#strqyr.queue

[strqyr]

while training, cinder is not comfortable with her grimm arm, yet; this is made clear when the beringel leaps at her, and she reverts to using her right arm to kill it, instead of her left that she was using just moments ago. she's clearly not doing well, falling to her knees and breathing heavily, when salem speaks: "i thought you were the girl who wanted power? did you lie to me?", telling her to stop holding back, that if cinder wishes to master her new powers, she must—, which is left unclear by tyrian's arrival.

yang, meanwhile, is comfortable with her new prosthetic, even voicing her own surprise at the fact, having thought it would be a huge weight, but instead she feels perfectly balanced with it. more than anything, there are no signs at yang being at her limit or pushing too hard; they've been at it for weeks, taking the training step-by-step, tai making sure that yang is ready. he warns her of relying too much on her semblance, especially when it comes to saving it for tough spots: "but what happens if you miss? what happens if they're stronger? what then? now you're just weak and tired!" and to keep her emotions in check, to keep a level head and think before she acts.

and yang learns: in haven, mercury grabs her arm, her eyes turn red, and before, she might have just turned around and punched mercury square in the face; instead, she lets her prosthetic arm go, focusing on getting to the vault, making herself more vulnerable in the process without even knowing what kind of situation actually awaits her in the vault, and it pays off.

salem has cautioned cinder before, but i feel like for cinder, all of it got banished from her head the moment salem told her to stop holding back while she was still at her weakest, on her knees, still recovering. so against raven, she did exactly that, starting with one sword, then two, then a big one, and whaddaya know: none of it got her the upper hand. raven could match her and at times outsmart her, when cinder was so laser-focused on her that she failed to pay attention to her surroundings.

and as a result, cinder ended up kneeling on the ground, weak and tired, when none of her usual methods that she relied upon worked.

#strqyr.queue