The first scenario is too easy. I use magical roots to pin the rapists to the ground. Wrapping the roots around them at lightning speed. And pulling them to the ground.
It gets negated in the second scenario. By the Emperor's Consort using a black and white card. And ripping it in half. Suddenly I feel myself become weaker. And see my poison gloves fade.
I can feel it. There is no magic here. For now.
The men are more stunned than I am. Except one in the back. I elect to use my perfect response. Fast jabs to the throat. I walk through the two lines of rapists with ease. Until I reach the last one.
One man recovered enough to grab my left arm and pull me back. The last rapist swings his polearm at me with a full force diagonal slash. I jump forward while keeping a steep grip on the other man's forearm. He tries to resist. So does the last soldier.
But the slash was already moving. He chops lightly into his friend's hand as it makes that soldier let go of me. While they are stunned about hitting each other, I punch the last soldier in the throat with the left jab. A right hook to the side of the head. And then I put my foot behind him. Push forward with a leap and my body weight. And slam him into the ground. Then I push up, standing firm. And stomp the shit out of his face. Like five times. As I watch the others.
3 of them are gasping for air still. 4 are obstinating out of sheer laziness.
"She won mom." Rapist 1 says nervously. "She hit good."
Emperor's Consort starts screaming at them.
"SHE IS A DRUG DEALER! KILL HER! RAPE HER CORPSE FOR ALL I CARE!"
They look around nervously.
"I'm married." Rapist 2 says nervously.
I start laughing as they are this fucking lazy. That makes two of them mad. And nod. And do monkey men poses. Huffing up and down angrily. …
"ARE YOU GONNA FUCKING HIT HER!?" Emperor's Consort yells furiously.
"So like, is the government real?" I ask sarcastically.
"Yeah, duh." Angry Rapist 3 huffs angrily.
"So… have you fucked her? The Consort?" I tease nervously.
The Emperor's Consort glares at me intensely. And starts punching me herself. Rapidly. Taking more effort than her soldiers did already. I block, dance around, walk away, and laugh while she throws punches and rants angrily. I'm basically doing this for flirtatious fun.
"THEY ARE NEVER FUCKING ME! THEY ARE MY BODYGUARDS! I AM THE EMPEROR'S CONSORT, YOU WILL RESPECT ME! I DO MORE WORK THAN ANY OF THESE MEN DO! THEY ARE LUCKY WE PRETEND IT'S A PATRIARCHY! DO YOU SEE MY FUCKING KNUCKLES!?"
She stops punching me to hold up her right hand upside down. Her hand is actually bruised and bloodied a lot more than it should be. I frown sadly.
"Awww. You do a lot of work. I'm sorry the men suck." I say, sad and sympathetic.
"Are you fucking gay? Quit being gay, we were just fighting." Emperor's Consort says angrily.
She punches me again in the face. Lazily. I'm too busy thinking about how cute she is to care.
"Sooo… what's with that black and white card you tore apart?" I ask sheepishly.
"It negates all magic for five minutes." Emperor's Consort says bitterly.
"I'm Kobra Withers. How about you? What's your-" I ask seductively.
She pulls her fist back to punch me harder! I block this one. It stings a lot. I'm still smiling.
"Quit flirting with me." Emperor's Consort says angrily.
I get bored enough to be a rapist of love myself. Her fist is still pressed into my forearm. I catch it. And forcibly drag her fist to my mouth to kiss it. She resists, punching me with her other arm. Then pauses for a brief second where love blossoms between us. I smile lovingly. She is deadpan and bored.
"Quit being weird, you lesbian bitch." Emperor's Consort says angrily.
I let go of her fist and dance away with a sidestep pattern that is very unnecessary. She turns around and yells at her men again.
"Can you fucking kill this anarchist bitch or what!? WE ARE CHINA! BE BRAVE!" Emperor's Consort yells furiously.
"You're all too fat to do it!" I taunt happily.
Emperor's Consort pulls a knife out her bra. And I backstep with a teasing grin as she jogs after me. I get bored, and use magic to leap away onto a nearby rooftop. She snaps her fingers and twenty or so loyal men of China to do the most simpery I have ever seen. They make a right triangle of pillars made of men all laying on top of each other. It's actually pretty fast, they assemble like an ultimate team of simps. Also, they're naked. All of them.
We are both aroused as she climbs up her simp tower to reach me. The lust in the room is palpable. We are all so beautiful in this moment, I am mesmerized. With madness and lust.
She reaches the roof, grinning with maddening confidence. While I stand mesmerized by her beauty, power, malice, and influence.
"I want you for myself. Quit being mad at me." I beg nervously.
I cover my mouth, ashamed of how honest I was. Her smirk breaks into gritted teeth and glaring eyes. I blow her a kiss. And dash away. I run off the roof, and leap over to the next one with wind magic. I hear the woosh of more wind magic. I turn and see she has launched herself like an arrow with wind magic at me.
I duck under her, and have to step back as she swings her leg around to kick me to avoid being hit. I smirk at the view, and jump off the roof. Down to the ground.
I land with grace. Doing a small twirl to show I'm fine and happy with forbidden love for the Emperor's Consort. She leans over the rooftop's edge and fires at me with a flintlock pistol. I smile brightly, and catch the bullet with my teeth. It creates a unique drilling sound like glass on stone. I pluck the bullet off with my fingers, and fling it at a wall. It bounces around wildly as I walk away.
But then I notice the Emperor's Consort is staring at me with lust now. I smile and wave again as I walk away. I walk a bit slow like a fool. Hoping she'll call out and change reality in a stupid way.
It doesn't happen. We all walk away peacefully for now.
Until the next day. Where she comes to my shop by herself. Armed. But wanting a new kimono. And armor.
"Do you want to do your measurements now?" I ask lovingly.
She smirks, annoyed and amused with me.
"Can't you guess?" she says warmly.
I sigh and shrug.
"I can. You're roughly my size but shorter." I say, warm and defeated.
I perk up a bit and grin like a businesswoman. I hold my hand up and point at my supplies.
"Walk with me. We'll pick your colors and materials first." I say happily.
"No. You do it all. I can afford it." Emperor's Consort says, warm and amused. "I want to do your… style." she says, warm and hesitant.
"What's your name?" I ask happily.
"...This time it's Cassandra. Go with that. I don't tell people my real name. You know my life is… weird." Cassandra says, warm and nervous.
"Okay. Would you like to stay and chat?" I say, warm and hopeful.
Cassandra smirks and sashays away.
"This was the talk. You'll get more if you make good stuff. Also, I want a poisoned dagger. Don't be disrespectful to China. Make it so." Emperor's Consort orders seductively.
I watch her walk away happily, knowing this can go wrong in so many ways. Especially if I'm too nice. She might not even pay. I didn't tell her the price. Cause I don't know what I'm doing yet.
… … … As I observe my supplies and arsenal, my heart becomes… confused. It is angry, happy, loving, and dare I say… patriotic. Only because I love a woman who keeps insisting she is China. Her way is China. I keep imagining her control the men like that for China's sake.
The world is a patriarchy as a joke to her. It's a lovely world to imagine for some reason. Being a slave to her love. She was cute with being a leader as she walked away with her back to me. And well… it redeems China a bit in my heart. It's a maddening love that will hurt as we tug back and forth. As always with any relationship really. And who knows how real it is? She is at most a Patriot. And who knows if it's the right kind of China? I am romanticizing her too hard based on how cute and badass she was.
She said she wants my style… so that means she will be a warrior like me. I will show some fealty to China. And show illegal love. With a good suit of iron armor layered with chainmail and some iron plates here and there. I use my poison acid to carve admittedly illegal blood channels on her armor to make it aesthetically pleasing. My favorite thing is vines on armor and clothes. With flowers carved in as well. I even paint the vines and flowers. The blood channels might make the armor a bit weaker but they're so cute.
I give her a rather large poison dagger in a purple leather sheathe.
As for the kimono, I haven't made many kimonos. I have some materials for regular clothes though as I was getting into regular fashion decently. For her kimono…I make a purple and green kimono. It is painted with pink sakura flower petals dancing in the wind. With on her back, a green snake that curls its tail around her back. And dares to peek its head towards her butt. It forms a question mark vaguely.
I have made the kimono a bit baggy. To own that when it's my style, you are meant to hide weapons. I have put extra pockets on the inside of her kimono.
She returns with her guards. But they thankfully stay outside. I have her clothes on stands, waiting for her. She is smiling, pleased with the work.
"You did say to make it my style, after all. I hope you don't mind." I flirt nervously.
She waves a hand down as if to show I'm fine.
"You did wonderful, Kobra. You are not as bad as they say." Cassandra says happily.
Then she puts her hand on her hip, and looks sternly at me.
"Why are you an anarchist? You're too nice to be one." Cassandra complains.
I smirk nervously. And shrug.
"I dunno. I wanted to be a businesswoman instead of someone's wife. It escalates a lot cause of various things. Like wanting to earn money in stupid ways. Or chasing immortality. Or love." I say with sheepish pride.
She rolls her eyes.
"How much does this all cost?" Cassandra says warmly.
"Let's go with a thousand yen." I say warmly.
She stiffens a bit.
"Can we negotiate?" she asks nervously.
"Have a conversation with me. The better it is, the better your discount will be." I say seductively.
She stares with a blank smile at me for a moment. Then hands me a thick bag of coins.
"Count out a thousand coins please, merchant." Cassandra says stiffly.
I sigh bitterly, my eyes watering. I have to stiffen my emotions, and process her order quickly. She leaves my store with her goods, pleased but stiff. She'll be happy when it's useful.
I smoke weed a bit after she leaves on my front yard. Staring up at the blue sky, and wondering where I went wrong. I shouldn't have called her a whore or a consort, probably.
Artemis walks down the path to the left. I notice her, and wave with a blank smile. I'm too annoyed to be happy. She stops by as she walks past.
"What's got you moping?" Artemis asks, bored.
"I got rejected again. So like-" I say bitterly.
"I don't care, your love life is a burden on China. Stop dating so hard. Take a year long break. Be abstinate." Artemis says bitterly.
I laugh a bit hard as Artemis storms away. It's always a masochist perk of mine to laugh at stupid reactions like that. Especially when that bitterness is justified.
My eyes widen as I remember what I kept calling her. The Emperor's Consort. If that is even remotely true, I might get in more trouble. But I did appease her recent…ly… fuck, she knows where my store is. Annoying.
But ah well, hopefully the armies don't come… wait no. What if they come as customers? That'd be so sweet. Man, this is a gamble we have to play out. They could be customers if she advertises my gear well.
Fuck, she was stiff before she left. She probably won't advertise me. Fucking bitch.