Rehibilitation [Solo Flashback]

[Elhaym]

13th Day of Spring, 509 AV Just outside the city gates of Syliras... Four Broken ribs. Fractured Ulna on left forearm. Severe Concussion. Broken index, middle, and ring finger on right hand. Contusions of the muscles throughout the body. Interal bleeding probable. "Son of a... bitch!" Pain screamed as she exerted herself, pushing herself up once more in a sit up. Her body was struggling to keep up with her will, but it would. Sweat glistened over her muscled arms and abdomen, drenching her clothes and flying about with every upward motion. "Sixty-eight... sixty-nine... urghhh... seventy!" Total rehabilitation is expected, but will require effort on the patients part. You wonder how this happens in a place like this. They say he just came in, and attacked her without warning. Eyewitness accounts say the man was a newcomer, and that they didn't notice him until he smashed a clay mug over her head. Pain's back slammed onto the grass, thankful for the touch and feel of natural grounds. Too long had she laid in a bed, waited on hand and foot like a cripple. Far too long. Damn, that pissed her off... she'd had a good amount of money saved up before this all started, and she had used almost everything to pay for the healers and physicians... She looks like she was in pretty good shape before she was attacked. I think she'll be fine. You never know though. Anyway, the Knights haven't been able to do anything. The girl refuses to answer any questions, she just says she doesn't know. No one else knew who he was, or so they say... I suppose whoever did this to her got away for now. Pain's right hand was still tender, but she couldn't stand to lay around anymore. She rolled onto her stomach, and spread her arms wide while bringing her legs close together. She perched on her toes, and began to push herself up, and down... up, and down. A single bead of sweat slid off Pain's nose, and she shook her head to temporarily extinguish the stinging sweat. It was in her eyes, her nose, her mouth... You know, I was watching her from across the room last night. Intially I was taking notes on another's patients progress, but I noticed her eyes were open. She had... this stare. This look in her eyes. I know it sounds odd, but even so broken and bound to that bed... well, she looked like she was plotting something. I think she'll go after him. You've seen her hands, I assume. "Yeah, you know what i'm gonna do." Pain said to herself in between tight breaths, her body pulsing up and down in a heartbeat like rythym. She normally didn't do simple push ups... they were boring. Still, she had to take it easy. Doctor's orders. Pain's muscles were hardlined on her skin, bulging and accompanied by a myriad of normally hidden veins. She was working hard, harder than she normally would for such a simple exercise. two months... maybe it had been three. She wasn't sure. It had been a long time... that son of a bitch had really done a number on her. Oh yes, I noticed it right away. She's obviously involved in some sort of martial training, with all that scar tissue buildup around her knuckles. Not typical of a twenty-three year old woman, in the least. Do you honestly think she'll try to find him? The Knights have found nothing, and he already beat her so badly... "They know nothing... because I told them nothing... twenty-nine... thirty." Pain grunted, finally collapsing to the ground. She fanned her body out, almost as if she was making a snow angel in the grass and simply laid there. It felt so cool, refreshing... but those damn voices just kept interrupting her peace. For some reason, a simple conversation between two of the physicians that had been caring for her was replaying in her mind. Pain rolled onto her back, staring skyward. She'd had to get out of those damn city walls. Her body had felt like jelly when she was finally able to move again, and both of her arms needed work. Her right hand was still tender, which was odd considering the severity of the wound she'd received on the opposite arm. Hence, the workout. Exercise. Get back into fighting form... so you can pay that son of a bitch back for what he did to you. Oh, she would. Just... not quite yet. Pain let out a grunt as she rolled backwards, bringing her knees up towards her chest as she maneuvered her body through the thick grass. She pushed hard with her arms, using the momentum from her legs as a guide... and then kicking straight up with both. The result would have been a sort of cross between a backwards somersault and a handspring, but Pain's arms hadn't been able to push quite hard enough. She landed on her knees, and cursed her weakened body. She had quite a bit of work to do yet...

[Elhaym]

Pain's leg soared through the air, arcing at such a severe angle that it appeared she might be attempting to kick herself in the head... and then her leg froze. She stood, balancing on one leg, the other extended almost straight up. Her left hand hovered near her chin balled into a loose fist as her other lingered at her side, still tense. Her balance needed work. Hell, everything needed work. She held the position for roughly chime, which was no small feat. Her muscles were beginning to cramp and ache in such an unnatural position. Pain relented, freeing her body from it's self imposed prison with a sudden movement. Her leg came down hard, and Pain began to turn her body by rotating on her other foot as the hovering leg dropped like a woodsman's ax. She bent the "attacking" leg at the knee slightly, executing what would have been her own version of a roundhouse kick had she not frozen mid-attack. "Huah!" Pain yelled, the breath leaving her lungs seeming to remove her muscles inhibitions. She'd never really believed in that until she started doing it, but for some reason she couldn't understand... yelling actually helped. She'd have to ask somebody about that. Pain's legs were relatively okay, but it wasn't just muscle mass she was looking to regain. She needed her body to become reacquainted with itself in a way. It was almost as if the fine control over her body she'd possessed had been locked away, and now she was forced to search for the key to unlock it. Well, so be it. Pain took a few deep breaths, giving her lungs the life giving air which they craved. It was beautiful outside, in Spring... the grass was green, and as Syna's grace shone down on Pain's pale skin she found that she truly appreciated being outdoors at last. The sky and it's milky clouds, the rolling countryside with it's lush grass and colorful wildflowers... and even as she turned and faced the stone wall that surrounded Syliras, it's weathered cracks and chalky shades of white and gray seemed beautiful. "Too beautiful a place for a piece of shyke like you to wander unchecked." Pain said aloud, though the man she wished could hear it was not there. Pain wasted no more time. She bent down, touching her toes with her hands while keeping her knees locked. She stretched for just a moment, pulsing up and down and touching her toes. More sweat careened towards the grass, a constant annoyance. After a set number of touches, Pain bent down slightly further and placed her palms on the grass. With a grunt, she heaved herself up into the air into a handstand. She felt her arms tremble, and pursed her lips in frustration. It might have been boundless physical strength that allowed her to maintain her form, but was most likely simple stubbornness. From her handstand, Pain slowly lowered herself by bending her elbows... lower, and lower, until... In an explosion of movement, Pain pushed will her might against the grassy earth. The result wasn't spectaculer, as she simple had jumped to her feet from the handstand, but the motion continued. Pain let her momentum carry her, pushing with her legs much as she had with her hands only seconds ago. Airborne once again, Pain executed a backflip. Her bare feet slammed into the ground, her knees bending to absorb the shock. But she didn't stop. Pain bent backwards, her arms shooting towards the ground and making contact. She violently pushed her legs, and once again managed another backwards flip. She continued this pattern, using both her hands and legs to power her movement for a cycle or two. At last, her knees simply buckled as she impacted the dirt and grass for the final time. Pain fell forward onto her knees, gasping for breath. "Gods... (huff huff)... shyke never used to be... this hard... (huff huff)..." Oh, but it would be hard. Her body had been broken, that was true. That son of a bitch had seen to that. What he couldn't break was her spirit. It was resurfacing, and beyond that... he couldn't break her vengeance. She would become as strong as she had been, nay... stronger. Her bastard father's voice filled her mind for a moment, and for once she didn't mind. The message was something she had been thinking about quite a bit for the last few months. "If someone is dead set on hurting you, then you shouldn't hesitate to hurt them back. Tenfold."

[Elhaym]

thud thud thud THUD THUD woooooshhh... Pain sailed through the air once more, but her landing was off. As her first foot hit the ground, her heel slid out from underneath her legs... and she went crashing down onto her buttocks. "Dammit!" Pain yelled from the ground, pounding the innocent grass with her curled fist. What had started as a test of agility and an attempt to perform a stunt had turned into near obsession once she realized she could no longer pull it off. Pain got to her feet, brushing off her haunches. Her clothing was dyed black, simple cotton pants that were cut off at the knee and a shirt to match... but they were both stained by the grass. The slick, glossy smears were visible to Pain. Not that it bothered her. That damn wall bothered her! What she was trying to was simple, in a sense. The walls protecting the city were situated right behind her, so she'd had an idea. She would run towards the wall, and actually leap towards it. Once she planted a foot on it, she would push as hard as she could, and try to perform a back flip off the wall and stick the landing. There wasn't really any tactical value to this maneuver that Pain could see, but it was pretty fun to attempt. Not so much fun to screw up. One foot back, the other situated forward... Pain centered her weight on the forward foot, and pushed. Her body was like a crossbow bolt, careening towards the wall in a dead sprint. Pain's arms pumped hard, her legs aching as they mashed the greenery beneath them. A stupid game, but the shear physicality of it was bringing a state of euphoria to Pain. The wall grew near, and her body reacted mechanically, one foot rising to meet the stone barrier. Impact. Pain's muscles seemed to condense, and she could feel her calf straining. Her vision was everywhere, her sight momentarily viewing the stone wall as though it were a pathway as she initiated her flip. A split second later, and her sight had dissolved into a flurry of grays, blues and greens. Her eyes weren't important at the moment, though. Pain was focusing on her body, preparing her legs for the impact... and it came. It was harsh, her knees struggling to keep their balance. Pain dug in her heels, and leaned forward ever so slightly. And there she stood. She'd done it. Pain threw her arm up in the air and let out a victory yell, almost as if she just witnessed a knockout down at the spinning coin. She knew a thing or two about that, both giving and receiving. After the brief moment of victory subsided, Pain realized how sore she already was. That wasn't a good sign. Usually, you got sore after a workout, not during... however, the thought of going back inside the city was just not tolerable. She needed the outdoors, the sun, the grass... too much time spent in a bed. Pain fell to her knees, and then onto her stomach. She spread her arms and her legs wide, letting the cool touch of the grass sooth her aching body and the calming winds flow combat her sweaty and hot skin. "I'll get you... (yawn)... back tenfold. For now... think i'll... take..." But she never did finish her sentence. It just felt too good. Cool grass beneath her, hot sun on her back, and a breeze to mediate between them. A perfect formula for a nap after a hard day of rehabilitation.

[Nisaba]

Grade Complete: XP Award! Name: Pain   XP Award Body Building- 3 XP Acrobatics- 4 XP Pain’s situps, pushups, and leg lift each earned her a point in body building for the effort (and detail) she put into them. Her (failed) backward somersault earned an acrobatics point, as did her handstand, her backflip combo, and her wall backflip. She certainly likes backflips, huh?   Lore Award Rebuilding Muscle Plotting Revenge Technique: Wall Backflip Exhaustion Additional Note: Pain gets very injured, very often. The fact that she gets hurt and works hard to recover is really impressive. Most people would ignore/bypass that part and just jump to when she was all better and ready to fight again (and/or never get seriously injured in the first place). This was a very nice training thread that gave your character an interesting story. Congratulations on getting competent level of acrobatics, as well. Maybe if she would have punched or kicked the wall, she could have even gotten unarmed combat experience--- but probably not.