[He's definitely going to ask about having wings, because that sounds crazy compared to the occasional metalbender.]
Yeah, sure. If you want to see it, it's nothing special back home. Here either really. [Of all the things he doesn't have a problem with. But that detective side of his brain is keeping track of Charles' interest in the subject.]
Sure. Rover 27. If you're lucky, there won't be elevator music.
[After he sends off the little in-joke, Mako got out of his bunk to put on his winter wear and gets followed constantly by Juji. It's not even a few minutes before he's outside and making use of his time to scrape some of the snow off the giant tires.]
[Mako brushes off the wet snow from his cold hands, turning to look at Charles.]
Yeah. Gliese needed some of the Blue Team to watch after their eggs and she gave some of the hatchlings away. [The bahari is much unlike its master and instantly sniffs at Charles' ankle.] And he can bite sometimes. [Mako gives a soft call to the animal right before it opens its mouth.]
Why wouldn't I show you? Bending's pretty normal back home, just like yours. Right?
Well, uh, yeah. It was kind of, Gliese's idea. [Mako hugs his arms to himself and gives a sharp shrug of his shoulders, looking away for a moment at Juji, who has taken up laying on the steps up to the rover doors. But he tries to tackle the reason for the meeting and unfolds one arm to gesture at Charles.]
All the time. I was to work at the power plant for a little bit. Lightning isn't too common, so it paid all right. [Literally powering the city with lighting.] Waterbenders that can heal sometimes work for the hospital or clinics. Pretty standard stuff.
[It's a lovely description of his home, if Charles could say so. The idea of using abilities to take care of things like medicine and electricity is a charming one, though not as important as the idea of it simply being accepted so widely.]
Standard, perhaps, for your world. In mine, people are only beginning to discover their abilities, and I can't say those who know about us have been as receptive as we'd like.
Well, there's probably always going to be people like that. [Since the Fire Nation's aggressive move, being a firebender still gets looked down on here and there. And that's without the Equalist movement.] All it takes is one insane guy with a big mouth and some crazy abilities.
Experience. [Mako sours, but not at Charles.] Some guy named Amon tried to start a revolution against benders, started a war in the city. He could take a person's bending away, so he had a really convincing show going on. Almost took mine away after he took Korra's.
That's because she managed to get it back, and restored other people's. Korra and I stopped him because Amon was a bender himself. She exposed him to his followers and the Equalist movement fell apart because of it. [He almost says that he can get the police report if Charle's wants it, but he gives an unsatisfied smirk to put that thought away. Impossible to do when on another world.]
It wasn't easy for her, but she's got all four elements again. Been that way for almost a year now. [Until the the CDC picked them both up and plopped them on Hoth Ajna.]
[Charles is completely sincere as he says it. To lose the ability you were born with could only be painful in a way that Charles hopes few will ever know.]
Your friend must be quite determined and willful, to have overcome that.
[Mako only gives a fleeting grin.] She's like that. Doesn't always help, but it really counts when it does.
[Putting that nagging thought on the table, because Mako's not one to sit on something too long when he's got a hunch.] So I show you some firebending and you let me know if you've got one of those mutation abilities from your world?
[Charles is taking too much interest in bending, and it's hitting a few alarms for the detective.]
[Mako nods and waits until Charles is a good distance enough away.
Having seen this all his life, which is to say months, Juji merely stretches out before staying on his back to watch them from an upside down point of view. Cats.
The exhibition is purely Mako's personal style of firebending, primarily focused on speed and power. Slightly flashy, but effective. The fire that seems to fly straight off his fists gives off just as much heat as one would think and the forms are easily identifiable as martial arts. After sending off a few jabs of fire along with some fireballs, the basics any firebender in pro-bending would use to warm up, Mako stops and uses his boots to push away the slush of snow the exhibition created.]
Takes some training to learn and get the control down, but it's helped me out of some tight spots.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
She did?
[Why can’t he actually stop and read messages before hitting send?]
FROM: mako@cdc.org
Well, I mean yeah. We’ve been on a team before, so that makes sense. [SUBJECT CHANGE:] She tell you about our bending?
[Because if she didn’t that question might sound just a little weird.]
no subject
FROM: xavier.charles@cdc.org
No, we never got to that subject. What is bending?
no subject
[And he's surprised Korra didn't take the chance to show off her bending.]
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So bending is what you call these elemental powers? We call those born with special abilities "mutants" in my world.
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[It's been either all aliens or some freak accident that makes people different, not simply being born a little different.]
Just elements?
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Perhaps. We use the term mutants because of the genetic factor.
For us, mutations can manifest as any kind of ability. Controlling metal or wings that can be used to fly are only two examples.
02
Would you be willing to demonstrate your bending?
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Yeah, sure. If you want to see it, it's nothing special back home. Here either really. [Of all the things he doesn't have a problem with. But that detective side of his brain is keeping track of Charles' interest in the subject.]
Got a place in mind?
no subject
no subject
[After he sends off the little in-joke, Mako got out of his bunk to put on his winter wear and gets followed constantly by Juji. It's not even a few minutes before he's outside and making use of his time to scrape some of the snow off the giant tires.]
action
Hello again, Mako. I appreciate you humouring my request.
[He watches Juji for a moment.] Yours?
action
Yeah. Gliese needed some of the Blue Team to watch after their eggs and she gave some of the hatchlings away. [The bahari is much unlike its master and instantly sniffs at Charles' ankle.] And he can bite sometimes. [Mako gives a soft call to the animal right before it opens its mouth.]
Why wouldn't I show you? Bending's pretty normal back home, just like yours. Right?
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[He might just be mentioning Korra to see what Mako's real time reaction is, because he can.]
And...no, actually. I was just about to ask you that. You say bending is a normal part of your world? People openly use their bending?
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All the time. I was to work at the power plant for a little bit. Lightning isn't too common, so it paid all right. [Literally powering the city with lighting.] Waterbenders that can heal sometimes work for the hospital or clinics. Pretty standard stuff.
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Standard, perhaps, for your world. In mine, people are only beginning to discover their abilities, and I can't say those who know about us have been as receptive as we'd like.
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[Mako unfolds his arms and inclines his head.]
What's the problem with it? Having wings to fly sounds pretty incredible.
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To them, our abilities are too new, too frightening for them to understand. They see us as threats because of it.
[Charles gets a faraway look in his eyes.]
But I believe we can overcome this obstacle and live together in peace eventually.
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Well, there's probably always going to be people like that. [Since the Fire Nation's aggressive move, being a firebender still gets looked down on here and there. And that's without the Equalist movement.] All it takes is one insane guy with a big mouth and some crazy abilities.
no subject
Speaking from experience or simply making an observation?
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She lost her bending? You didn't mention that earlier.
[Surely it would be a sore topic, if things happened the way Mako's described. So there must be something else going on.]
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It wasn't easy for her, but she's got all four elements again. Been that way for almost a year now. [Until the the CDC picked them both up and plopped them on
HothAjna.]no subject
[Charles is completely sincere as he says it. To lose the ability you were born with could only be painful in a way that Charles hopes few will ever know.]
Your friend must be quite determined and willful, to have overcome that.
no subject
[Putting that nagging thought on the table, because Mako's not one to sit on something too long when he's got a hunch.] So I show you some firebending and you let me know if you've got one of those mutation abilities from your world?
[Charles is taking too much interest in bending, and it's hitting a few alarms for the detective.]
no subject
That sounds a fair enough trade.
[Charles moves out of the way. He might not have seen bending before, but anything that involves fire would probably warrant some caution.]
Whenever you're ready.
no subject
Having seen this all his life, which is to say months, Juji merely stretches out before staying on his back to watch them from an upside down point of view. Cats.
The exhibition is purely Mako's personal style of firebending, primarily focused on speed and power. Slightly flashy, but effective. The fire that seems to fly straight off his fists gives off just as much heat as one would think and the forms are easily identifiable as martial arts. After sending off a few jabs of fire along with some fireballs, the basics any firebender in pro-bending would use to warm up, Mako stops and uses his boots to push away the slush of snow the exhibition created.]
Takes some training to learn and get the control down, but it's helped me out of some tight spots.