Escalation
Ness stepped out into the fenced in yard behind the arcade, the red fence making a plainly defined battleground covered in grass, bordered on the other side by buildings with a few trees around the edges. Standing near the back of the yard was a blonde man with expertly coiffed hair, dark shades, slight stubble, and a bright red suit. Swallowing nervously, Ness walked up to the man, Moondancer and Buzz Buzz hanging back at this point.
The man turned to stare at Ness in silence for a time. When Ness didn't say anything, he spoke up. "I'm Frank," he stated flatly, his voice intense as he slowly unfolded his arms, hands going into his pockets. "You are?"
Ness swallowed convulsively, desperately trying to make his mouth work, but no sound came out. This wasn't just some stranger, this was a dangerous adult. He was barely able to speak to kids his own age beyond single words. Getting his name out to the kids in the clubhouse had been an achievement. He could only speak clearly to Pokey and Picky because he was so used to Pokey rambling on and on about how great he was and every 'rule' of the games he came up with that it had become white noise, and talking to them felt no different than talking to his Mom or to Tracy. They were constants in his life...though he wouldn't go so far as to say friends. Picky was more Tracy's friend than his, and Pokey...was Pokey.
When Ness didn't say anything in response, his thin lips turned downward into a frown. "C'mon, can't you at least say your name?"
Finding an answer he could give, Ness shook his head violently, clutching his bat close for a feeling of safety.
Frank's eyebrow raised. "Really? Can't say your own name to me...and yet you come in here with a weapon after having trounced plenty of my boys...it's not cowardice, no. Social anxiety, huh?" His lips turned upwards in a grin. "And you come here despite that. Now that takes guts. You sure you don't want to join up?"
Ness shook his head firmly, managing to calm down now that Frank was willing to do all the talking.
"So you're here to stop me then?" Frank questioned wickedly.
Ness nodded, shifting out of his tense stance into a combat stance.
Frank laughed. "Kid, I like your spunk! Just wish I knew your name before we got started." Pulling his hands out of his pockets, he brandished two butterfly knives. "I'll try not to mess you up too badly-"
"Put the knives down," Moondancer ordered flatly as she leveled the Borange Ray right at Frank's head.
Frank turned towards Moondancer in shock. He hadn't even been aware of her presence until she spoke, and all he could actually perceive was some chick having pulled a gun on him. "What is this?" he demanded angrily. "Are you getting in the middle of a man to man fight?"
"Not if you put the knives away," Moondancer stated flatly.
"But he's got a bat!" Frank complained.
"And you're twice his age with some martial arts training," Moondancer countered. "Put the knives down, or I shoot you."
"And how am I supposed to hold my own against a bat and a gun?" Frank demanded angrily.
"You won't," Moondancer continued. "Ness needs to learn to stand on his own. Put the knives away, and I put my gun away, and then you two can go at it 'like men', if that's what you want."
"What are you, his mother?" Frank demanded angrily.
"...more like a new big sister," Moondancer allowed. "Now...knives down, or do I shoot you?"
Smirking, Frank folded the knives up and slipped them back into his pockets. "What about my mech?" he asked, jerking his head towards the tree beside him.
Does the mech have any blades? Moondancer asked Buzz Buzz silently.
Buzz Buzz sped over to behind the tree, then came back. Just a fist and treads.
"You can use the mech if you prefer," Moondancer allowed. "Will that even things against a little boy with a bat?"
"Knives aren't okay, but a mech is?" Ness demanded in shock.
"I don't know if I can heal stab wounds with my standard PSI, and I don't want to find out I can't if I can avoid the situation," Moondancer explained easily. "Bruises, bone cracks, contusions, bleeding...those I can handle easily, and your own PSI is strengthening your body so you should be fine short of the mech rolling over you, and you know how to dodge that. Worst you'll get is a side-swipe."
"You don't sound like you even want to fight me," Frank observed to Ness. "Why are you here, then? What are you really after?"
Ness swallowed nervously. "G...Gi...Gia..."
"Giant Step?" Frank deduced. "Yeah, the Mayor and Chief of Police forbid anyone going up there after my boys trashed the cabin. That and all the freaky things going on with the wildlife. So you came to take down my gang, thinking that'd get you in good enough with the Mayor that he'll give you the key?"
Ness blinked in surprise, and turned to Moondancer. "Is that why we're doing this? I thought it was just general good-deed hero stuff."
"It does seem to make sense," Moondancer allowed. "I'd wondered how this would get us to Giant Step."
"Why are you trying to get there, anyway?" Frank asked curiously.
"I need to record the song there to save the world," Ness answered, his momentary distraction over an actual path of adventure letting him get a complete sentence out.
Frank burst into surprised laughter. "You're crazy!"
"I'm a talking candy colored pony with an alien space gun that shoots concentrated madness," Moondancer pointed out flatly. "Sanity's overrated at this point."
"...that job at Mach Pizza's sounding better and better..." Frank murmured softly.
"Does that mean I don't get to fight the mech?" Ness asked sadly.
Frank stared at Ness in amazement...and then his mouth stretched into a wide grin. "Stay right there, kid." He ducked behind the tree.
With a great deal of clanking, a wooden construction rolled out. The top part of it was somewhat humanoid, with a caricature of Frank's face on the head, two large fist arms, a smoke stack, and tank treads on the bottom. "Behold, Frankystien Mark 2!"
Ness braced himself as he choked up on the bat. It was time to test himself.
Moondancer calmly held her bag of popcorn up to Buzz Buzz, who took a single kernel to enjoy for the fight.
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coiffed (pronounced the same though)
It's been a long time since I last played any game in the Mother series so I've forgotten if Franktstien Mark 1 ever turned up, even if it was only in conversation...
8402760
He himself is mark I. Narcesist much?
8402871
Don't worry...he'll start referring to himself as Failure Frank soon enough...
Okay, that was amusing.
You KNOW he wanted to use that Mech.
8402751
Dunno about being pronounced the same.
I've always said quaffed as 'kwa'-ffed and coiffed as 'coy'-ffed. I'm probably wrong though.
But, yeah, one means "to drink" and the other means "the style of combing the hair"
8402917 This.
8403231
Nope, both are properly pronounced as "kwa"ffed.
What does 'standing on his own' have to do with her babying him, exactly?
Anyways, rather than debate this utterly stupid moment, I'm just going to make a silly drabble.
{Frank Fly: Okay. Give me your best shot.
Moondancer: If you say so. *Fires the shot at his head*
Frank Fly: *Holds up a knife in front of his head*
*The shot is cleaved in half, missing him entirely*
Moondancer: Wh-what?! But how?!
Frank Fly: Easy. A butter knife can cut through a bullet. So who's to say a butterfly knife won't do the same to a stronger gun's ammunition?
Moondancer:... You just did that for the pun, didn't you?
Frank Fly: Maybe, but it makes more sense than cutting up a kid like you thought I was gonna do. I brandish knives, lady, I don't actually use them against kids that are at most 8 years younger than me. If you want to talk about being 'unfair', talk to those cops who beat up kids despite them having permission from the Mayor to go onto the next town.
Captain Strong: I'm an allegory!
Frank Fly: Yes, yes you are. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a face to get smashed in by a 13-year-old ki-
*Thwack!*
Ness: Smaaaash!!}
8403684
She's letting him face the danger he can handle, and when foes are reasonable drawing the line at things that could potentially hurt him in ways he won't recover from. She didn't say "no, you can't fight him", she said "no, you can't use a knife". And she encouraged him using a tank.
Just no knives.
Best line yet.
Moondancer is a...great pal.
8403735
Tanks are fine, but knives are super illegal.
Everyone knows that.
8407144
Dang it! rushes off to hide knife collection
8409214
*pops out of a shady alley*
Do you want some chocolate knives kid?
...
No? Alright....
*goes back into shady alley*
*you check the shady alley*
*the alley is a dead end and the chocolate knife dealer is nowhere to be seen*
8451618
Of chocolate or for chocolate?