YOU BY MY SIDE ☆ weakness training

[michael t.]

It seemed that, at least for the moment, Michael was trapped in the Pitt. Well, not really trapped, if one looked at it critically. After all, his wounds were being taken of well, he had a place to stay, and nobody had treated him too unkindly since he had gotten here, so it wasn't as if he were still in the captivity of the Lost. It was just that he was trapped here in the sense that he couldn't exactly leave, not without exacerbating his wounds and probably dying without a proper plan. He was essentially back to square one of his criminal life, with no big intimidation factor and no reliable muscle to back him up. He needed to recuperate, and plan whatever the hell his next step was going to be. That wasn't so bad, besides the aching loneliness that threatened to cave in his chest every so often. He really needed to get to know the people in this group a little better, if only to make sure that he knew how to get under their skin in case they tried to eat him, or something. Or if this really turned out to be a cult, like he had suspected in the beginning. What better way to get to know people than to help them out? It had taken a little bit of thought to figure out how the hell he could help such a large group out in his current state, but he liked to think he had figured something halfway decent out – even if it might end with him getting punched square in the face, or something along those lines.

He wasn't sure it could truly be considered training, since it wasn't as if he was going to have his new clanmates punching dummies or fighting each other, but he would be giving them new information and trying to teach them how to cover up their weak spots, so that was training enough for him. The male could be found near the middle of The Pitt's strange little main camp area, right in front of the strategist temple. His aviators were perched atop his nose, hiding sharp blue eyes behind them as he glanced at passersby. A lit, mostly burnt cigarette was clenched between his jaws, a welcome stress reliever as he tried to adjust to his new environment. He took a deep breath inwards before exhaling a lungful of smoke before he put the cigarette out, smashing it beneath his paw. Once that was over with, he called out, hoping to grab the attention or those around him, "Hey! If any of you want some training in how to deal with any weak points you've got, then come over here to me! I'm always eager to pick out people's flaws." He gave a little crooked grin at that last bit, his tail flicking back and forth lazily behind him as he waited for others to come up.

[glow=#75603C,1,000]" oh, it's a setup, no, no, we won't fall. "[/glow]

[fulzanin]

decisions to decisions are made and not bought

Weaknesses weren't something Astiar, truly, was capable of comprehending. After all, while bugs did fight, cicadas certainly did not. Their strength was their vast numbers and numbing buzzing that could drown out the heartiest of lawnmowers. His mind was akin to the insect's in many a way, and that was another tally that labeled him as an absolute bug. He had yet to actually prove that he had many strengths other than being utterly massive and noisy... but yet again, that meant he had little reason to show whatever weaknesses he had too. The call and the noise brought the dragon over. His talons curled against the dirt as he strode closer. Curiously he chittered, head lowering a little. What was the reasoning for the summon sounding call? Astiar wasn't certain, but he was more than happy to be present. Blue antennae wriggled above his head, aided a sharp buzzing noise that came from his wings. The dragon settled, sitting down in ever his awkward manner, waiting for whatever the activity actually was about to commence.

control yourself and take only what you need from it

TAGS 9/4/19:

GENERAL.
✧ Astiar | Asti, Ast, Bug
✧ physically medium, mentally easy | 7/30
✧ male | he/him
✧ unallianced
— wherever there is food, that is where Astiar will take up temporary residence. Notably most of his time is spent in the Pitt, but has distanced himself from the group due to the lack of food following the raid.

APPEARANCE.
✧ dragon (ref.) | health: 100% | cicada
— a nine foot seven inches tall cicada themed dragon. He has four antennae growing on his head from orange growths on his head. Two grow in front of his twisted horns, and two from behind. Dewclaws point backwards from the body-facing side of all six feet. He has mandibles on either side of his mouth that come from his upper jaw. The top of his upper jaw lays a hardened segment of scales, dotted with yellow dots. These extend as deep green freckles onto the face. A long stinger rests at the end of his lanky, segmented tail. His body has the segmented build of an insect, consisting of a deep orange head, brown body and abdomen, and black spine. His underbelly is a pale navy, with splotches of yellow showing the separation of the sections. His wings are tinted blue, but are translucent. The membrane for them is a bright, vibrant orange. Each wing has one claw at it's second bone, pointing down the rest of the wing's length from the body. His front paws have five fingers, while the rest of his limbs have only three toes. His red eyes are near unblinking, and are built like that of an insect. A series of jagged spikes rise from his black back, and run down his head to his neck.
— tongue and blood is yellow
— current injures: burnt front right leg, deep scratches in his front scales

COMMUNICAION.
✧ Soft Buzzing
— Ambient noise. Pleased. Feels like making noise. Stretching. Curious.
✧ Loud Buzzing
— Angry. Infuriated. Sizing up. Stop. About to strike. Flying.
— IF ALONE: 'Come here'. 'Come closer'. 'Help'. 'Need assistance'. Lonely
✧ Mandible Clicking
— Ambient noise. Hungry. Curious. Nervous.
✧ Hissing
— Angry. Irritated. About to strike. Stop. 'Stay away'. 'I'm uncomfortable'. Testing vocal cords.
✧ Chattering
— Ambient noise. Mimicking speech. Pleasant.
✧ Grumbling
— Irritated. Annoyed. Being pessimistic. Bothered.
✧ Roaring
Angered. Infuriated. Enraged. Sizing up. Stop. About to strike.
✧ Rumbling
— Curious. Intrigued. Friendly. 'Come closer'. Pleased. Happy.
✧ Screeching
— Submission. 'Stop'. 'Go away'. 'I yield'. Panic. Fear. Terror.

PERSONALITY.
✧ Curious, inquisitive, devoted, loyal, open-minded
✧ neutral sided, easily impressed, impressionable
✧ clueless, over-obedient, takes commands without hesitation

RELATIONSHIPS.
✧ adok x yitz
✧ clipyer
✧ demiromantic bisexual | single
✧ friends
— will add

INTERACTIONS.
✧ physically medium | mentally easy | mental manipulation/communication | no weapons | claws, teeth, talons
✧ will start/end fights on command, hard provoke | will kill
— notably this is for instances where Astiar must fight. If able, Astiar will never raise his claws against any other creature unless he has been directly ordered to do so
— commands must be one word. If any words follow the command, Astiar is unable to understand due to his limited intelligence. Heavy presence of emotion will equally tarnish his ability to follow commands.
✧ very limited fighting knowledge
✧ allowed to powerplay peaceful actions | attack in bolded #B21925 | mention [member=7712]Astiar[/member] when attacking

MISC.
— mostly feral
— speaks a wordless bug language
— worker drone
✧ Obeys without question as long as it is a simple command
— eats trees and other hard plant matter
— cannot understand speech

[trojan g.]

[div style="font-family: impact; font-size: 38pt; color: white; text-shadow: 1px 1px black, 1px -1px black, -1px 1px black, -1px -1px black; position: absolute; margin-top: -36px; max-width: 625px; text-align: center;"]SWEENEY CALLAHAN FALLOUT

[div style="margin: auto; background-color: #fff; max-width: 600px; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; color: #000; overflow: auto; padding: 6%; margin-top: 10px; line-height: 17px; border: #000 solid; border-width: 1px 1px 1px 1px; "]Sweeney heard the call come from the newer member of the Pitt, and couldn't help but get her interest piqued. She was stuck herself, trapped in a place where she didn't feel as though she could actually respect most, her own father killed in front of her being the cause. If she hadn't snuck out that day and seen it, she likely wouldn't have had the issues she had now, but she still snuck out, didn't care. Nothing would be as traumatic as that site she saw, and the pleading she heard coming from the previous ardent of the Pitt.

But when Michael had called out, asking about training and flaws, she couldn't help but snicker to herself as she pad forward. This guy was going to tell them about their flaws? He needed a reality check. Although she couldn't physically fight right now - she knew her limits - she could still speak, and speak she shall. "Our flaws? Why don't we start with yours?" She would speak, innocent at first, though malicious intent flowed through each passing word, "Like how you showed up at the border, in the middle of a desert, bleeding and dying, and weak."

[Mercede]

MERCEDE

[table]
[tr][td]

[/td]
[td]

diamonds are a girl’s bestfriend -

mercede f. callahan
the pitt
2 months


pronounced: (mur-say-dee)

general
female - marble cross fox (white, gray, black) - 2 months - Jervis x Fourthwall - no crush - no mentor

powers
mental manipulation

[/td][/tr][/table]

---

call me your sweet baby —

If one observes the Callahan sisters multiple times across various situations they would easily figure out how they all worked together in the most chaotic sense. Hardly getting along, a troupe of stubborn heads clashing and bickering nearly every chance they got.

But they would also witness them find company and safety within each other. The way they would snap at another who dared verbally attacked one of the sisters. A dysfunctional pack made of brats. None were allowed to challenge them other than each other because the fool who tried would be met with the words and wrath of them all.

Mercede? Was no stranger to this mentality, she loved her sisters even if they irritated her more than anyone. Even if she borderline despised them. So in a crowd, she would always choose to stand by her sisters’ sides.

Quietly she would make her place by Sweeney before deciding to speak up. Slightly offended at Michael’s words, “Yea you’re one to talk! You’re weak!  You’re lucky we even bother with your... ass!”

[sup][w]isker[/sup]

[CAUSTIC.]

[table][tr][td]

  CAUSTIC

Caustic knew his weaknesses. He was aging. He was 48 as a human and he was an indeterminate age now. He suspected, somewhat younger. The arthritis didn't grind his bones like it once did, and he had more energy. Caustic also suffered from respiratory issues, so any blows to his chest cavity or diaphragm was disabling to him. It put him in a coughing fit that he needed a brief moment to recover from. Finally, while it wasn't a weakness to him as a human, it was a weakness to him now. Caustic was missing two digits from his left paw, starting from the outermost, which was the equivalent of his pinky and ring finger.
Caustic combated these weaknesses with brute force and intelligence. He didn't bother with learning how to fight in this form yet. He wasn't planning on staying, after all.
Micheal interested him though. So Caustic took a sea in the back, watching him intently from over the shoulders of the children, a cough leaving him.

TAGS • PLAYLIST • PENNED BY OWLIE

[/td][td]

[/td][/tr][/table]

© LEXASPERATED

[michael t.]

The first to arrive to his little gathering was none other than Astiar, the big bug monster whom Michael had no idea how to interact with. In fact, he wasn't even sure if he could interact with the thing. Caustic had found out enough to communicate what the creature was, but that had seemingly just been because of his analytical nature, and not because of any actual communication between them. Still, Michael resisted the strong urge to recoil away from Astiar in a mixture of disgust and fear, instead just regarding the beast silently for a moment before he spoke, "Well... you, big guy, have one pretty obvious weakness in that you can't really communicate with the other people you're working with. At least not very well, anyways. Plus, you're pretty big and slow. Easy to get the drop on. You've gotta keep an eye on your surroundings, but I bet those things are pretty sensitive." He gently patted Astiar on the belly near his burn wounds, before he jabbed a paw up at the other's little antennae. He didn't know much about bugs, since they weren't exactly the type of thing you worried about for heists, but he knew that antennae were meant to pick up on things, and if somebody fucked with them? It would probably be less than great. Frowning slightly, the bobcat opened his mouth to offer Astiar some advice – as if the beast would actually understand any of it – when he was cut off by the sound of a slightly shrill and malicious little voice.

Two malicious little voices, actually, belonging to a pair of sisters in the form of Sweeney and Mercedes. They immediately went on the defensive alongside each other, fluffy pelts sticking out in indignation as they went in on him, pointing out his flaws. What a bunch of little brats. He had half a mind to just show them how weak they were, and punt them away with his paws. That probably wouldn't have gone over well, however, so he found himself just rolling his sapphire blue eyes, a soft snort leaving him as he heard them. He grumbled to them, looking unimpressed down at the sisters over the tops of his aviators, "Oh yes, I'm so weak that I managed to endure months and months of torture and then drag myself all the way here and still survive. I'm so embarrassed, you've caught me." He sarcastically dragged his words out at the children, unable to keep himself from chuckling at Mercede hesitating at the word "ass." Eventually he continued, looking the both of them over, "You two aren't hard to pick the weaknesses out of, but that's natural, considering you're both kids. Kids are naturally small and weak, and that's why adults protect you. Thankfully, the two of you have already learned that you're stronger when you stick together... good job." He grumbled the last bit, as if he was a little remiss to admit that the fox pair had done something right.

The last to arrive to the training was... Caustic. Shit. Michael could practically hear the alarm bells going off in his head as he faced his neighbor, eyes scanning over the larger canine. He knew it was probably a bad idea to analyze Caustic, but... well, the other had shown up for it, so clearly he was expecting something, right? The bobcat swallowed a little nervously before he spoke, clearing his throat to put on his usual fake bravado and bluster, "Caustic... ah, well, you're pretty damn big, which gives you an advantage over quite a few people, but you've got some stuff too, like... well, for one thing there's that cough you've got. It's obvious that if anybody wanted to incapacitate you seriously, they could just go right for the chest to hurt your lungs. Not to mention your foot..." He pointed down at Caustic's toes, his tail flicking back and forth as he pointedly avoided the other male's eyes, "You're missing two of your toes, which makes you naturally imbalanced. If someone wanted to knock you over, they could just aim for that leg..." Warily, he glanced up to meet Caustic's eyes once he was done speaking, wondering how the canine would react. He was far too used to the unpredictable at this point, it seemed.

[glow=#75603C,1,000]" oh, it's a setup, no, no, we won't fall. "[/glow]

[Kydobi]

[align=center]

STILL THOSE VOICES ARE CALLING FROM FAR AWAY -
♕tags-powers♕

[OOC: ]

Quietly he had been watching, but not from afar. He had been quite close by, only unseen because of his invisibility and only unheard of cause he was ghosting  through the jungle.

Was he surprised to hear Jervis’ children exercising their most prominent inherited feature? Big mouths like their father. But that was fine for now, it would get the pipe in trouble in the future. However Kydobi was going to make sure they did not warp into a similar person like the last ardent.

It did please the panther to see member do actively participating amongst each other. Especially a brand new one, despite his injuries Michael was getting involved. It was a good start. When the two little ones started snapping at the bobcat he would post most attention. How they handled this would influence Kydobi’s outlook on them. But it was well.

Needless to say he was impressed by Michael. A name he had heard float around but never had a fact to pair it with.

It was hard for the panther to turn this chance down. This whole affair was pretty intriguing to the prideful brute. Flaws? Kydobi had none, at least physically. Or rather functionally.

If one looked deeper, they were all internal and mental.

As much as he hated to admit it, he wound like the validation of seeing Michael pause in thinking.

“You seem very insightful. I’ve wonder what flaws do you see in me?”, he would inquire as he allowed himself to be seen.

[sub][W]isker[/sub]

[CAUSTIC.]

[table][tr][td]

  CAUSTIC

As Micheal's attention turned towards him, the dots above Caustic's eyes pulled up as if he were raising a brow. In better circumstances, Caustic would have sat back and crossed his arms over his chest, but for now, he took a different approach. The wolf moved in closer, squaring his shoulders and raising his tail. Caustic's body eclipsed everyone around them, like the sun enveloping all surrounding planets in its light.
"Micheal. Pick your criticisms with extreme caution." He warned, staring down at the injured bobcat.
Caustic listened, and his tail involuntarily lowered, ceasing all movement. Of course, both these things were true. Punching him in the abdomen was a regular occurrence in the ring, Caustic's weakness that all knew but never called attention to. Octavio had exploited this more than once when Caustic was too rough with him.
His fingers, on the other hand, had never been a problem before. He never used them for walking, not to mention he once had prosthetics for them.
Gas leaked from Caustic's open mouth, framing his face in the sick, green cloud. "Both are true observations. Now, to combat them?" That mad look came into Caustic's eyes. A call for violence. An enjoyment of it. "One must prevail with science and brute force," he said, raising a his bad paw to slam it down on Micheal's back, and hold the bobcat down.

"Kydobi. Nice to see you," He said, if his earlier attack worked, Caustic would apply an extra amount of pressure, then lift his paw from Micheal. He watched the bobcat's legs, predicting that Micheal may attempt to trip him and embarrass him.

TAGS • PLAYLIST • PENNED BY OWLIE

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[/td][/tr][/table]

© LEXASPERATED

[fulzanin]

decisions to decisions are made and not bought

When it came to speech, Astiar was getting better at understanding it. Certain words, simple words, stood out more to him. The meaning behind them that Astiar grasped was varying. Sometimes it was the correct meaning and other times it simply was what he had associated the word to the tone being used. Big and slow. Two words that he had a loose grasp on. He knew he was big, he was a very big member of the hive. Astiar's head lowered a little to listen to the criticisms, antennae flickering. When the area next to the bite wound was nudged, his body recoiled somewhat. The burns and bites themselves had not been touched, but it earned nervous chittering nonetheless.

He watched and listened, as best as he could, to what the other was saying. Not that they applied to Astiar, but it would be better to try and further his understanding of how the words worked. What they meant. How he could better use them to communicate with those that were within the hive. Blue antennae curled from atop his head. He happily chattered upon noticing Kydobi's approach. Of course he would - the cicada was practically a gigantic, destructive puppy. A creature that was large, didn't think well, and wanted attention and approval. His wings noisily buzzed in a form of greeting. It wasn't the one that specifically had been crafted for the other, for Astiar's majority of attention was elsewhere. His red gaze returned to the training at hand.

Something about seeing Micheal be pinned down, on the back, struck a nerve. Perhaps it was because those that would toy with bugs commonly would do such a thing. A noise akin to a jagged hissing noise came from his jaws. He didn't interfere, of course, and only looked onwards. It had not triggered his own fight or flight and usually Astiar only chose flight out of those two options. His wings buzzed loudly, noisily, not quite able to grasp why Caustic had pinned down another member of the hive. It didn't make sense to the simple bug, and he certainly voiced his uncertainties.

control yourself and take only what you need from it

TAGS 9/4/19:

GENERAL.
✧ Astiar | Asti, Ast, Bug
✧ physically medium, mentally easy | 7/30
✧ male | he/him
✧ unallianced
— wherever there is food, that is where Astiar will take up temporary residence. Notably most of his time is spent in the Pitt, but has distanced himself from the group due to the lack of food following the raid.

APPEARANCE.
✧ dragon (ref.) | health: 100% | cicada
— a nine foot seven inches tall cicada themed dragon. He has four antennae growing on his head from orange growths on his head. Two grow in front of his twisted horns, and two from behind. Dewclaws point backwards from the body-facing side of all six feet. He has mandibles on either side of his mouth that come from his upper jaw. The top of his upper jaw lays a hardened segment of scales, dotted with yellow dots. These extend as deep green freckles onto the face. A long stinger rests at the end of his lanky, segmented tail. His body has the segmented build of an insect, consisting of a deep orange head, brown body and abdomen, and black spine. His underbelly is a pale navy, with splotches of yellow showing the separation of the sections. His wings are tinted blue, but are translucent. The membrane for them is a bright, vibrant orange. Each wing has one claw at it's second bone, pointing down the rest of the wing's length from the body. His front paws have five fingers, while the rest of his limbs have only three toes. His red eyes are near unblinking, and are built like that of an insect. A series of jagged spikes rise from his black back, and run down his head to his neck.
— tongue and blood is yellow
— current injures: burnt front right leg, deep scratches in his front scales

COMMUNICAION.
✧ Soft Buzzing
— Ambient noise. Pleased. Feels like making noise. Stretching. Curious.
✧ Loud Buzzing
— Angry. Infuriated. Sizing up. Stop. About to strike. Flying.
— IF ALONE: 'Come here'. 'Come closer'. 'Help'. 'Need assistance'. Lonely
✧ Mandible Clicking
— Ambient noise. Hungry. Curious. Nervous.
✧ Hissing
— Angry. Irritated. About to strike. Stop. 'Stay away'. 'I'm uncomfortable'. Testing vocal cords.
✧ Chattering
— Ambient noise. Mimicking speech. Pleasant.
✧ Grumbling
— Irritated. Annoyed. Being pessimistic. Bothered.
✧ Roaring
Angered. Infuriated. Enraged. Sizing up. Stop. About to strike.
✧ Rumbling
— Curious. Intrigued. Friendly. 'Come closer'. Pleased. Happy.
✧ Screeching
— Submission. 'Stop'. 'Go away'. 'I yield'. Panic. Fear. Terror.

PERSONALITY.
✧ Curious, inquisitive, devoted, loyal, open-minded
✧ neutral sided, easily impressed, impressionable
✧ clueless, over-obedient, takes commands without hesitation

RELATIONSHIPS.
✧ adok x yitz
✧ clipyer
✧ demiromantic bisexual | single
✧ friends
— will add

INTERACTIONS.
✧ physically medium | mentally easy | mental manipulation/communication | no weapons | claws, teeth, talons
✧ will start/end fights on command, hard provoke | will kill
— notably this is for instances where Astiar must fight. If able, Astiar will never raise his claws against any other creature unless he has been directly ordered to do so
— commands must be one word. If any words follow the command, Astiar is unable to understand due to his limited intelligence. Heavy presence of emotion will equally tarnish his ability to follow commands.
✧ very limited fighting knowledge
✧ allowed to powerplay peaceful actions | attack in bolded #B21925 | mention [member=7712]Astiar[/member] when attacking

MISC.
— mostly feral
— speaks a wordless bug language
— worker drone
✧ Obeys without question as long as it is a simple command
— eats trees and other hard plant matter
— cannot understand speech

[michael t.]

Absently, Michael's short tail flicked from side to side behind him as he eyed the group before him, his blue gaze lighting up when none other than Kydobi came over. The leader of this whole damn group had come to his gathering, intent on having his flaws laid bare for all to see. The bobcat couldn't deny the short thrill that raced through his body at that, just because he knew he could find something. Despite Kydobi's certainty that the thief would struggle, Michael felt quite confident in himself, knowing full well that there were times where you needed to pick out not only the physical flaws, but the flaws of the mind and heart as well. The male found himself stepping forward, intent on pointing out Kydobi's weaknesses in the most saccharine way he could, but he never managed to make it to that point. He had certainly heard Caustic speaking to him before, but he had been too distracted by the presence of the leader, his one deaf ear not helping the situation much either. It was nearly a total surprise when a paw came crashing down upon his back, knocking him to the sandy earth below and knocking the air straight from his lungs. The bobcat wheezed, his usual injuries further exacerbated by the roughness of the other.

He quickly found himself snarling, lashing his body from side to side as he shoved upwards, ignoring the sting of his wounds even as they protested violently. Eventually Caustic released him, and the bobcat was back on his feet before long, holding back the groan of pain that threatened to leave his muzzle just at the action of sitting up. He glared bitterly at Caustic, hissing at the scientist after he had regained his bearings "Well, it's real fuckin' nice to know that you know how to combat that shit. I'm afraid I don't have any goddamn gold stars to give you, sorry." He really was pissed at being humiliated at his own training, not to mention the ache that he was sure would be remaining in his body for the entire rest of the day. Flattening his ears at the frantic buzzing sound that was happening near them, he glanced in the direction of Astiar, noticing the large bug dragon's distress. He just chuckled – with a faint wheeze to it – before he spoke again, "Glad to see you're worried about me, big guy. But I'm alright, can handle myself... I'm gonna need a minute, Kydobi. Fuckin'... wounds hurt." He brushed a little bit prissily at his own fur, flattening it back out again as he waited for the pain to stop echoing in his body.

[glow=#75603C,1,000]" oh, it's a setup, no, no, we won't fall. "[/glow]