a good condition for swimming. A splash and a heartbeat later Kory has dove underwater, wrapped her arms under the sinking woman in a bridal carry before she has even started trying to swim, arcing through the sea to burst up and out of the surface with a spray, fire blazing from her contrails with the speed she put on.

And now the cutesy Kory is back. "Dinah, are you alright? I am sorry I put you through that! How is your bottom? Um. I only tagged you right as time ended, so... I'm not sure how we count that?"

Still flying and carrying the woman, she heads back to land.

Black Canary has posed:
"Yeah, I'm alright." Dinah's lie is exposed almost immediately as a groan escapes her lips shortly after the coughing up of a lung from the water that went down a wrong pipe. "You blast like a three-year old punches."

So she's a bit garrulous when she's been blasted and dunked and, probably most importantly, lost a fight.

Something she owns up to right away.

"You won, I lost," she says as water streams off of her in a miniature waterfall into the ground below. "This was escape and evasion and if we're yammering over microseconds, I didn't do my job. Call it a marginal victory if you like, but it doesn't change the fact it was a victory."

She sighs, then winces as she feels a muscle scream at the abuse it's had to put up with until it reached its quitting point. "Ow..." she mutters before continuing. "This was a training exercise. You don't learn if you're not honest with yourself. I used the wrong tactic against a flyer. I paid the price. That's why we set this up after all."

Beat.

"You mentioned something about a medical facility?" She's trying to hide the hope in that voice. She's failing.

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r giggles at Dinah's insult "Three year olds on Earth must be very strong. But those were my weakest possible eye blasts."

She pauses "At least, I think so? Diana says I have more control over my power than I think I do." Kory blushes, then, "She believes in me."

"Concerned, she asks "Do you think I made the win/loss conditions too heavily weighted in my favor? I admit, I am... not quite sure what the correct tactic *would* have been? As is, you lasted extremely well against a foe with superior firepower and range, with your own powers minimized. I was impressed by your use of sonics, by the way. I did not realize your use of sound was quite so masterful."

Kory nods, "I will take you to the medbay." Intending to drop Dinah off just on shore, she instead carries her all the way to the Titan's Tower, in through an aerial port, waiting the required short time for authorization, then flies her to the medbay despite any protests of being able to walk. Only once there will she let her down carefully and with assistance if needed.

As Dinah makes use of the advanced healing facilities, which include highly quick-acting easily applied anaethetics as well as energy baths that promote cellular regeneration, Kory comments "You may have technically lost that round but you impressed me very much with your skill and endurance. I find competence quite attractive. When our training is complete do you want to have sex with me?" The question is so matter of fact and blunt she could almost be discussing the weather.

Tamaraneans.

Black Canary has posed:
"This is why we do cross-training. There are other approaches I coudl hyave used that would have rendered you perhaps less capable."

The regeneration baths make Canary's flesh feel like it's crawling with spiders while they do their magic and she squirms, earning her a stern red light of disapproval from the machinery. She forces herself still.

"I thought stealth was the way to go. I underestimated your intellect and reasoning ability, thinking you'd be confused by two water targets while I was on land. That was a strategic failure. I could have gone under and just tried to evade blasts, using the explosions to disguise movement. I could have tried a cross-land route that put things overhead that interfered with your blasts and your aim."

She shrugs, which earns her another baleful red light of disapproval that she ignores.

"And as to fair, nobody fights fair. If you're in a fair fight you didn't plan your strategy correctly. And sometimes you just don't have a choice. You're dunked into an unfair fight and you have to do your best. Again, training. Sometimes you just have to lose in the way that hurts the enemy the worst. As lots of soldiers found out in war."

Beat.

Canary faux-glowers at Kory. "Not that I'm ever going to forgive you for this. You will rue the day!" And that's when the giggling takes over, Canary incapable of continuing that fierceness.

Giggling that converts to choking and coughing (MANY MORE RED LIGHTS OF DISAPPROVAL) when Kory asks her question. Beet red, after recovering, Canary stares, wide-eyed at Kory.

"Uh ..."

She starts, then stops.

"Uh ..."

A bit repetitive.

"Um ..."

Now some minor diversity.

"Thing is ..." she starts to explain. Then stops. Decides on tact.

"I'm ... uh ... flattered. But ..." She thinks fiercely, trying to plot a course out of this quagmire. "... I usually like to have a few dates and get to know a person before relationships get physical."

Her course fails and drops her, likely, in quicksand.

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r listens to the list of potential tactics that Black Canary recites as valid strategies against her flying. She resolves to work on ways to counter those very tactics.

She gives a little self-pleased half-smile when Canary promises her eternal vengeance for making her lose. Which blossoms into a full fledged bright smile of shiny impossibly perfect teeth when Canary flounders.

At first in response to the hesitation and panic exhibited by the older woman, Kory peers at Dinah "That is a very interesting shade of red your face is making. I did not know humans could go that color."

Then she clarifies "I am not talking about a relationship. I am talking about sex. On Tamaran love has nothing to do with 'making love'. I gather that is not the case here, but I am not bound by human customs, though some are fun."

She finally has a bit of mercy "Dinah, you can decline and I will not be offended. If you are not interested in 'getting physical' with me for a bit of post-battle relaxation, I do not mind. Merely say so. On the other hand, if you should choose to, I would be pleased."

"In any case, I am not looking for a relationship with you. Just some fun. I already have a girlfriend."

Koriand'r stretches first one arm and then the other up and behind her with an arch to her back not even remotely possible for humans. "How is the healing coming? Feeling better?"

Black Canary has posed:
Well that bit of mercy heads off the hyperventilation, doesn't it? Dinah's face returns to normal human flesh tones.

"Well, ah, I'll decline then," she says. "I..."

How does one explain to the alien?

One doesn't if one doesn't want to get sucked into a quagmire of endlessly embarrassing explanations.

One changes the topic.

"...'m feeling much better already," she decides to go with after the pause. "We've got some weird kit like this up at the Watchtower but it seems to work differently. See? More reasons to value exchanges!"

It seems the reputation Starfire has is, in fact, warranted. A fact Dinah files away.

"And this whole thing so far has been quite the learning experience. Both in the working sense and in the personal sense. I'm glad I was selected for this."

Beat.

"Now, though, we need to go to phase three. I teach you some ground moves for when (not if) you find yourself grounded and needing to fight. Do you have some kind of simulation room that can strip you of powers temporarily like the Watchtower has for Supes?"

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r in fact does not seem to be put off by Dinah's rejection of the offer, perhaps a momentary disappointment that she won't be getting frisky with the pretty and skilled heroine, but then she's moved on.

"Excellent! Again, I am sorry to have caused you pain... "

And then a teasing twinkle in her eye "...but not sorry that I beat you."

Nodding, "it is good to cross train with you. I too have learnt much. And Dinah, if you should ever need my help, for anything, call me. Seriously, anything. I get quite bored in the Tower between missions."

She appears ready and eager to go on to the next phase, though she knows it is going to be probably even more painful for her than phase two was for Canary. "We have a simulation room called the Danger Room. It can suppress powers, yes. I do not like the feeling very much... but for training it is only fair that I acquiesce."

She leads the way to the Danger Room.

Black Canary has posed:
"Yeah, I'm afraid you're probably not going to enjoy phase III. I've been mulling over in my head what the difference is likely to be between your flying style and a grounded style and I think I've found it."

Dinah pauses dramatically.

"Gravity."

She waits for the applause, eyes twinkling with humour.

"No, seriously. As a flyer gravity is subtly your enemy. Everything you do has to involve a subtle fight with gravity to keep you mobile. Whereas for me, gravity is my best friend. I use gravity to get edges. And today I'm going to teach you to learn to embrace gravity as you would a lover."

And suddenly she remembers the very frank invitation from earlier, flushes, and starts coughing.

"So, be prepared for a few bruises until you get the knack for using gravity instead of fighting it. But once you do, and once you incorporate that into practice with your flying routines, you'll be unstoppable."

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r nods and smiles in serene acceptance that her experience with phase III will be less than pleasant. Probably highly embarrassing. She's very skilled, but with her extreme advantages of strength and speed and flight nullified... Canary is just better. More skilled, more experienced.

It would be like fighting Diana in a way. Even at Kory's full power, the Amazon is just her superior. Starfire is not a non-threat, but the outcomes is decided. The only thing up to her is what will she learn from them. And on that, she is prepared to do her best, and be grateful to train under a master.

She giggles a little at Dinah's joke, but otherwise is listening seriously.

At Canary's pause and blush, Kory is teasing gaze and all teethy grin again. "So I should submit to gravity's dominant command, is that what you're saying?" She winks.

The Danger Room is entered by the two of them. Kory hesitates, winces in anticipation, then looks upwards. "Computer, activate power dampening for Koriand'r, voice authorization Star-one-one."

A subtle change of the light coloration as an energy field is activated attuned just to nullify Starfire's abilities. She wilts, visibly. "X'Hal, that has a kick."

Then she takes a deep breath, centers herself - not as easily as normal - and turns to Canary and says "Alright, I'm ready for the kicking of my backside to commence."

Black Canary has posed:
The ensuing lesson is a lesson in patience. In humility. In using gravity to augment attacks and defences instead of avoiding it. In Kory landing on her ass as many times as Dinah can manage it.

Because while Dinah doesn't mind losing in training when she learns things, she does like to get her own back in pain. And she figures Kory has to hit the deck on her backside at least 15 times to equal the boot she took from the Tamaranian.

As the lesson progresses (in which Kori *does* learn tricks she can incorporate into her fighting routines that might even give her an edge over fellow flyers), Dinah always seems to a) find a way to dump the Orange girl on her ass, and b) proceed to do so.

This isn't to say Kori doesn't get her own licks in. Dinah is good. Dinah is very good. Without powers Dinah outclasses Kory. But Kory is good herself, and there's always little opportunities for even the less-skilled to land blows unexpectedly as patterns overlap awkwardly and favour the weaker side for a change.

Thus by the end of it, with Dinah's focus on dumping Kory almost exclusively (almost!) on one portion of her anatomy, Dinah comes out of the training with a few bruises of honour of her own.

And a wicked grin as she finally dumps Kory for the last time.

"OK, I think the score has been settled now," she says, chuckling. "And I think you've learned what I meant. Maybe in the future we can practice sticking hands drills so you can learn the fine art of predicting a human opponent's moves."

She offers a hand (again!) to help Kory up. "How's your butt?"

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r begins to understand as the training goes on that Dinah really really enjoys holding grudges.

She learned a lot, and to an expert's eye Kory improved even just over the time they spent knocking her to the ground onto her bottom. She made Black Canary pull out new tricks every time, for one ability Koriand'r has that isn't nullified by the energy field is a flawless memory and a warrior princess's adaptibility, which Dinah saw exhibited during Phase II. If Kory sees a move once, she doesn't fall for it again. That doesn't mean she can't still be beaten by it, but it does mean she is always getting better.

At the end she accepts the hand up and says "Sore. Like my pride. It is a good thing I already lost most of it when I was a slave. Computer, deactivate power dampening."

A pause as Star feels solar energy begin flooding her system again, her regeneration already soothing out the bruises gained. She sighs in pleasure. "Let's go outside, I need to soak in the sun's rays. Do you want to join me on the Tower's roof for some sunbathing? We have some deck chairs set up there. "

Her lip quirks. "No sex, I promise."

Black Canary has posed:
"No sex? So ... Tim's not here is he?" Dinah says that with a flat face, though her eyes are dancing with mischief. "Pity. Well, sunlight's great too, I guess. ... I'll have to get the swimsuit out of the saddlebags, though."

She came prepared, it seems.

"Not that I'm ashamed of you seeing ... all of me," she hastily adds. "More out of propriety in case someone else comes up onto the roof."

Starfire has posed:
Koriand'r giggles "Oh, if you are into threesomes I am sure we could get him up here just as quick as a call to his communicator... he might even break a new personal sprinting record."

"I am sure you shall look glorious in a swimsuit. As do I. We are both 'hot babes' as Beast Boy likes to say."

"Dinah, the offer of complications-free sex remains open if you ever change your mind. But I shall not mention it again unless you do. Now let's go expose most of our skin to the elements. Meet you up there."

She flies to the roof, leaving with that salacious phrase said in the most innocent of voices. But she's just an alien, she doesn't know better, right?

Black Canary has posed:
Dinah nervously runs her fingers through her hair at the repeated offer, but says nothing. And it seems a very short time between her going to fetch her saddlebags and her arriving on the roof of the tower dressed in her bikini.

The frilly, barely-there bikini in, of course, canary yellow.

"OK, let's get to work doing some serious sunning!" she says as she arrives. "I'm ready for my solar workout!"

Starfire has posed:
Starfire had no need to change into a swimsuit, The entire purpose of her skimpy costume is ostensibly so that she can soak up as many rays of the sun as possible at all times.

She also just likes to be nearly naked.

When Canary arrives, Kory is already luxuriating on one of the deck chairs in the sun, letting her tank fill back up to brimming. She giggles at the other woman's enthusiasm and points to the other chair set up next to hers. "We'll show that sun who's boss around here!"