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Who: Silverwing, Signum, Partners
What: Keeping a super hero in shape
When: April 3rd, evening
Where: Neon City, Titans Tower

Silverwing still felt a little pretentious about this request. After all, how cocky was it to say that nobody on the planet could really put her to the test? But the fact of the matter was that she was practically untouchable, just as she was in her world. Ever since her powers returned to her during that fateful fight with Tsukasa, she hadn't felt herself pushed anywhere near her limits.

It worried her that she'd been becoming sloppy. She knew, better than anyone, that there were threats out there that could beat her abilities. And if she let herself fall into a false sense of security, any one of them could take advantage of that and end her life. It wasn't likely that Yggdrasil would hand her another miracle, after all.

So she'd invited Signum to come to the Titans Tower. As far as a base went, it was underused. Far too many of the potential heroes in the world had vanished, leaving the tower unfortunately lacking in inhabitants. But it was a good facility, and she was proud to call it a home away from home.

She was on the rooftop, stretching out, and waiting for Signum to arrive. Likewise, GrappLeomon was up there too, taking care to set out refreshments. Fighting always made his mistress hungry and thirsty. A fight that pushed her anywhere near her limits would probably be even worse...

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There was a flash of pink on the horizon as Signum came flying over the city. Kotemon was beside her, a pair of White Wings keeping him aloft.

Signum had readily taken up this offer for a number of reasons. Of course, Katherine was a friend. That was the most important reason. Signum herself could use the training, but besides Kotemon there were few she trusted to do that against.

As well, she needed a distraction. Something to get her mind off of things.

So, there she was.

And there she landed, Kotemon coming in a few moments later.

Silverwing hadn't missed Signum's arrival. To say it was distinct was something of an understatement, of course. She gave Signum a grateful smile and a small wave with her fingers.

"Hello, Signum," she said. "It's good to see you, I hope you didn't have any trouble finding the place?"

GrappLeomon shook his head and sighed. "Your greetings remind me of your battle banter, Mistress," he said, and he nodded to the both of them.

Silverwing blushed, and waved it off. "What am I supposed to say?" she asked. "Let's kick each other's asses and get drinks?"

Signum gave half a smirk.

"I would have accepted that, actually," she said, and then eyed GrappLeomon. "A little over dressed, aren't we?"

Silverwing rolled her eyes at that, but she smiled just the same. "Well, it's acceptable, but hardly in good form," she said. "You're here doing me a favor, I really am quite happy to see you."

GrappLeomon looked almost smug at her observation. "Overdressed for setting out hydration and carbohydrates," he told her. "But if your partner wants to work out some as well, I'd rather be dressed than caught flatfooted."

He gave Kotemon a glance then.

Silverwing, likewise, held out her hand and summoned her blade to it. "Whatever the case... If you're eager to dance, I've been prepping myself to be ready," she offered. "I assume you're prepared?"

Kotemon wave him a small wave, but shook his head. "I shall refrain from now. To be honest, I am interested in observing Signum-san and ..." The Digimon gave a slight pause, as if thinking to correct himself. "...Silverwing's combat in motion."

The Digimon crossed his arms a bit.

"Signum-san will not go all out against me in combat, so this is the best opportunity to see it when she's not trying to openly kill someone."

Signum gave her partner a shifty look, and he merely shrugged. Sighing a bit, she looked back to Silverwing and held out the sheathed Leavatein. "Do you think I would have come here unprepared?"

Silverwing smirked back at Signum and she held her blade in front of her. "Far from it, I was simply checking to see if you were all stretched out," she commented. "And to ask you not to hold back. Back home, I danced with mini-guns and scatterpack missiles on a weekly basis. So... If you want to put your full skills to the test, I wouldn't mind you trying to kill me after you've gauged what I can do."

This time, there was a little bit of intentional smugness to her tone. Silverwing had absolute faith in her own abilities. She also had faith that Signum could do horrible things to her... but if Signum came at her with anything less than her best, this exercise wouldn't serve its purpose. At least, that was her own analysis. She HADN'T seen Signum in an extended fight just yet... And she had little doubt that what Signum threw at her when they fought as enemies was only a fraction of what she could do.

"I highly suspected that if you asked such a request of me at this point," Signum said, lowering the sheathed blade to her side, and then placing her other hand on its hilt, "you wouldn't have been seeking anything else. There's few I would, or have fought all out in this manner. Vita, yes. But even when training Erio, Caro and the others back in my world, that was a task which fell primarily upon the shoulders of Vita, Testarossa, and Nanoha. There's a reason for that, you must realize, I'm sure."

It was not that her skills were beyond those mentioned.

Not even hardly.

But there was also a reason she was spilling blood at the same time everyone else was saving people, stopping ancient weapons, and arresting wanted criminals.

"Quite right, and that is exactly why I wanted you to come after me," Silverwing said. She grinned at Signum, gave her partner a quick wink, and then shot skyward like a bolt. "Let's go!"

It was her classic opening, and one of the marks of her unique combat style. Of everyone, EVERYONE in the world who fought in the sky, Silverwing was perhaps the most prepared to not only meet gravity, but embrace it. G-Forces were her ally, and she could take what would take down even veteran pilots. It kept others from keeping up with her, from getting the drop on her with tactics that she might be unable to dodge.

And Signum, she was certain, would be better suited than most to keep up with her. She wouldn't have it any other way.

"And there they go," GrappLeomon observed, watching as they took off. "So, how long do you think it will take before I have a heart attack at my partner's expense?"

Signum gave a slight smirk. A pink aura burst around her, and she rocketed right after Silverwing. The force of traveling at such speeds were nothing new to her - she could keep up with the likes of Testarossa and Nanoha.

She didn't yet draw her blade, though, simply waiting to see what Silverwing would pull out first and attempting to keep pace with her.

Kotemon, meanwhile, merely sighed and watched the air intently.

"You should have more confidence."

"Confidence I have, especially in her," GrappLeomon pointed out. "It's instinct and protectiveness that I need to rein in. Just watch, you'll see why."

With Signum in pursuit, Silverwing wasted no time. She stopped almost dead in midair and reversed her course with no apparent discomfort. With momentum and gravity on her side, she raised her sword and brought it down in a fierce helm-splitter aimed straight for Signum's skull.

Signum stopped with equal precision, bringing up her sheath with her left hand to block the blow. He right hand then tightened on Leavatein's hilt, and she drew it and thrust it forward in a swift motion.

As Signum's hilt rose into the path of her own blade, Silverwing immediately pivoted in the air and lowered her blade, deflecting Laevatein to the side with practiced ease.

"Faster," she requested simply, her eyes twinkling.

The sheath vanished in a flash of pink light, and both of Signum's hands went to her blade's hilt. She smirked. Of course, as it was, she was only feeling out the extent of Silverwing's defenses, but already she was moderately impressed, even if it was a pretty basic move.

She brought the sword back, and then swung it high, and indeed it was in a quicker motion.

Even as Signum was bringing her sword back, Silverwing quickly spun to the side to evade the swing. As she spun, she brough her blade out so as to cut horizontally with the aid of the spin. She was aiming for Signum's ribs, but she had no illusions that she would actually hit her friend. And not for lack of trying.

"As you can see, they're already not pulling their punches," GrappLeomon pointed out.

Signum expected quick retaliation to such an obviously telegraphed blow, and she got it. As Silverwing spun around and aimed for her chest, her left hand slipped off Leavatein's handle. Her arm twisted slightly so that her forearm armor would block the blow, while her right hand twisted a bit and stopped the high swing abruptly, turning the blade slightly and bringing it diagonally at Silverwing's shoulder.

Here's where the fight was going to start getting interesting in a hurry. The constantly changing field of battle was chaotic enough. Against a trained professional, even two seconds of foresight could be changed in an instant.

Silverwing never needed two seconds. To her, that much time was an eternity when it came to dodging an attack. As Signum countered her assault with a changing attack, so too did Silverwing. The instant her blade was blocked, she was already disengaging. When Signum's blade came down, Silverwing began a cartwheel. Her shoulder dropped an instant before the blade did, allowing the attack to miss by a centimeter's width.

But that wasn't all she was doing. As she cartwheeled through the air, her flight spell brought her in a circle around Signum. As she righted herself, she cut out at Signum again. Against anyone else, it would be an attack at the back. Against Signum, she already knew that she'd be lucky to even complete the attack.

Signum cycled through her options in an instant, even as her sword swung and missed Silverwing by a hair. Panzer Geist should be saved, as should Schlagenform...

Being in the air offered a distinct advantage, of course, in that just as Silverwing currently was, she could move in any direction.

So she did.

As Silverwing's sword came for her, Signum was propelled over her, until she was facing straight down at the city, her sword striking out at the cartwheeling Silverwing's back.

In truth, Silverwing was hoping that she could provoke Signum to heavier attacks. Signum was a damned good sword fighter, but these attacks were still a little slow. Sure, they'd skewer her if she got sloppy, but it wasn't as though she were dodging bullets either.

Signum taking her back was not unexpect, but neither was it a difficult dodge. Her own slice had missed, as she expected it would, and she wasted no time in evading Signum in the simplest manner possible. She threw her body forward through the air, taking off in a shot away from her opponent, and she grinned back at Signum over her shoulder. "Catch me if you can!" she called out.

Signum could easily have chased after Silverwing, but she did not.

Instead, she merely spun back around to an upright position, and... held her blade before her, eyes focused as she watched Silverwing dart away.

While Silverwing hoped that Signum would pursue her, she hadn't expected her to. She'd honestly expected to have a barrage of fire following her to harass her at range.

Having time to actually bank and turn around, to be able to smirk at Signum from a distance was a rare pleasure for her. She raised her hand and gave a brief finger-wave before she launched herself straight toward Signum again. She held her blade at her side, not moving into any position to attack just yet. She had a lot of distance to close back on her...

That distance was only going to get shorter as Signum simply hung in the air. She stayed suspended at the same spot, only watching Silverwing rocket towards her.

Attacking Silverwing at any sort of distance would be a fool's game, a waste of her ammunition and power, and just in general a waste of time.

She tilted Leavatein to the side a bit, otherwise still not moving.

She just continued to wait until that distance was closed a bit more.

"And to think, I wanted to test my reflexes," Silverwing muttered to herself. "This is gonna suck."

Within feet of Signum, well past the point of no return, Silverwing lifted her blade ever so slightly and banked. At the speed she was flying, she only needed to clip Signum with the blade to cause serious injury.

She knew it wouldn't come to that.

And an instant after she passed Signum, she stopped dead in the air. Momentum fighting to keep her moving forward, but he spell negating it expertly while her body's protests were quietly ignored.

Seeing her coming right for her, avoiding the clip was an easy process of just spinning as she passed. She kept her eyes on Silverwing as she did, and even before she'd come to a stop, Signum was falling back away from her through the sky and snapping out her sword to the side.

"LEAVATEIN!"

{JA! SHCLAGENFORM!}

A Cartridge epxloded from Leavatein's chamber, as the blade snapped apart and extended into a long, chained blade which whipped towards Silverwing, dancing back and forth across the sky much like the snake this form was named after.

Silverwing smiled, her back still turned to Signum, and she actually closed her eyes as Laevatein's strike came at her. She snapped her right hand out, striking the flat of the lead link of Laevatein as though it were a striking cobra to direct it away from her.

She flipped over the chained blade is it continued, striking out with the sword in her left hand into the middle of the chain, and closing her right hand on the lead link. Just as the form took it's name from a snake, Silverwing's counter was to serve as a snake handler, preventing the head from landing a strike on her while simultaneously tying up its body so as to keep it from maneuvering into a better position.

She wouldn't hold the position long, Signum was too good for that, but it was a refreshing diversion.

Leavatein snapped back from Silverwing's strike, but then, so did Signum's arm, yanking it a short distance away. She flicked her wrist, then, willing Leavatein to try and encircle Silverwing's position the next instant.

With Signum's blade snapping back and encircling her, Silverwing saw two options. She could attempt to reposition out of range of the binding attack, leaving her open to another strike of some sort. Or she could counter, hopefully driving Signum back.

The choice was obvious to her. She spun in midair like an ice dancer, holding her blade out as she did so. Against all logic, she managed to bring the blade so that it cut along the length of the binding Laevatein, not just for a short time, but for the duration of the spin. Failing that, Silverwing would have been cut to ribbons. Seeing it in her mind was motivation enough to ensure that she kept her blade on course.

Even as she spun, she brought herself closer through the air towards Signum. Just as Signum had attacked with encircling blades, Silverwing was like a dervish of steel as she closed in on Signum. It wasn't a fast attack, but it was plenty dangerous.

It would have been much more so, if Signum had simply stayed in one spot. She didn't, snapping the chained sword back towards her as it collapsed back into place.

{Schwertform!}

Back in its sword form, Signum angled herself to fly over the spinning Silverwing, but simply did so monitoring her and looking for a decent opening.

Silverwing never expected to hit Signum; the only thing she intended was to keep her off the offensive. She wound down her spin and focused in Signum's direction, pausing momentarily to settle her vision after the whirlwind of motion, and then she immediately lunged in Signum's direction, cutting for her chest.

She had never been a master of combat with her sword, unlike her defense. She was moving a little too quickly after coming out of her previous attack. Against anyone else, it wouldn't make any difference, but against a trained combat expert, it was a mistake that could be seized upon.

Signum stayed steady for several moments as Silverwing lunged forward. She waited, really, until the last possibly moment, dodging deftly to the side, and bringing her sword to slice out at Silverwing's side.

Silverwing rolled to the side immediately, at the same instant that Signum dodged. She had to pull out of her attack, but it was better than getting struck. Someone better trained could probably have salvaged the attack, but by now it should have been obvious that Silverwing's powers were geared almost exclusively towards the defensive.

Still, as she came out of her own dodge, she launched another cut for Signum's hip. She also knew the value of pressing an offense.

A flash of pink, and Signum's sheath appeared back in her hand. It flew down to block the strike, before she smirked and brought her blade up and down towards Silverwing's shoulder in the next instant.

Without the same flash, Silverwing's defense was no less impressive. With her sword blocked downward, and a strike coming at her shoulder, Silverwing ducked back and turned her body to the side. The spinning motion gave her momentum for her attack, and she followed her dodge up with a rising stroke of her blade.

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The sheath came again to block Silverwing's blade, while Signum brought her blade back before slashing out again. Except this time, the blade split apart.

{SCHLAGENFORM!}

Instead of lancing for Silverwing, she swung the segmented blades to encircle the both of them, criss crossing in several places so as to make it extremely difficult to move out of close proximity with Signum without getting sliced up.

For only a fraction of a second, Silverwing paused. What raced through her head was a thousand visions of what might happen with her every move. Had she wanted to, she could have escaped the cage of segmented blades that Signum wove, but she decided not to. Running, as she'd found earlier, was not going to result in the fight that she needed here.

Still, remaining so close would limit her offensive possibilities. Of all of the attacks that she could throw, far too many of them did not end well for her. And the fact that it felt like Signum was still feeling her out was both promising, and disconcerting. Offensively, Silverwing had very little more to her than she'd already shown. But defensively, Signum had not yet even scratched the surface.

Finally, her mind settled on her next attack, and she snapped her foot up to kick into Signum's stomach. She drew her blade back as she did so, already preparing for what was to come next.

Signum took the kick, but held her "ground," so to speak. She only doubled over a bit, the wind blowing out of her for a moment, but she kept steadfast in the air, grip tightening around Leavatein's hilt.

"A bit more blunt an attack than I'd expect from you," Signum said, and smirked as another cartridge exploded and pink energy began to surge along the segments of blade surrounding them. "But Vita hits harder."

"Sorry," Silverwing said, grinning at Signum. "I'm not worried about penis size."

She snapped her blade out again striking at Signum's head. Or to be more precise, a half-inch to the side of her head. This was going to hurt no matter how she looked at it, but she had a plan.

A pulse of dark magical energy burst off of her blade. Whether the blade struck Signum, or struck her intended target of Laevatein, the magical surge would lance out into the magical energy surging along Signum's blade. The detonation would begin behind Signum, rather than simultanously all around them.

Oh, she'd still get blasted. But she could ride the explosion, and use Signum to absorb the blast to prevent being fully engulfed.

At least, that was the plan. She knew it wouldn't quite work that way the instant she made the decision to strike.

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