amber ☆ 01

[soldieronwards]

[ The man looking down into the amber appears confident, at a glance. Certainly, he's friendly, and he offers a grin. ]

So here's what I'm thinkin'.

We got threats here, don't we? Giant spiders, that sort of thing. Or average-sized spiders, but they're giant to us, that's for sure. There's probably more crap where that came from.

But now we're trying to get weapons for everybody. Ways for us all to defend ourselves.

[ He gestures at the golden image before him. ]

I got an offer for all of you. If you need help defending yourselves, I'll--I'll try and teach you.

But I might need a little help setting up a gym for it. Anyone got any ideas how we can go about that?

[ A beat. He hesitates, then says: ]

I'm Bucky, by the way. Nice to meet you all, even if it's not under the greatest of circumstances.

Comments

[soldieronwards]

You--

[ He almost lets his guard down at that. Almost. But he blocks like it's second nature for him, which it probably is. ]

You grew up with Steve?

[redactions]

[ He doesn't let up, but the blows are an iota gentler, just getting his other self back into the flow of a fight. ]

Yeah. Thought I mentioned it, sorry.

[soldieronwards]

[ Shaking his head a bit, though not enough to distract himself from the fight. ]

If you did, it slipped my mind--don't just focus on your fists, pal.

[ And he's aiming a short kick at the other man's ankle to unbalance him, then a jab at his shoulder while he's occupied with that. ]

[redactions]

Feet usually just moved.

[ He sways, but rights himself, quick enough to block. It's true: for a man of his size he fights very evasively, weaving and darting rather than standing sturdy and throwing punches with power. ]

[soldieronwards]

Pretty good.

[ Falling back into a defensive stance. He hasn't really given much away about his own style just yet--if anything, it simply seems well-rounded. But he's in teaching mode rather than really fighting, and that makes a difference. ]

Boxing's one thing on the city streets, but you gotta be more flexible in a place like this where your enemy could be any damn thing.

[redactions]

[ He gets bolder once the rhythm's steady, hitting a little harder. ]

Yeah. Was quick enough against the spiders, but no tellin' what else is around. Ain't like we can just shoot 'em.

[soldieronwards]

[ In turn, this Bucky starts to show more of his true colors: his movements grow quicker, more fluid, rougher in an aggressive way. But they're also incredibly natural, like he's born to throw punches. Which he does, whenever there's an opening. ]

We could if we could get a supply of bullets. That seems like a tall order around here.

[redactions]

[ Or like he was made to fight, this Bucky thinks, strapped to a table and put through so much he let go of his own name. He quickens his pace, parrying rather than dodging, learning as much of the new movements as he can and employing them in return instead of plain blocking. He's more careful around the left arm - no telling how much power that thing really has, and it's too far out of his mind to consider he'll have a matching one soon. ]

We got bacon. Maybe next time there'll be munitions or weapons. Or Korra can metalbend somethin'.

[soldieronwards]

[ He speeds up a little to match--he's obviously not particularly challenged here. Not yet. ]

Somehow I don't see them bein' provided.

Korra, though. She's pretty good for a kid.

[redactions]

Yeah, she is.

[ A punch connects, and he uses it to move back, give himself some space, before he comes back with faster jabs. ]

She remind you of anyone?

[soldieronwards]

[ He speeds up again to match, moving fluidly now, with less time to think about anything but the fight, so he answers-- ]

Maybe a little. I don't know. She's a kid, though.

[redactions]

[ He smiles, and then puts it out of his mind as he focuses on pushing back where he can. He's on the defensive and hopelessly outclassed: it's only the serum helping him keep up at all. Still, he's picking up, and he tries out a swift kick he saw his other self use earlier, not really intending for it to connect successfully, just see how it fits in with the rest of his movements. ]

[soldieronwards]

[ Bucky twists to dodge the blow-- ]

Not bad.

[ --and try to catch the other man's leg and trip him while he's off-balance. Still, he's breathing harder than before at this point, and he's clearly starting to put real effort into this. ]

You're fast.

[redactions]

I get faster.

[ It's a fact, simply stated. He's put the future out of his mind for the most part, except when sometimes it stares back at him from this mirror. ]

That - the arm - does it... hurt?

[soldieronwards]

[ He pauses at that, the old troubled look briefly back in his eyes. The actual question catches him off guard, and before he can think about it, he responds honestly. ]

Not anymore.

[redactions]

[ Not anymore. Like HYDRA had ever cared how much punishment they inflicted as long as he healed fine from it. He exhales. ]

All right.