Forums » General Roleplay » [1x1 ft. Zoe] Stronger Every Day

The day had turned to a partially-cloudy overcast as rush hour approached, clouds threatening with some reluctance to rain upon the folks below. Gray skyscrapers mashed alongside grayer apartments and smaller businesses, towering into the sky above like probing, defiant middle fingers to the heavens. Morose persons going about their various orders of business, completely engrossed in their personal lives. Beggars, druggies, and thugs populated the less-reputable areas, such as the one where a metal latched door violently swung open, steam curling into the cold not-quite-spring evening air.

"Another stupid job..." muttered a young woman as she slammed the rear entrance to the China Buffet behind her, tearing off and tossing the apron she'd been wearing into the trash along with her hairnet and gloves. "'You scare customers'" she grumbled, half-mimicking the owner's broken English, "'and you poor cook too, burn everything!' Like that was my fault!"

A moment was given to contemplate her own words before turning and kicking the unoffending trashcan. "Stupid meanies," was about all the lady got out before turning back to the alley. A dark, cool crosspath between streets, not the sort of place a lone woman would be venturing normally, but that mattered not to Revy - not with her "gifts".

Perhaps it was time to move on again after spending several months in this dark, foreboding pit of society. After all, she'd saved up enough money for decent bus fare - she wouldn't even have to hitch a ride this time! Which was always a pain, especially with her facial features standing out like they did. Even so, a pleasant smile and a few well-placed giggles got her all kinds of odd jobs; more importantly, it gave her money under the table, money she needed to feed herself without stealing. Well, not too much, at least.

So her mind was transfixed upon the predicament of cash that she registered the rapid scuffling of feet as the faintest warning. Sure, it could be someone who was in a hurry - just as likely that it was a serial murderer coming to do horrible things to her. No sense in being caught off-guard; she let her senses loose, eyes relaxing as her mind stretched out, giving her a sort of mental cartography of the area around her as surely as if she had eyes on each side of her head - only better.

Zoe sighed as she left her job, a bit annoyed with how a few people stare in amazement at how bright red her hair is and asking if it was a dye job. It really got old. She popped her knuckles and started heading home when she heard her name fall form a male's lips and quickly spun around to see about two guys running towards her and she saw a large van that was for sure to have the rest of their crew. "Shit." She mumbled then started to run as fast as her thin legs could go.

She ran for about twenty minutes until she saw an alley not far away and made the quick turn and ran straight into another girl that she couldn't get a good look in the darkness but she didn't have a chance because then they were surrounded, about ten people in total around them. "You have to be kidding!" She growled as she jumped to her feet and blocking the first strike towards her, not paying attention to the girl that have been put in a situation that she does not belong in.

The whole thing was rather surreal; one moment she was glancing around, trying to find the source of the footsteps, and the next a whole bunch of thugs spilled out from an intersecting alley. Bad enough that they were chasing after a girl who had to be a couple years younger than Revy, but her sudden stop and glancing around got the attention of a few of them. "Hey, 'ere's another one!" "Look't them scars" "Must be one of Z's" "Yeah, only she'd take a chick that ugly."

Despite already being offended, there was no time to snipe rude comments back as the nearest banger, armed with a Louisville Slugger, came straight for Revy, swinging his weapon in a downward arc at her. Her mind kicked into overdrive, calculating her next move down to the last moment before the bat would connect... and disappeared. Said bat whiffed through empty air before being abruptly yanked from the owner's hands, Revy now behind the attacker as she delivered a twisting knee to the kidneys to put the punk down.

Part of her wanted to reach for the crazy button immediately, but she stopped herself, knowing it would take too long to get it started. "Fine," she conceded, letting the blunt weapon rest on her shoulder, "y'all wanna party, then BRING IT!" A wild cackling laugh got more of their attention as she stared down the mob that outnumbered her easily 10:1 but remaining defiant, a mad state taking over her eyes. It was as much of an invitation as any.

Zoe didn't noticed the girl behind her much, she was dodging hits and knocking the guys off their feet. She moved quickly, though most of the guys didn't have weapons, one of them had a bat. They came at her, swinging the bat high but as it came down, she moved her head out of the way and grabbed it with one small pale hand and yanked it out of his hand. He looked a bit surprised but it was quickly wiped of his face as she struck him in the head with the bat.

This all kept up for twenty more minutes but finally they were all out. Zoe dropped the bat and rest her hands on her knees as she breathed heavily. "Damnit all. Little punks think it is easy to win." She mumbled as she slowly stood back up.

Left-right-swing, dodge-right-turn-kick, left-left-swing-punch. It was like a game to Revy, with combos, attacks in multiple directions, and "special moves". She herself zipped between attackers before they could get a bead on her, even when several came at her together. All the while, she was whistling and singing an off-key rendition of "Sunshine & Lollipops" as loudly as she could, severely out-manoeuvring the thugs like a lightning bolt. Judging by the expression of glee upon her face, she was having fun.

Sadly, the entertainment ended all too soon (for her, at least), though it left the mad Jumper winded from remaining in near-constant motion, but the grin remained. Planting one foot proudly on top of the nearest goon, who was still groaning from his beat-down, Revonne raised her bloodied Slugger into the air, triumphantly whooping like a barbarian. "THAT'S what you bitches get for messin' with the Rev-ster! AAAAHAHAHAHAHaaaa!!"

Given how hectic the fight had been, however, Revy's rejoicing was somewhat premature. Unbeknownst to her, a few of the gang members had escaped the gist of the fighting, and with her attention diverted, the only acknowledgement she could give to the one sneaking up behind her was a momentary "Huh?" before something hard and heavy slammed into her back with a meaty *thwack!*, causing the young lady to stumble. In vain, she tried to regain her balance, only to get punched in the back of the head. Consciousness mercifully followed soon thereafter...

Zoe quickly turned around when she heard the thud of a body or two hitting the ground but soon she was struck as well. She had not the slightest hope of keeping form falling but before she even hit the ground, she was struck again in the side of the head. She let out a gasp as she fell to the ground and her vision began to fade out as her eyelids fell other her pupils.

-A couple hours later-

Zoe let out a low moan as her eyes began to fluttered open. She felt something cold against her cheek that startled her into jumping up but then she was quickly knocked down by the imbalance of the ground under her feet. "What the..." She mumbled as she looked around her but it was pitch black, she couldn't tell a single think about where she was. She sniffed the air around her and crinkled it at the scent of burning gasoline. She knew now that she was in the back of a car. She clearly had enough room to stand up and move a bit, so it wasn't a normal sized truck.

Out cold for a good long while, Revy awoke to the sensation of someone ringing a dozen church bells in her head, the motion of whatever she was currently in not helping her budding migraine one bit. It reeked of both burnt and unburned fuel, oil, and nervous body odor. Her mind instantly pressed its instincts as far as they would go, but she could only get an accurate feel for the inside of the vehicle; large enough to be a van, with five or six more occupants - two up front, of course, and one right beside her, with the others at the rear.

The speed they were moving at was rather incredible, given the rev of the engine and the rattling noises she could hear. Her hands were definitely tied behind her, with... testing the bonds, she confirmed that they were duct-taped together behind her back, as were her legs. And given that her irritated grunts were quite muffled, they'd taped her mouth shut too. Whether the darkness was due to having something over her eyes or head, or if the back of the vehicle was just that dark, Revy couldn't tell - and really didn't intend on finding out either. Now if her head would just stop hurting so she could concentrate...

A series of moans followed by a startled exclamation got her attention. The best reply she could give was an affirmative "Mmft" as she squirmed, trying to better figure out where the first two problems were in the van. Maybe they'd blindfolded her - for what good it would do - so she couldn't see who was holding her hostage. However, her worming stopped when something cold was pressed into her back, one of the nondescript gang members yelling at her to stop moving. "Nrmghm" she angrily snapped back, flopping like a fish out of water while someone else started laughing; again, Revy couldn't determine whether it was at her or because of her - or if it was even remotely related.

This time, the metal thing jabbed hard into her spine, eliciting a whimper from the captive girl. "Shut the f@#% up, you annoying bitch!" her captor screamed at her, a half-hearted kick that hardly hurt at all landing on her butt. With a growl (yes, an actual growl), Revonne finally quit her pathetic movements, instead opting to try and catch her breath.

Zoe felt the movement as the car stop along with what sounded like another one stopping but with higher pitched breaks. She was about to go cover her ears but then finally noticed that her hands were bond together and so were her legs. How the hell did I not notice that? She questioned as light began to fill the truck, which looked to be more of a military truck used to move soldiers. Okay, now she was scared. No! This can't happen again! My grandmother will really have a heart attack this time! She thought as she began to squirm with the gangsters coming closer to her.

One of them grabbed her arm, making her turn around and bite their hand so hard that blood flowed. That earned her a rough kick to the side. "You bitch! You'll pay for that one." He yelled as he then grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and threw her out of the truck to the other gangsters, seeming to throw her like she weighted nothing.

Form there both girls were taken to what looked like just a little hut in the middle of the desert but soon they were tossed down some stairs and it proved to be a large basement with what looked like many different tools for torture. There were several wipes, chains, knives, and so much more along with two chairs in the center. "Get them in the chairs!" Someone form the top of the stairs yelled, most likely the leader. Quickly, they put duck tape over Zoe's mouth, though she tried to bite the guy. They were able to get Zoe in one of the chairs, though she fought and squirmed as best as she could. When they undid the duck tape on her wrists to bind them to the chair, she kicked the guy away form her with both her feet and then quickly undid the duck tape on her ankles with one of the many knives lying on the floor. As soon as the other guy came at her, she was ready with a weapon.

It wasn't long before the van lurched to a halt, and Revy was rudely dragged from the vehicle, hoisted onto someone's shoulders as they carried her inside a nondescript building, muffled screams and squirming all the way. The girl definitely wasn't going anywhere without at least something resembling a fight. Of course, with her hands and feet bound the way they were, "fight" might've been a strong word; "struggle" was likely more accurate. One of the gang members yelled at her to stop, punching her painfully in the ribs, which earned a yelp and finally silence.

Apparently the other girl took precedence, as Revy was left with just the goon manhandling her on his shoulder. After being bodily dumped into an uncomfortable wooden chair, the tape was ripped off her face without any concern for her well-being. "Ah, BALLS!!" she swore before the thug could begin 'interrogating' her, eliciting more struggling and head-shaking as she defiantly resisted. A hand cracked across her face, rattling her teeth and nearly blacking the poor young lady out with its force. "Shut the f*%@ up already!" the goon spat in her face, to which Revy snapped her teeth at him, causing the doof to step back warily and aim another haphazard swing at her, this time with his fist.

Of course, she wasn't stupid; the punch was narrowly dodged as she rocked back, feeling the knuckles breeze past harmlessly. Meanwhile, her feet - still bound but only to each other - rose up hard, additional force added as the girl straightened them out, and landed squarely in the dumb bastard's crotch. Stopping her backwards descent as others started for her, Revy used the focal point to right her chair, this time her head snapping forward in a vicious headbutt to the goon's face as he bent over in pain. The effect was immediate; blood splurted all over as the now-incoherent ganger fell back, and Revy found herself falling face-first onto the floor.

By then, the other woman had managed to free herself and started fighting back, drawing attention as more goons started filing inside. Still stuck in a rather compromising position, with the chair to her back, Revy managed to rock onto her side, spilling over a nearby wheeled tray table as she grabbed for the nearest sharp object. Grabbing what seemed to be a broken-off blade, she quickly began working at the duct tape, ignoring the pain as the edge bit into her own hand.

While she was doing fairly good, given their combined conditions, Revy knew this was a losing battle - no doubt the goons did too, and were on their way to overwhelming both of the girls. At least her headache was receding, though the slap did little to help that. Her instinct expanded with a small effort; upstairs was no good, and outside was just more pain at the moment; in her condition, she couldn't get herself to a safe distance, let alone carrying someone else. There was one place that looked safe enough for the time being, however...

Evading a horizontal slice from her blind side, Revy disappeared from view, reappearing behind the other girl as she ditched her make-shift cutting tool. Best get both of them out of here while she could. "Don't-kill-me!" she rapidly breathed, wrapping her arms around the girl before Traveling again.

The room they ended up in was warmer than upstairs, with a noisy boiler grumbling nearby, and bathed in near pitch-black darkness. As soon as they landed, Revy quickly let go of the still-fighting girl and backed away with a whimper, not wanting to get sliced by accident (or on purpose). To her, instead of darkness, there were simply different shades of light and edges, like line drawings being made in real-time as she walked, fumbling for a light switch. To the other girl, however, Revy would appear to be two floating orbs of dull light rapidly snapping in several different directions before disappearing as she turned away, humming something nonchalantly to herself as she hugged the nearest wall.

Through all of that fighting, Zoe had not taken notice of the factor that the other girl had worked a way out of her binds, but instead of trying to fight the gangsters around them, Zoe felt her grab onto her. She could easily tell it wasn't one of the guys, all of them had arms rippled with muscles that could smash her neck if put in a headlock. She was about to yell but the next thing she knew, they were in a much different room, one she had not clue as to what it is. "What the-!" She stopped mid-sentence as she looked around. She shook her head, very confused now. Zoe had since many things concerning magic but had yet to have been teleported. She tried to figure out where the other girl was but couldn't tell, so she leaned her back against the nearest wall. "What...what just happened?" She questioned, closing her eyes and rubbing the sore lids.

"Just'a bit of Travelin'," came the perky reply, as Revy continued to grope around for a freaking light switch. "Sorry, it'll prolly leaves ya a bit sore - still ain't used to taking people along fer the ride n' all." Finally finding what she was looking for, the girl exclaimed "Aha! Here it is. Watch yer eyes, miss."

Abruptly, a low, flickering bulb filled the room with light, followed soon after by a dull humming. Soon, the room was dimly lit, at the very least allowing the two ladies to look at each other without needing to squint too much.

Yawning and stretching, Revy assessed her wounds with a half-caring eye; nothing looked too broken or bruised, which was lucky given that it'd make any escape all the more difficult if she had pain on her mind. The headache, however, had yet to recede. That was going to be a problem.

"So what was that all 'bout?" she finally asked, sitting down with her back against the wall opposite Zoe. "Ain't seen a mob that mad at me since the week I accidentally broke the sound system at a Skynyrd concert." She really wanted to take a nap or two, but the adrenaline hadn't quite drained from her system, and she had enough trouble snoozing without that fire in her veins. Revy really could have gone for a few drinks right about now, if only to dull the throb in her brain.