It was befitting that Swat had mentioned photography to Martia earlier, as the area she'd told Martia to meet her in was, in itself, highly photogenic. Soil with loose patches of various grasses spread across the net on one side of the jack in point, while on the other, a formation of plateaus lingered, casting a refreshing shadow that did a lot to mask the heat of this particular area of Yumland. Grasses grew along the outside portion of the plateau. Further in to the maze like formation, other types of plants were growing. She heard water flowing deeper in, indicating the presence of a river... there might even be caves, or a canyon, further past the hilly region.
Sitting in a little groove of one of the plateaus was Swat, dressed in the same arctic camo pants (sort of unfitting given the climate) and tank top that Martia had seen her wearing the first time they met. Martia could only guess if she was also wearing the same underwear, but it was quite likely. Her long, white hair looked damp from moisture, likely produced by whatever water source Martia was hearing, but her clothes, for the most part, did not. The navi was flipping through some sort of binder with an utterly unamused look on her face, which fit her well. Her only two expressions, as far as Martia knew, were cold indifference and cocky smirking. Still, she'd trusted Martia enough to invite her back for another mission, so that might be at least a little encouraging. If the photographer they needed to motivate was around, he must be further into the maze-like area, because Swat was ostensibly the only person here.
Swat's Meetup Point
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In her usual pink beam of light, Martia arrived on the scene. She arguably wasn't any better dressed for the Yumlandian climate than Swat, seeing as how everywhere but her face was covered by at least one layer. On the bright side, her thinner Navi armor was probably more breathable than a regular pair of pants, so aside from her head and torso, she most likely wouldn't feel like she was in a sauna. "Phew, this place is steamy!"
"Well, it IS Yumland, after all. So, you see Swat around here?"
"Hmm...yep!" There she was, up on a plateau. For no apparent reason other than showing off. Somehow, this was less than surprising to her. "Hey, Swat! I'm here!" She stepped out from the shadow and waved up at her, trading taking some extra heat for the ability to be easily seen. Not that her mostly bright pink outfit didn't stick out like a sore thumb anyway.
"Well, it IS Yumland, after all. So, you see Swat around here?"
"Hmm...yep!" There she was, up on a plateau. For no apparent reason other than showing off. Somehow, this was less than surprising to her. "Hey, Swat! I'm here!" She stepped out from the shadow and waved up at her, trading taking some extra heat for the ability to be easily seen. Not that her mostly bright pink outfit didn't stick out like a sore thumb anyway.
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Swat turned her eyes to watch Martia, then wordlessly summoned one of her familiar ziplines and swooped down to join her companion while carrying the binder under one arm. "Thank you for coming," she responded. "I know you don't know me very well, but money's good everywhere and it's the same no matter who you get it from, right?" She flipped her long white hair over her shoulder again, then moved to stand beneath the shade. She was clearly most accustomed to Sharo, so the heat didn't look to be agreeing with her. "There will be zenny in it for you if you can help me out. Well, I'll reward you just for helping, but if this works out, I can probably afford to pay you more since it'll be a good sign for my own paycheck. You know how it works."
She moved the binder to her hand and then quickly tossed it to Martia, not giving her the proper heads up she ought to. "This is a portfolio of some of the work of the photographer, PhotoMan. It's in chronological order. To me, it's all just eye candy photos... but the boss, Showbizz, assures me that you can see a clear spike in quality near the recent photos... that promptly falls back off again in the ones from the past few weeks. It's driving her crazy because he's just lost everything that he'd gained. PhotoMan had some real inspiration for a while and was getting work done... Stuff you don't even have to advertise because it just sells by word of mouth. When you're outselling projections on photograph books in an age where everyone lives on the internet and can get porno pics whenever they want, that's a real feat. We want that money back. Lately, he's back to the same old crap he started with. Serviceable, professional, but not likely to make us that same money we were looking at a few weeks ago."
Indeed, Martia would notice as she looked through the photos (if she did, it was a little odd looking at so many shots of girl navis in bikinis and similar attire), the ones towards the front were amateur, then more professional, then finally truly remarkable, with motivated looking subjects and masterful scenic arrangement... then back down into the usual routine.
"Correction: we need that money back. Showbizz doesn't taste success and then go back down into mediocrity. Once she finds a winner, she wants it around to stay. So let me explain what I've got planned," she continued, leaning her toned upper back against the relatively cool rock wall behind her. "There's a navi that he was talking about for a while that he wants to do more shoots with, but he says he can't contact her. Won't say why. But the main point is that he says she's inspirational... he says if his subject doesn't inspire him, there's nothing he can do. So that got me thinking... you know, I'm no judge of this kind of thing... but I was thinking back to older personalities we've featured on our specials and which ones made an impact. I remembered your work during that lame aerobics program we did. You know, you could have just phoned that in and nobody would have cared at all. I thought that's what you were doing, honestly. But once you and the tall girl with all the muscles, can't remember her name, got rolling, then you and me did our thing... I knew that there was more to you. You're motivated and you've got 'the goods.' Those kinds of things, I think, are what will inspire him. To be clear: I gave him some names, even offered to do it myself, but he shot everything down. He hates me anyways," she scoffed, showing obvious annoyance the more she talked about the photographer.
She grabbed the portfolio back and placed it under her arm again, then fixed Martia again with her unsettling glare. "I think this is my best shot. I need you to model for him..." she continued, stating the goal of the mission that was becoming increasingly obvious. "But the catch is that I haven't told him you're coming. If I mentioned you or your name to him, he'd just say no without giving you a chance... So instead, he's doing a shoot with one of the nobodies right now. I imagine it's going terribly, cause she's not special and he's not motivated. I want you to interrupt him, doing something really photogenic, and tell him that you want to model for him. If you do that, he may just take some shots... But that little motivation might hold him for a while longer until we figure out a permanent solution. Who knows... he might even pay you something on top of what I'm paying you. Then you'd get even more money. Who can argue with that much money?" she laughed, shrugging her shoulders with a cynical smirk.
She moved the binder to her hand and then quickly tossed it to Martia, not giving her the proper heads up she ought to. "This is a portfolio of some of the work of the photographer, PhotoMan. It's in chronological order. To me, it's all just eye candy photos... but the boss, Showbizz, assures me that you can see a clear spike in quality near the recent photos... that promptly falls back off again in the ones from the past few weeks. It's driving her crazy because he's just lost everything that he'd gained. PhotoMan had some real inspiration for a while and was getting work done... Stuff you don't even have to advertise because it just sells by word of mouth. When you're outselling projections on photograph books in an age where everyone lives on the internet and can get porno pics whenever they want, that's a real feat. We want that money back. Lately, he's back to the same old crap he started with. Serviceable, professional, but not likely to make us that same money we were looking at a few weeks ago."
Indeed, Martia would notice as she looked through the photos (if she did, it was a little odd looking at so many shots of girl navis in bikinis and similar attire), the ones towards the front were amateur, then more professional, then finally truly remarkable, with motivated looking subjects and masterful scenic arrangement... then back down into the usual routine.
"Correction: we need that money back. Showbizz doesn't taste success and then go back down into mediocrity. Once she finds a winner, she wants it around to stay. So let me explain what I've got planned," she continued, leaning her toned upper back against the relatively cool rock wall behind her. "There's a navi that he was talking about for a while that he wants to do more shoots with, but he says he can't contact her. Won't say why. But the main point is that he says she's inspirational... he says if his subject doesn't inspire him, there's nothing he can do. So that got me thinking... you know, I'm no judge of this kind of thing... but I was thinking back to older personalities we've featured on our specials and which ones made an impact. I remembered your work during that lame aerobics program we did. You know, you could have just phoned that in and nobody would have cared at all. I thought that's what you were doing, honestly. But once you and the tall girl with all the muscles, can't remember her name, got rolling, then you and me did our thing... I knew that there was more to you. You're motivated and you've got 'the goods.' Those kinds of things, I think, are what will inspire him. To be clear: I gave him some names, even offered to do it myself, but he shot everything down. He hates me anyways," she scoffed, showing obvious annoyance the more she talked about the photographer.
She grabbed the portfolio back and placed it under her arm again, then fixed Martia again with her unsettling glare. "I think this is my best shot. I need you to model for him..." she continued, stating the goal of the mission that was becoming increasingly obvious. "But the catch is that I haven't told him you're coming. If I mentioned you or your name to him, he'd just say no without giving you a chance... So instead, he's doing a shoot with one of the nobodies right now. I imagine it's going terribly, cause she's not special and he's not motivated. I want you to interrupt him, doing something really photogenic, and tell him that you want to model for him. If you do that, he may just take some shots... But that little motivation might hold him for a while longer until we figure out a permanent solution. Who knows... he might even pay you something on top of what I'm paying you. Then you'd get even more money. Who can argue with that much money?" she laughed, shrugging her shoulders with a cynical smirk.
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A Navi with lesser reflexes probably would've gotten smacked in the head by a flying binder, but having the skills of a world class martial artist meant Martia was able to react quickly enough to grab it. She had no idea about the quality of the work, but she did have someone she could ask, at least. "Hey Leslie, can you take a look at some of these, and tell if they get better, then worse?"
"Huh? Just because I'm into other girls, doesn't mean I'm a photography expert!"
"No, but you're part of the potential market for it. I'm not."
"Fine..." The real world martial artist skimmed through the pictures, stopping for a moment to admire a couple she really liked. "It's like she said. It's starts off okay, then it gets really good...and then it goes back to okay."
"All right, so if nothing else, we know for sure that part's true." Not that she didn't believe Swat, but she herself had admitted she couldn't tell the difference...so it was nice to get confirmation. With that settled, she listened to the rest of the other Navi's spiel. She didn't quite agree with the part about her being 'inspiring', but she certainly wasn't going to say no at this point. "Honestly, I'm not too sure if I'll be able to get to him...but I'll give it a try!" ...Hey, when did she take back the binder? She must've been pretty lost in thought to not notice that.
"Hey, don't doubt yourself. You're sweet, and have a killer body. If that doesn't get his creative juices flowing, nothing will!"
"...I'm not sure I'd care for any 'juices' to flow..." That just reminded her of the whole hot dog thing...not her finest moment, that. "But anyway, where's the set? I don't see it from here, wherever it is."
"Huh? Just because I'm into other girls, doesn't mean I'm a photography expert!"
"No, but you're part of the potential market for it. I'm not."
"Fine..." The real world martial artist skimmed through the pictures, stopping for a moment to admire a couple she really liked. "It's like she said. It's starts off okay, then it gets really good...and then it goes back to okay."
"All right, so if nothing else, we know for sure that part's true." Not that she didn't believe Swat, but she herself had admitted she couldn't tell the difference...so it was nice to get confirmation. With that settled, she listened to the rest of the other Navi's spiel. She didn't quite agree with the part about her being 'inspiring', but she certainly wasn't going to say no at this point. "Honestly, I'm not too sure if I'll be able to get to him...but I'll give it a try!" ...Hey, when did she take back the binder? She must've been pretty lost in thought to not notice that.
"Hey, don't doubt yourself. You're sweet, and have a killer body. If that doesn't get his creative juices flowing, nothing will!"
"...I'm not sure I'd care for any 'juices' to flow..." That just reminded her of the whole hot dog thing...not her finest moment, that. "But anyway, where's the set? I don't see it from here, wherever it is."
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"You think I'd lie to you?" Swat asked Martia with a piercing glare, while crossing her arms beneath her breasts. "Well... I might," she admitted, shrugging indifferently. "But only if there was profit or ratings to be had from doing so. There isn't, in this case. But anyway, to be blunt, I have no idea if you'll do the for him either. I'm just throwing a dart at the board and hoping it sticks. I do know he's harder to please than you'd think... I thought he was just some perv, but girls with big boobs are a dime a dozen on the net, where people just make em as big as they want, and we've thrown him a lot of those already... so just having the body won't be enough. He's looking for something extra. Damn if I know what, though."
Swat lowered her eyebrows at the juices joke. "He'd better not let an anything loose like that. The moment it gets out that our resident artiste has a passion for letting loose the juice while he works, the moment we've got to fire him to avoid a PR nightmare," she sighed. "He's filming inside these caves here. I say caves, but they're pretty well illuminated, for the most part, by the sun coming through at different angles. It's all very picturesque and photogenic, I'm sure," she scoffed, leaning her hips and rolling her eyes in a way that made it obvious that she wasn't one for the artsy fartsy business. "Anyways, he was taking his shots near a waterfall last I saw, so just follow the sound of the water crashing down. Should be easy."
The standoffish servant of Showbizz didn't ask if Martia had other questions. She shot a zipline back up to the little groove in the wall where she'd been reclining. "Remember, don't tell him I sent you. Your entrance has to be good... ideally you want him to want you to model for him, which means it's best if he asks you, not the other way around. If you want my advice, just try something off the wall and eye catching... his best photos were like... oiling up a girl on a private beach and spanking a drummer in Electopian loincloth underwear. I guess what I'm saying is, he's a weird, kinky guy. Gross, at least I think so. So try to use that."
It didn't sound like Martia was in for a good time. She saw the entrance into the cliffs ahead of her, although it might be easiest to find PhotoMan looking from overhead rather than ground level. Just past the entrance, she'd see a stream she could follow (pretty and likely refreshing given the heat), or she could go into the caves. The sound of the waterfall would be easy to follow either way... It seemed to lead to the end of the steam, which vanished underneath some rocks... that probably meant the waterfall was coming out from what looked underwater, from this vantage point.
To summarize, Martia could approach from above (atop the plateaus), inside (through the caves), or the stream and over the waterfall (it'd require swimming through).
"You might also want to use a .gmo... he probably has one for you... heck, you probably have a free one. But let me know if I need to toss you one," Swat called down. "Or just go like you are. It's not a terrible look, I guess," she shrugged. Pink probably wasn't her personal taste.
Swat lowered her eyebrows at the juices joke. "He'd better not let an anything loose like that. The moment it gets out that our resident artiste has a passion for letting loose the juice while he works, the moment we've got to fire him to avoid a PR nightmare," she sighed. "He's filming inside these caves here. I say caves, but they're pretty well illuminated, for the most part, by the sun coming through at different angles. It's all very picturesque and photogenic, I'm sure," she scoffed, leaning her hips and rolling her eyes in a way that made it obvious that she wasn't one for the artsy fartsy business. "Anyways, he was taking his shots near a waterfall last I saw, so just follow the sound of the water crashing down. Should be easy."
The standoffish servant of Showbizz didn't ask if Martia had other questions. She shot a zipline back up to the little groove in the wall where she'd been reclining. "Remember, don't tell him I sent you. Your entrance has to be good... ideally you want him to want you to model for him, which means it's best if he asks you, not the other way around. If you want my advice, just try something off the wall and eye catching... his best photos were like... oiling up a girl on a private beach and spanking a drummer in Electopian loincloth underwear. I guess what I'm saying is, he's a weird, kinky guy. Gross, at least I think so. So try to use that."
It didn't sound like Martia was in for a good time. She saw the entrance into the cliffs ahead of her, although it might be easiest to find PhotoMan looking from overhead rather than ground level. Just past the entrance, she'd see a stream she could follow (pretty and likely refreshing given the heat), or she could go into the caves. The sound of the waterfall would be easy to follow either way... It seemed to lead to the end of the steam, which vanished underneath some rocks... that probably meant the waterfall was coming out from what looked underwater, from this vantage point.
To summarize, Martia could approach from above (atop the plateaus), inside (through the caves), or the stream and over the waterfall (it'd require swimming through).
"You might also want to use a .gmo... he probably has one for you... heck, you probably have a free one. But let me know if I need to toss you one," Swat called down. "Or just go like you are. It's not a terrible look, I guess," she shrugged. Pink probably wasn't her personal taste.
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"What? No, no! It's not that I didn't believe you, it's just that you didn't seem all that sure about it. I was just getting a second opinion, that's all!" While Swat was apparently fine with thinking that she didn't really trust her, Martia was less fine with Swat thinking that she didn't trust her. It just wasn't her style. "And, don't worry about what I said...about the juices. It just brings back a bad memory..." Dressing up as a superhero? Fun. Getting covered in white fluid? Not so much. "Anyway, I've got it. Don't worry, I'll get his inspiration up and running!...That came out totally wrong..." She raised a fist as she declared her future success, but slowly lowered it afterward...
All right, now for the important question. Since she was going to deal with someone...offbeat, she might want to do a little scouting first. But, to do that, she had to be sneaky. So it would best if she went the way least likely for her to accidentally end up in a shot. And to her, for various reasons, that would be...through the caves. According to Swat, it wouldn't be too hard to find him, regardless of route, so at least that wasn't a problem.
"Hey, Martia."
"Yeah?"
"I'm going to put myself on closed transmission, so only you can hear me. That way, I can talk and stuff, and it won't disrupt anything, without leaving you completely alone."
"Thanks, Leslie!" Despite the whole photo shoot thing, Martia did know her operator enough to know that she was just trying to be genuinely helpful, and not just being a perv or anything. ...All right, time for some spelunking! Quiet, subdued spelunking, anyway. She really didn't want to be seen, after all.
All right, now for the important question. Since she was going to deal with someone...offbeat, she might want to do a little scouting first. But, to do that, she had to be sneaky. So it would best if she went the way least likely for her to accidentally end up in a shot. And to her, for various reasons, that would be...through the caves. According to Swat, it wouldn't be too hard to find him, regardless of route, so at least that wasn't a problem.
"Hey, Martia."
"Yeah?"
"I'm going to put myself on closed transmission, so only you can hear me. That way, I can talk and stuff, and it won't disrupt anything, without leaving you completely alone."
"Thanks, Leslie!" Despite the whole photo shoot thing, Martia did know her operator enough to know that she was just trying to be genuinely helpful, and not just being a perv or anything. ...All right, time for some spelunking! Quiet, subdued spelunking, anyway. She really didn't want to be seen, after all.
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"Don't get your gi knotted, I don't really give a damn whether you trust me or not, Swat sighed, somehow sighing loud enough so that her voice carried down from her elevated position. "I do, however, give a damn about this guy getting out of his slump. So good luck," she finished, as Martia disappeared inside the caves.
Despite what Swat had said, the visibility inside the caves was really pretty much fifty fifty. Sometimes there would be no cave ceiling at all, making the room sweltering and bright. Other times, the light would peek through in cracks, giving the cave a fantasy vibe that was pretty, but not ideal to navigation. Still other times, the area would be pitch black, and she'd simply need to find another way around. She could feel the elevation dropping as she continued making her way through. Presumably, light would become more scarce at some point.
Thankfully, Martia didn't have to go much deeper before she heard the waterfall grow so loud that she could only assume it would be around the corner. Light was shining into the next room and, although she couldn't see the water itself, she could see two navis. The first was an average sized man, a little thin, wearing gray armor over a darker gray undersuit. Given that his helmet had a camera lens extending out from a plate over one of the eyes and that he was make, it stood to reason that he was PhotoMan.
He was speaking to a tanned Electopian girl with long and dark brown hair. The girl was wearing a white cheong-sam dress that fit her large chest rather snuggly and showed off most of her legs, with a cloth covering the front and back. A curved sword with a red take at the end hung at her waist, tied to a scarlet colored sash. The two were speaking to one another in quiet voices, possibly because the echo would make them impossible to hear other-wise. The man looked completely unenthused, frowning into the woman's face as she, in turn, frowned with a worried look.
"Yes... Yes... We did get a number of usable shots... You'll be paid a commission based on sales... I don't know what to expect from the sales yet... No, I can't offer up front payment... well, the average value of commissions is a number that won't contribute much information since it varies wildly based on consumer interest... how do I think you'll do... I expect sales on the lower end..
That answer didn't seem to please the woman, who put her hand on the sword at her side and asked again.
"That's only based on my own assumptions, the market could out perform those expectations," he murmured, holding up his hands and backing away. He appeared to be a wimp and maybe a push over. The girl seemed satisfied enough with that, nodded, and then jacked out. The man frowned more deeply now; the sound of machinery clicking echoed through the cave. "There's no way I can market these... nobody wants to see photographs of a mafia goon with an over-inflated opinion of herself. I'm a photographer, not an alchemist," he sighed in a low, completely monotone voice. Martia was unable to tell if he was talking to himself or his operator.
He sat down on a cross-legged director's chair and cradled his head in his hands, staring at the floor and looking like an utter sad sack. "Well... The next model should be a while," he spoke out loud, then proceeded to do nothing but brood and look gloomy. "Maybe I should take a lunch break..."
Despite what Swat had said, the visibility inside the caves was really pretty much fifty fifty. Sometimes there would be no cave ceiling at all, making the room sweltering and bright. Other times, the light would peek through in cracks, giving the cave a fantasy vibe that was pretty, but not ideal to navigation. Still other times, the area would be pitch black, and she'd simply need to find another way around. She could feel the elevation dropping as she continued making her way through. Presumably, light would become more scarce at some point.
Thankfully, Martia didn't have to go much deeper before she heard the waterfall grow so loud that she could only assume it would be around the corner. Light was shining into the next room and, although she couldn't see the water itself, she could see two navis. The first was an average sized man, a little thin, wearing gray armor over a darker gray undersuit. Given that his helmet had a camera lens extending out from a plate over one of the eyes and that he was make, it stood to reason that he was PhotoMan.
He was speaking to a tanned Electopian girl with long and dark brown hair. The girl was wearing a white cheong-sam dress that fit her large chest rather snuggly and showed off most of her legs, with a cloth covering the front and back. A curved sword with a red take at the end hung at her waist, tied to a scarlet colored sash. The two were speaking to one another in quiet voices, possibly because the echo would make them impossible to hear other-wise. The man looked completely unenthused, frowning into the woman's face as she, in turn, frowned with a worried look.
"Yes... Yes... We did get a number of usable shots... You'll be paid a commission based on sales... I don't know what to expect from the sales yet... No, I can't offer up front payment... well, the average value of commissions is a number that won't contribute much information since it varies wildly based on consumer interest... how do I think you'll do... I expect sales on the lower end..
That answer didn't seem to please the woman, who put her hand on the sword at her side and asked again.
"That's only based on my own assumptions, the market could out perform those expectations," he murmured, holding up his hands and backing away. He appeared to be a wimp and maybe a push over. The girl seemed satisfied enough with that, nodded, and then jacked out. The man frowned more deeply now; the sound of machinery clicking echoed through the cave. "There's no way I can market these... nobody wants to see photographs of a mafia goon with an over-inflated opinion of herself. I'm a photographer, not an alchemist," he sighed in a low, completely monotone voice. Martia was unable to tell if he was talking to himself or his operator.
He sat down on a cross-legged director's chair and cradled his head in his hands, staring at the floor and looking like an utter sad sack. "Well... The next model should be a while," he spoke out loud, then proceeded to do nothing but brood and look gloomy. "Maybe I should take a lunch break..."
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After some spelunking, Martia found her target talking to his latest model. He didn't seem very enthusiastic about her, though. Hmm. If that Navi didn't get his inspiration going, exactly how was she going fare all that much better?
"Don't worry, Martia. I've been thinking about some of those better pictures, and I found a common link!" Her operator's voice startled her slightly, though she didn't many any sounds about it. "It's actually pretty simple. Based on the evidence, I can say with near certainty that that guy is..." Yes...? "...an ass man." The martial artist Navi could feel herself deflate at the reveal. She thought it was going to be something more obscure. "Which means that no matter how great your rack is, it's only going to do so much for him. So, since you have a pretty nice ass, I think we need to figure out some way to show it off. That'll leave a great impression on him! Granted, yours isn't quite as incredible as that one girl he was oiling up...but to be fair, I'm pretty sure not many do. But, I digress! The key to success here is down low, not up top, this time! But it can't be too obvious..."
All right, they had the gist of the plan thought out. But the specifics...
...Were suddenly figured out by Leslie. "Got it! Heh heh heh..." Yeah, this was going to be a little mean...but it was perfect. Just had to grab a certain chip, and... "BattleChip, Avalanche! Slot in!"
There was suddenly some slight rumbling, and the martial artist managed to turn around just in time to see a rather large snowball tumbling down the corridor she'd come from. She didn't even have time to get out of the way, or even to scream; all she could do was raise her arms to defend herself. But one thing became clear...it wasn't a harmful snowball. Instead, it seemed to be rolling harmlessly against her, though it was still pushing her back. Not really appreciating that, she dug her feet into the ground, and began to push back herself. It was actually trivial to stop it, but for whatever reason it absolutely refused to budge an inch back. Thus, she ended up lock in a battle of strength, woman versus snowball. But as it turned out, this was all part of her operator's plan, as assuming PhotoMan noticed what was going on, he'd have a pretty good look at Martia's firm, protruding behind...
"Don't worry, Martia. I've been thinking about some of those better pictures, and I found a common link!" Her operator's voice startled her slightly, though she didn't many any sounds about it. "It's actually pretty simple. Based on the evidence, I can say with near certainty that that guy is..." Yes...? "...an ass man." The martial artist Navi could feel herself deflate at the reveal. She thought it was going to be something more obscure. "Which means that no matter how great your rack is, it's only going to do so much for him. So, since you have a pretty nice ass, I think we need to figure out some way to show it off. That'll leave a great impression on him! Granted, yours isn't quite as incredible as that one girl he was oiling up...but to be fair, I'm pretty sure not many do. But, I digress! The key to success here is down low, not up top, this time! But it can't be too obvious..."
All right, they had the gist of the plan thought out. But the specifics...
...Were suddenly figured out by Leslie. "Got it! Heh heh heh..." Yeah, this was going to be a little mean...but it was perfect. Just had to grab a certain chip, and... "BattleChip, Avalanche! Slot in!"
There was suddenly some slight rumbling, and the martial artist managed to turn around just in time to see a rather large snowball tumbling down the corridor she'd come from. She didn't even have time to get out of the way, or even to scream; all she could do was raise her arms to defend herself. But one thing became clear...it wasn't a harmful snowball. Instead, it seemed to be rolling harmlessly against her, though it was still pushing her back. Not really appreciating that, she dug her feet into the ground, and began to push back herself. It was actually trivial to stop it, but for whatever reason it absolutely refused to budge an inch back. Thus, she ended up lock in a battle of strength, woman versus snowball. But as it turned out, this was all part of her operator's plan, as assuming PhotoMan noticed what was going on, he'd have a pretty good look at Martia's firm, protruding behind...
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Leslie's operator decided against a discrete entry and instead went for one that would leave an impression; that apparently involved rolling a giant snowball through the cave towards her own navi. PhotoMan found this as surprising as anyone would and spotted Martia, along with the tremendous, unfittingly arctic threat she was holding back. "Oh no," he managed, then sprang into action, coming closer behind Martia than she'd probably like and baring his hands onto her shoulders, to provide her leverage (that she didn't need). "I'll use my sun lamp," he announced; Martia heard a mechanical clicking behind her, which Leslie identified as him swapping the lens on his helmet. A heated lamp began to shine out from his eye, instantly making Martia feel like an egg on a frying pan, but more importantly, melting away some of the snow. The water splashed all over the two of them as it came off the snowball. Eventually, Martia was left holding a mushy block of snow that splattered into a pile at her feet. He turned off his lamp, having accomplished the task.
PhotoMan removed his helmet, revealing short, unremarkable black hair. He poured water out of it, then replaced the headgear. "I apologize. I can only guess you're here as one of the models for today. That snowball was probably punishment from my employer's hired goon, Swat... It seems like something she'd do, rolling that down hear to smash me just because she overheard I was taking a short break," he murmured, keeping his eyes closed as he spoke and looking pretty weary. When he opened them, he found himself staring at Martia for a bit. Gears inside either his helmet or his head itself were making repeated clicking noises, which echoed through the cave. "Are you one of the models?" he asked again. "My name is PhotoMan. I'm a photographer here in Yumland for a fashion photo shoot, endorsed by the Showbizz Foundation." His eyes had opened a bit; he didn't look or sound quite so dejected any more. That seemed like positive progress, but he'd picked up another disturbing new behavior; namely, producing a variety of noises that sounded like miniscule tripod movements. He crossed his arms and placed one fist beneath his chin, then walked around to view her from the side. "Pardon me... I will get you a towel," he droned in perfect monotone, then walked back inside the cavern.
If Martia followed him, she'd see that, hidden from her view originally, a number of props and tools were standing around; additional lighting, towels, salves and moisturizers, a standing mirror, a curtain, and a rack with several costumes (it seemed like there was always a costume involved). PhotoMan retrieved a towel for her, which was blue with yellow stars speckled across it, probably because Showbizz mandated it so. As he held it out to her, he stood perfectly still, lingering in that pose for a moment. The sound of gears continued to whir from somewhere in his general head area. "If you don't mind... could you raise your arms for a moment? I know it's strange, asking you this when we just met." He waited for a response, producing several more clicks as he did. "Then... if it's alright with you... could you try holding the hem of your gi down flat? I know, it's an odd question," PhotoMan further inquired; the question would be more award or less depending on whether she said she was a model, but he intended to ask regardless. Discretely, he was inspecting her every aspect and was taking special note of her outerwear for whatever reason.
PhotoMan removed his helmet, revealing short, unremarkable black hair. He poured water out of it, then replaced the headgear. "I apologize. I can only guess you're here as one of the models for today. That snowball was probably punishment from my employer's hired goon, Swat... It seems like something she'd do, rolling that down hear to smash me just because she overheard I was taking a short break," he murmured, keeping his eyes closed as he spoke and looking pretty weary. When he opened them, he found himself staring at Martia for a bit. Gears inside either his helmet or his head itself were making repeated clicking noises, which echoed through the cave. "Are you one of the models?" he asked again. "My name is PhotoMan. I'm a photographer here in Yumland for a fashion photo shoot, endorsed by the Showbizz Foundation." His eyes had opened a bit; he didn't look or sound quite so dejected any more. That seemed like positive progress, but he'd picked up another disturbing new behavior; namely, producing a variety of noises that sounded like miniscule tripod movements. He crossed his arms and placed one fist beneath his chin, then walked around to view her from the side. "Pardon me... I will get you a towel," he droned in perfect monotone, then walked back inside the cavern.
If Martia followed him, she'd see that, hidden from her view originally, a number of props and tools were standing around; additional lighting, towels, salves and moisturizers, a standing mirror, a curtain, and a rack with several costumes (it seemed like there was always a costume involved). PhotoMan retrieved a towel for her, which was blue with yellow stars speckled across it, probably because Showbizz mandated it so. As he held it out to her, he stood perfectly still, lingering in that pose for a moment. The sound of gears continued to whir from somewhere in his general head area. "If you don't mind... could you raise your arms for a moment? I know it's strange, asking you this when we just met." He waited for a response, producing several more clicks as he did. "Then... if it's alright with you... could you try holding the hem of your gi down flat? I know, it's an odd question," PhotoMan further inquired; the question would be more award or less depending on whether she said she was a model, but he intended to ask regardless. Discretely, he was inspecting her every aspect and was taking special note of her outerwear for whatever reason.
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"Thanks, but I don't-wait, sun lamp?" Before she could stop him, however, Martia found herself baked, then completely soaked as the snowball melted into nothingness. She spat out a little water that had gotten into her mouth from the rapid melting, and dropped the leftover half-melted snow in her hands. "Again, thanks, but that wasn't really necessary..."
And now, for a little half-truthing. "Model? I'm just a martial artist. That snowball was just some...impromptu strength training my operator came up with. I think she's lost it a little..." And Leslie was lucky she wasn't going to say what she really thought about it. She happily accepted the towel, and motionlessly dismissed her headgear for a moment to wipe her face off, then dried her hair off, as the bottom part of her ponytail had also gotten wet. "...Raise my arms? Like this?" That was weird...but, given her mission, she couldn't refuse, and after finishing drying, raised them so that she formed a Y with her body. She'd lower or raise them further on request. Or, he could ask her to do something else. "It...kinda is, but I guess there's no harm in it." As requested, she flattened her upper armor's hem for investigation. It was kinda weird doing this while he kept making clicking noises...though she was fairly sure he wasn't taking any pictures or anything. Plus, she was still wet, so her outfit, particularly in front, was completely skin tight on her. "So, what are you doing, exactly? I feel like I'm being judged after a match."
"Huh...not exactly how I thought it'd go, but it's working!"
It took Martia some serious self-control to not respond to her operator. Yelling probably was not going to help her right now.
And now, for a little half-truthing. "Model? I'm just a martial artist. That snowball was just some...impromptu strength training my operator came up with. I think she's lost it a little..." And Leslie was lucky she wasn't going to say what she really thought about it. She happily accepted the towel, and motionlessly dismissed her headgear for a moment to wipe her face off, then dried her hair off, as the bottom part of her ponytail had also gotten wet. "...Raise my arms? Like this?" That was weird...but, given her mission, she couldn't refuse, and after finishing drying, raised them so that she formed a Y with her body. She'd lower or raise them further on request. Or, he could ask her to do something else. "It...kinda is, but I guess there's no harm in it." As requested, she flattened her upper armor's hem for investigation. It was kinda weird doing this while he kept making clicking noises...though she was fairly sure he wasn't taking any pictures or anything. Plus, she was still wet, so her outfit, particularly in front, was completely skin tight on her. "So, what are you doing, exactly? I feel like I'm being judged after a match."
"Huh...not exactly how I thought it'd go, but it's working!"
It took Martia some serious self-control to not respond to her operator. Yelling probably was not going to help her right now.
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"Sorry for the mess," PhotoMan apologized again, in the same dull monotone. "A martial artist, out here, though? There's not a lot of viruses to train against in these parts... Which is one of the reasons I chose this area for a photoshoot. I hope I didn't interrupt your training. Thank you for complying with my requests, though," he murmured, only half-paying attention as he involved himself with walking around to the side. His face looked contemplative but mostly inexpressive as he crossed his arms and made accompanying machinery whirring noises. Slowly, his one visible eye began to widen. "That's it...!" he murmured, making several clicking noises now, like photographs being shot. "I know we just met, Martial Artist, and that you might be busy with your training... But if you could spare me just an hour... no, a half an hour... That is all the time I'd need to act on the inspiration that's just come to me. Well... I should backtrack again... I mentioned that I'm here for a fashion shoot," he reminded Martia, stepping a foot back as if to be come off as more professionally respectable, "but my real passion is gravure photography. Do you know about gravure? If not, I'll explain... but otherwise, I'll simply be up front and tell you that I've been inspired for a great shot."
He inhaled deeply, waited for her response for only a millisecond, then hastily added more to prove detail on his idea. "It's just... A few subjects, not many, have perfect features for such art. Yours is your side profile," he explained. The gear whirring noises intensified for a moment as he tried to decide whether to elaborate further, but he couldn't. "If you're interested, we can discuss the finer details. But know that I'd pay you an up front commission, as well as providing the opportunity for additional funds at a later date, based on sales performance... If you allow me to commercialize the photographs, that is. I wouldn't necessarily need to... This is as much for me as anyone. I hate to sound desperate, but I need something like this to become inspired again. My very livelihood may depend on it," he explained, unfortunately doing very little to avoid sounding desperate, despite the preface. "Also, because I am being up front, you would most likely need to take off your bodysuit for the duration of the shoot. I've got other garments that you can wear beneath your outerwear, however. I'd prefer it be something discrete, however," the eager photographer added. "That is, going back to how much you do or do not know of gravure photography... My idea requires you to keep your gi on but take your bodysuit off, you understand..."
He inhaled deeply, waited for her response for only a millisecond, then hastily added more to prove detail on his idea. "It's just... A few subjects, not many, have perfect features for such art. Yours is your side profile," he explained. The gear whirring noises intensified for a moment as he tried to decide whether to elaborate further, but he couldn't. "If you're interested, we can discuss the finer details. But know that I'd pay you an up front commission, as well as providing the opportunity for additional funds at a later date, based on sales performance... If you allow me to commercialize the photographs, that is. I wouldn't necessarily need to... This is as much for me as anyone. I hate to sound desperate, but I need something like this to become inspired again. My very livelihood may depend on it," he explained, unfortunately doing very little to avoid sounding desperate, despite the preface. "Also, because I am being up front, you would most likely need to take off your bodysuit for the duration of the shoot. I've got other garments that you can wear beneath your outerwear, however. I'd prefer it be something discrete, however," the eager photographer added. "That is, going back to how much you do or do not know of gravure photography... My idea requires you to keep your gi on but take your bodysuit off, you understand..."
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PhotoMan's initial comments brought a smile to Martia's face. It was amazing how many people thought that fighting was all there was to martial arts. "There's more to martial arts training than just attacking things! You need a strong spirit as well as a strong body!" She didn't get a chance to elaborate, though, as the other Navi reached some sort of epiphany. Which, for her purposes, meant the whole snowball thing was a success. That didn't mean she wasn't going to chew Leslie out for doing it, though. "I guess it's fine. I'm not in any rush or anything." ...Wait, gravure? Yeah, she knew what that was...
"Yeah, I'm not really surprised...some of that stuff in his portfolio was pretty gravure-ish. At any rate, you don't have much choice. You need to get his inspiration back, and if that'll do it, you need to do it! ...Besides, I'm kinda curious exactly what he's got in mind."
...Yeah, she really didn't think her operator had any objections. "If your livelihood's at stake, then I definitely can't say no! It leaves a bad taste in my mouth if someone needs help, but I don't do anything about it. So, where's a good place to take my bodysuit off? No point in putting things off!"
"Yeah, I'm not really surprised...some of that stuff in his portfolio was pretty gravure-ish. At any rate, you don't have much choice. You need to get his inspiration back, and if that'll do it, you need to do it! ...Besides, I'm kinda curious exactly what he's got in mind."
...Yeah, she really didn't think her operator had any objections. "If your livelihood's at stake, then I definitely can't say no! It leaves a bad taste in my mouth if someone needs help, but I don't do anything about it. So, where's a good place to take my bodysuit off? No point in putting things off!"
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PhotoMan looked surprised that Martia had decided to go along with everything so easily, it being a rather absurd request from a stranger. "Good then... well, if you're ready to take it off... depending on what you wear underneath, if anything, you may want to grab something from the costume rack to wear beneath the gi, for modesty's sake. I'm still devising how to handle the shoot, but I wouldn't ask you to model with with the risk of such indecency just a stray wind away. I've got a few plainer undergarments in solid colors... or, if you're so inclided, I have strapless, stick on coverings that we use when we need to cut out straps. Actually, you probably don't need a bra for the shot, just a lower body covering... in fact, the shot would probably be best if we can forego the side straps of a bra. So... if you don't mind... either something you can paste on or nothing would be best."
He walked over to the curtain standing next to the costume rack. "I would recommend you change in here, but if you don't feel comfortable with that, then I'll just wait in the next cave over and you can call when you're done," he suggested. "Let me know if you've got any other questions while you get dressed," the photographer offered, although it was really mostly getting undressed. "I'll be thinking about how the shot should go while you're getting ready."
As PhotoMan had mentioned, most of the underwear was just plain colors... he probably hasn't brought anything fancy or erotic because he hadn't planned on doing gravure. On the other hand, there were sling bikinis and mostly featureless pasties that would fit what he'd asked.
He walked over to the curtain standing next to the costume rack. "I would recommend you change in here, but if you don't feel comfortable with that, then I'll just wait in the next cave over and you can call when you're done," he suggested. "Let me know if you've got any other questions while you get dressed," the photographer offered, although it was really mostly getting undressed. "I'll be thinking about how the shot should go while you're getting ready."
As PhotoMan had mentioned, most of the underwear was just plain colors... he probably hasn't brought anything fancy or erotic because he hadn't planned on doing gravure. On the other hand, there were sling bikinis and mostly featureless pasties that would fit what he'd asked.
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Martia started to walk over to the curtain, but stopped as PhotoMan said something a little odd to her. "Um, you realize this isn't just a regular gi, right? It's modified Navi armor, so it shouldn't be blown away by just a gust of wind. But anyway, I guess I'll go ahead and get set." And behind the curtain she went. Before she started, she took a moment to reset her appearance, so that she was nice and dry and not soaked from a melted snowball.
First off were her boots and gloves, followed up by her headgear and belt. And then...off came her top, showing off her Navi suit to nobody in particular. But not for long, as that came off as well, reducing her outfit to the pair of panties she wore underneath, and a hairband. But she fixed that by putting her top back on. Come to think of it, this was the first time she'd ever worn it without having her Navi suit underneath it...it felt odd. And it kinda rubbed on her chest funny without it. But, it was something she'd have to bear if she was going to do this. And like she said, she hated not helping when she could, so she was definitely doing it.
"How's this?" The martial artist walked out, doing a quick spin to show how she looked from every angle. "If you want me to put on my headgear or something, I can do that real quick, if you want."
First off were her boots and gloves, followed up by her headgear and belt. And then...off came her top, showing off her Navi suit to nobody in particular. But not for long, as that came off as well, reducing her outfit to the pair of panties she wore underneath, and a hairband. But she fixed that by putting her top back on. Come to think of it, this was the first time she'd ever worn it without having her Navi suit underneath it...it felt odd. And it kinda rubbed on her chest funny without it. But, it was something she'd have to bear if she was going to do this. And like she said, she hated not helping when she could, so she was definitely doing it.
"How's this?" The martial artist walked out, doing a quick spin to show how she looked from every angle. "If you want me to put on my headgear or something, I can do that real quick, if you want."
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"I thought it was just a pink gi. I apologize," PhotoMan responded bluntly, standing still and quiet since Martia had allowed him to stay in the room. He remained silent until she re-emerged, nodding as she showed off the outfit, showing less modesty than he had imagined would be standard from a martial artist training in the seclusion of seldom-traveled caves. "That ought to serve our purpose well. Now, as for the shot... my policy is to try to utilize the navi model's most inspiring feature, while incorporating a bit of fantasy into the setting and situation that stirs the viewer's imagination and, hopefully, arousal. My concept for this one is simple: I would like you to train, as you might ordinarily and I assume you came here to, while thus dressed. My only request is that it be something with a lot of arm motion..." the photographer finished, remaining cryptic as to why. "As for venue, I believe there are a number of picturesque backdrops you might pick. It may depend on where you can best do whatever training you had in mind."
He walked around the cave, gesturing towards different spots with his hands. "The waterfall is a popular one. It makes a good backdrop for fashion photos as well as gravure. The pool is shallow enough to stand in, or there's a small island about a foot from the fall itself that you could lie, sit, or stand on. If you don't like the waterfall or it gets in the way, the cave itself is an outstanding backdrop, so long as there is a proper source of lighting. The bit that peaks through the caves is enough. That would give you a wall to put your back against, if it would help. Alternatively, we can go outside; if we do, I would recommend using either the river running through the canyon or perhaps even the plateau top; it's sunny up there and makes for an odd backdrop, but it has a... voyeuristic appeal, for gravure photography. It's always unusual to see a scantily clad woman in broad daylight, after all," PhotoMan explained... although, to Martia, it probably didn't seem all that uncommon. "If you need me to help with whatever training it is, I can also do that. My helmet also functions as a remotely operated 'drone' that can act with only limited loss of capability while separated from my body."
He walked around the cave, gesturing towards different spots with his hands. "The waterfall is a popular one. It makes a good backdrop for fashion photos as well as gravure. The pool is shallow enough to stand in, or there's a small island about a foot from the fall itself that you could lie, sit, or stand on. If you don't like the waterfall or it gets in the way, the cave itself is an outstanding backdrop, so long as there is a proper source of lighting. The bit that peaks through the caves is enough. That would give you a wall to put your back against, if it would help. Alternatively, we can go outside; if we do, I would recommend using either the river running through the canyon or perhaps even the plateau top; it's sunny up there and makes for an odd backdrop, but it has a... voyeuristic appeal, for gravure photography. It's always unusual to see a scantily clad woman in broad daylight, after all," PhotoMan explained... although, to Martia, it probably didn't seem all that uncommon. "If you need me to help with whatever training it is, I can also do that. My helmet also functions as a remotely operated 'drone' that can act with only limited loss of capability while separated from my body."
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Fortunately for PhotoMan, one thing Martia had picked up from her operator was how to walk around in little or no clothing without being embarrassed. Well, maybe not the no clothing part, but the little part, definitely. Recent events were making her get more used to it, anyway.
"Something with a lot of arm movement..." That was a little rough, since she was probably better at kicks than punches or chops. "Well, boxing's probably not a good choice, since I don't look much like a boxer. Especially since I'm not wearing my headgear."
"How about jujutsu? While there's a lot of full body movement, the actual attacking's traditionally done with the arms. And you're quick enough that you can get some serious arm movement."
Huh. That wasn't a bad idea. "Hmm, jujutsu it is. I can probably make it look like I'm attacking an invisible foe, too." Now, for the location. "Well, I think for me, the waterfall's a good choice. You always see martial artists training under waterfalls and such in the movies, after all."
"Which is total crap, by the way. I tried doing that meditating thing under a waterfall once, and all I got for it was a case of the flu! Oh, and since I made the brilliant move of wearing a white sports bra and not wearing my gi, I got who knows how many cat calls and stink eyes on the walk back, because I was so soaked. I really don't care if I ended up giving people a free peep show, but it was fucking annoying!...Actually, this was before I found those panties I can wear under my shorts without them being visible, so they could probably see everything and not just my tits."
"...Great story, Leslie." With a sigh at her operator's spectacular lack of shame, the virtual martial artist walked over in front of the waterfall, and took a deep breath. "All right, let's see how this works solo. If it doesn't, I may need you to act as a training dummy. But don't worry, I'll do everything I can to not hurt you!" Time to begin. She envisioned an enemy before her..."...Begin!" What followed was a whirlwind of locks, holds, and throwing motions, as Martia did her best to disable and attack an enemy of thin air. With any luck, it was just the sort of thing the other Navi needed for some first class inspiration.
"Something with a lot of arm movement..." That was a little rough, since she was probably better at kicks than punches or chops. "Well, boxing's probably not a good choice, since I don't look much like a boxer. Especially since I'm not wearing my headgear."
"How about jujutsu? While there's a lot of full body movement, the actual attacking's traditionally done with the arms. And you're quick enough that you can get some serious arm movement."
Huh. That wasn't a bad idea. "Hmm, jujutsu it is. I can probably make it look like I'm attacking an invisible foe, too." Now, for the location. "Well, I think for me, the waterfall's a good choice. You always see martial artists training under waterfalls and such in the movies, after all."
"Which is total crap, by the way. I tried doing that meditating thing under a waterfall once, and all I got for it was a case of the flu! Oh, and since I made the brilliant move of wearing a white sports bra and not wearing my gi, I got who knows how many cat calls and stink eyes on the walk back, because I was so soaked. I really don't care if I ended up giving people a free peep show, but it was fucking annoying!...Actually, this was before I found those panties I can wear under my shorts without them being visible, so they could probably see everything and not just my tits."
"...Great story, Leslie." With a sigh at her operator's spectacular lack of shame, the virtual martial artist walked over in front of the waterfall, and took a deep breath. "All right, let's see how this works solo. If it doesn't, I may need you to act as a training dummy. But don't worry, I'll do everything I can to not hurt you!" Time to begin. She envisioned an enemy before her..."...Begin!" What followed was a whirlwind of locks, holds, and throwing motions, as Martia did her best to disable and attack an enemy of thin air. With any luck, it was just the sort of thing the other Navi needed for some first class inspiration.
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"An invisible foe..." PhotoMan murmured to himself, crossing his arms thoughtfully. A few mechanical clicks rang through the cave before he returned his focus to Martia. "Of course. Please, start whenever you're ready. I think that the idea of a martial artist training nearby a waterfall is naturally inspiring for a large demographic, so it ought to be a safe choice."
Martia got into place, received an embarrassing story from her operator, then promptly began the exercise. As PhotoMan watched, he remained mostly still; only the extending lens on the front of his helmet was moving, rotating to angles that seemed only marginally different while lengthening and shortening in regular intervals. "Mm hm... Hmmm... It's exciting to watch in person, but I think to the average viewer, it will come off as something from an action movie rather than a gravure, despite your attire or your... build. We have to think of a way to package it so that it's more accessible to the type of crowd we're going for," he murmured, staring at her with his one exposed eye. "Right now the action is wild and effective, but we need it to be a bit more easily digestible... and also, something that makes it easier to take good photographs and video would be ideal. Not that I'm incapable of taking good footage of an action scene, but it's certainly not as easy for gravure, you understand. But you know more about martial arts training than I do, so if there's nothing that makes sense, we'll just go with what you started with... you tell me."
He stepped closer to the pool, then raised his arms demonstratively. "Ideally, if there was something that would involve you raising your arms for a more prolonged period of time... Can you think of anything like that?" he asked, slowly lowering his arms again as he spoke. "Or, if there's a way I can help out personally, just let me know. Right now we have the beginnings of a decent shoot, but not the perfect, inspiring one I'm imagining. We'll need all of the elements to come together just right," PhotoMan explained. "... It also wouldn't hurt if we could think of a few tricks to simply make it more erotic..." In a way, his persistence and penchant for nipping unproductive ideas in the bud was very reminiscent of the way Showbizz had critiqued her first performance back when they were taping for an aerobics show. Showbizz apparently hated PhotoMan and vis versa, but they seemed more alike than they probably cared to admit, which might be why they were still working together despite the fact.
Martia got into place, received an embarrassing story from her operator, then promptly began the exercise. As PhotoMan watched, he remained mostly still; only the extending lens on the front of his helmet was moving, rotating to angles that seemed only marginally different while lengthening and shortening in regular intervals. "Mm hm... Hmmm... It's exciting to watch in person, but I think to the average viewer, it will come off as something from an action movie rather than a gravure, despite your attire or your... build. We have to think of a way to package it so that it's more accessible to the type of crowd we're going for," he murmured, staring at her with his one exposed eye. "Right now the action is wild and effective, but we need it to be a bit more easily digestible... and also, something that makes it easier to take good photographs and video would be ideal. Not that I'm incapable of taking good footage of an action scene, but it's certainly not as easy for gravure, you understand. But you know more about martial arts training than I do, so if there's nothing that makes sense, we'll just go with what you started with... you tell me."
He stepped closer to the pool, then raised his arms demonstratively. "Ideally, if there was something that would involve you raising your arms for a more prolonged period of time... Can you think of anything like that?" he asked, slowly lowering his arms again as he spoke. "Or, if there's a way I can help out personally, just let me know. Right now we have the beginnings of a decent shoot, but not the perfect, inspiring one I'm imagining. We'll need all of the elements to come together just right," PhotoMan explained. "... It also wouldn't hurt if we could think of a few tricks to simply make it more erotic..." In a way, his persistence and penchant for nipping unproductive ideas in the bud was very reminiscent of the way Showbizz had critiqued her first performance back when they were taping for an aerobics show. Showbizz apparently hated PhotoMan and vis versa, but they seemed more alike than they probably cared to admit, which might be why they were still working together despite the fact.
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Upon hearing that her idea wasn't really panning out, Martia immediately stopped, and folded her arms across her ample chest. "Hmm...I dunno, there's not much in the way of martial arts that's designed to be used on opponents above you. They exist, of course, but if I did that, it'd look choppy and stuff because I'd be switching styles..."
Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately depending on how one looked at it, the Navi's musings gave her operator another idea. It was true, there weren't a ton of moves that focused on attacking foes above you, because normally that was a rather disadvantageous position to be in. But, by that same logic, it meant that being above your opponent gave you an advantage, as it's a relatively hard spot to defend from. Not that Martia couldn't...but that was exactly what she was banking on. Let's see...Champy would work well for this, as would Misty. And Teddy was flat out perfect. Without giving any warning, Leslie inserted FireHit, MistConvergence, and RageClaw into her PET, and started tinkering with some of their settings. Set Virus Mode so that they wouldn't just form weapons, set their position to be roughly above Martia...and, most importantly, set Practice Mode so they couldn't actually hurt her. Of course, just because they couldn't do HP damage didn't mean they couldn't inflict other sorts of damage...
"I dunno...nothing's coming to mind. Perhaps...huh?" Sensing something, the martial artist Navi looked up, to see a fiery boxer virus dropping from the ceiling straight at her, conveniently positioned so that PhotoMan would have noticed it just before her. She had no time to dodge, so all she could do raise her arms to block the one-two punch. And the first hit was perfectly shielded, but with some help from her operator, the Champy managed to hook its second strike to get by her arms, causing a circular hole to form in the upper chest region. Nothing too lewd, but it did provide a rather nice cleavage window. And, of course, it vanished before she could retaliate.
"That's weird...why did it just disappear? And are Champy even native to Yumland Area?...Ahh!" Once again, Martia looked up, and saw that another one was on its way down. Fortunately, she hadn't moved her arms, so she prepared to guard once more...but she hadn't banked that the virus was being guided by an intelligent being, and thus, it simply landed on her, causing her to buckle down on one knee. It then did a surprisingly elegant backflip for something that didn't even have legs, and double punched her at the edges of the burn hole in her gi, expanding the area that people could see.
"That was pretty bright for a virus...wait...Leslie, you're not doing this, are-ack!" The closest thing she got for an answer was for a fist of steam to drop down on her. This time, she was reasonably well prepared for it, and managed to block both the initial strike, and the subsequent attempts to bypass her defense. But the Misty ultimately had the advantage of being amorphous, and with the Navi's arms occupied, used the back half of itself to loop around and splash all over her torso, binding what clothing she had on there to her body. While it wasn't see through, there was otherwise little doubt as to how she looked underneath it now.
Either way, these viruses were acting too intelligently to not have someone behind their actions. And there was little doubt as to who that someone was. "Leslie, will you stop this?! We're trying to thi-shoot!" Martia had no time to much but to clap her hands around the incoming Teddy's claw attack, halting it. But it still had one claw free, and swiped at her. She tried to hop backwards, and in an actual battle, it most likely would've worked. But thanks to some extending claw action courtesy of the operator, it slashed apart the middle of her top, exposing some of her midriff, as well as the bottoms of her breasts. The overall result was essentially a single line preventing the juiciest bits from being visible, with the water attack still managed to expose conspicuous bumps on them. But, she hadn't especially noticed that yet, and was too focused on looking above her, her arms crossed into an X, and positioned above her head...which naturally brought even more attention to what was left of her gi.
Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately depending on how one looked at it, the Navi's musings gave her operator another idea. It was true, there weren't a ton of moves that focused on attacking foes above you, because normally that was a rather disadvantageous position to be in. But, by that same logic, it meant that being above your opponent gave you an advantage, as it's a relatively hard spot to defend from. Not that Martia couldn't...but that was exactly what she was banking on. Let's see...Champy would work well for this, as would Misty. And Teddy was flat out perfect. Without giving any warning, Leslie inserted FireHit, MistConvergence, and RageClaw into her PET, and started tinkering with some of their settings. Set Virus Mode so that they wouldn't just form weapons, set their position to be roughly above Martia...and, most importantly, set Practice Mode so they couldn't actually hurt her. Of course, just because they couldn't do HP damage didn't mean they couldn't inflict other sorts of damage...
"I dunno...nothing's coming to mind. Perhaps...huh?" Sensing something, the martial artist Navi looked up, to see a fiery boxer virus dropping from the ceiling straight at her, conveniently positioned so that PhotoMan would have noticed it just before her. She had no time to dodge, so all she could do raise her arms to block the one-two punch. And the first hit was perfectly shielded, but with some help from her operator, the Champy managed to hook its second strike to get by her arms, causing a circular hole to form in the upper chest region. Nothing too lewd, but it did provide a rather nice cleavage window. And, of course, it vanished before she could retaliate.
"That's weird...why did it just disappear? And are Champy even native to Yumland Area?...Ahh!" Once again, Martia looked up, and saw that another one was on its way down. Fortunately, she hadn't moved her arms, so she prepared to guard once more...but she hadn't banked that the virus was being guided by an intelligent being, and thus, it simply landed on her, causing her to buckle down on one knee. It then did a surprisingly elegant backflip for something that didn't even have legs, and double punched her at the edges of the burn hole in her gi, expanding the area that people could see.
"That was pretty bright for a virus...wait...Leslie, you're not doing this, are-ack!" The closest thing she got for an answer was for a fist of steam to drop down on her. This time, she was reasonably well prepared for it, and managed to block both the initial strike, and the subsequent attempts to bypass her defense. But the Misty ultimately had the advantage of being amorphous, and with the Navi's arms occupied, used the back half of itself to loop around and splash all over her torso, binding what clothing she had on there to her body. While it wasn't see through, there was otherwise little doubt as to how she looked underneath it now.
Either way, these viruses were acting too intelligently to not have someone behind their actions. And there was little doubt as to who that someone was. "Leslie, will you stop this?! We're trying to thi-shoot!" Martia had no time to much but to clap her hands around the incoming Teddy's claw attack, halting it. But it still had one claw free, and swiped at her. She tried to hop backwards, and in an actual battle, it most likely would've worked. But thanks to some extending claw action courtesy of the operator, it slashed apart the middle of her top, exposing some of her midriff, as well as the bottoms of her breasts. The overall result was essentially a single line preventing the juiciest bits from being visible, with the water attack still managed to expose conspicuous bumps on them. But, she hadn't especially noticed that yet, and was too focused on looking above her, her arms crossed into an X, and positioned above her head...which naturally brought even more attention to what was left of her gi.
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PhotoMan's visible eye fell to the floor as he was told that there was little Martia could do that would produce the intended effect. "There surely must be something that would allow us to take that kind of shot. Maybe... if I were to find Swat, I could ask her for one of her ziplines... then attach it..." he murmured to himself, staring at the ceiling as he spoke. He only saw the Champu coming down from above because he was already looking in that direction. "Look out-!" he cried out, placing two fingers to his lens-piece and aiming at the virus as it came down. Before he could fire anything, it had already done its damage.
He ended up staring at her cleavage rather than doing anything useful. "Oh... Sorry, I was a little slow to react there- WATCH OUT!" he cried again, raising the volume on his voice. It didn't help, because he was late again and Martia had already spotted it. The action all moved rather quickly, but Martia began to hear a steady clicking noise from the other navi's helmet. "... I think I'm starting to get it."
When the next virus came down, he refrained from yelling, but continued talking regardless (hopefully, if he was taking video, he could edit that out later). "I think I see what is going on... this could work..." he murmured, stepping around for a better shot from 1/4 the way around her. He didn't warn her about the Misty this time, not that it would have mattered either way. He gulped heavily, but seemingly continued filming. "I hope I'm allowed to show that..." the photographer spoke to himself.
PhotoMan was thinking to himself that either Martia or Martia's operator had a penchant, if not a talent, for this sort of thing as he focused his lens in again for another virus. His eye opened wise as bottom portion of her breasts bounced out of her now mostly open gi, save the strip that was bound around (which was an odd way for a gi to hang, he mused). "This is it! Yes, Martia, you have the perfect armpits and sideboob... the whole shape of your body when viewed from the side is inspiring! When more of your top is exposed, it becomes all the more inspiring!" he congratulated her, although it was an awkward thing to be complimented on. "Your toned arms and waist, combined with that centric part of your upper body which defies tone, it being so heavily vested in the opposite spectrum... This bears recording...!" He seemed like he was into it now, although perhaps more than she wanted him to be. "Please... keep going... you don't have to take off more of your clothing if you don't want to... but for the perfect video, I will need at least 1-2 minutes of footage. We have to fill the time with something sexy," he announced, sounding desperate. "If we can't keep going straight off, I'll use a screen transition, but I'd like it to be as organic as possible. You must have something else to show me?"
He ended up staring at her cleavage rather than doing anything useful. "Oh... Sorry, I was a little slow to react there- WATCH OUT!" he cried again, raising the volume on his voice. It didn't help, because he was late again and Martia had already spotted it. The action all moved rather quickly, but Martia began to hear a steady clicking noise from the other navi's helmet. "... I think I'm starting to get it."
When the next virus came down, he refrained from yelling, but continued talking regardless (hopefully, if he was taking video, he could edit that out later). "I think I see what is going on... this could work..." he murmured, stepping around for a better shot from 1/4 the way around her. He didn't warn her about the Misty this time, not that it would have mattered either way. He gulped heavily, but seemingly continued filming. "I hope I'm allowed to show that..." the photographer spoke to himself.
PhotoMan was thinking to himself that either Martia or Martia's operator had a penchant, if not a talent, for this sort of thing as he focused his lens in again for another virus. His eye opened wise as bottom portion of her breasts bounced out of her now mostly open gi, save the strip that was bound around (which was an odd way for a gi to hang, he mused). "This is it! Yes, Martia, you have the perfect armpits and sideboob... the whole shape of your body when viewed from the side is inspiring! When more of your top is exposed, it becomes all the more inspiring!" he congratulated her, although it was an awkward thing to be complimented on. "Your toned arms and waist, combined with that centric part of your upper body which defies tone, it being so heavily vested in the opposite spectrum... This bears recording...!" He seemed like he was into it now, although perhaps more than she wanted him to be. "Please... keep going... you don't have to take off more of your clothing if you don't want to... but for the perfect video, I will need at least 1-2 minutes of footage. We have to fill the time with something sexy," he announced, sounding desperate. "If we can't keep going straight off, I'll use a screen transition, but I'd like it to be as organic as possible. You must have something else to show me?"
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Fortunately for PhotoMan, Martia hadn't heard a bit of his compliments, as she only paid attention to what he was saying once he instructed her to continue. "Keep going?! I'm not even sure how my boobs aren't totally exposed already!"
"Because I'm specifically doing it that way!" Leslie had already turned off her end of communications, so she could proudly announce to no one in particular that this was all by design. "But, there's two things. First off, I'm not out of virus action yet. And two...you're being really sloppy. There's still an enemy around!~"
Sure enough, somehow both Navis had missed the fact that the Teddy had, in fact, never dissipated. It leaped into the air, and let its claws crash against the fighter's arms, completely preoccupying her. Around this time, a Billy showed up, and unlike the others before it, it was completely on the ground. It looked up at its target, and gently yet firmly dug its left arm into the (limited) empty space between her breasts, with the tip clearly visible through the top. It gave her chest a small shock; not strong enough to do damage, but enough that it combined with the water already on her to produce a tingling sensation all throughout that area, and ended up making her already visible nipples clear as day.
But it still wasn't done. Since Martia could do absolutely nothing to stop it without being at the mercy of the other virus, the electrical summon tried to move its occupied arm outward, to rip up the one strip that was preserving what little modesty she had left. Alas, it actually couldn't, as the combination of her positioning and her sheer size there had actually caused that arm to become stuck. It couldn't even pull it downward. Fortunately, the virus didn't seem to mind, and instead used its free arm to tear the strip in two. But by little more than the earlier moisture and a prayer, it remained affixed just enough to her bosom that she wasn't completely exposed, even though by now it was extremely easy to picture what was under the very little bit that was still covered.
And, just for giggles, the Billy started to emit another small electrical pulse from its trapped arm. Not even enough to be noticeable, but enough that she'd feel it, and feel good as a result...
"Because I'm specifically doing it that way!" Leslie had already turned off her end of communications, so she could proudly announce to no one in particular that this was all by design. "But, there's two things. First off, I'm not out of virus action yet. And two...you're being really sloppy. There's still an enemy around!~"
Sure enough, somehow both Navis had missed the fact that the Teddy had, in fact, never dissipated. It leaped into the air, and let its claws crash against the fighter's arms, completely preoccupying her. Around this time, a Billy showed up, and unlike the others before it, it was completely on the ground. It looked up at its target, and gently yet firmly dug its left arm into the (limited) empty space between her breasts, with the tip clearly visible through the top. It gave her chest a small shock; not strong enough to do damage, but enough that it combined with the water already on her to produce a tingling sensation all throughout that area, and ended up making her already visible nipples clear as day.
But it still wasn't done. Since Martia could do absolutely nothing to stop it without being at the mercy of the other virus, the electrical summon tried to move its occupied arm outward, to rip up the one strip that was preserving what little modesty she had left. Alas, it actually couldn't, as the combination of her positioning and her sheer size there had actually caused that arm to become stuck. It couldn't even pull it downward. Fortunately, the virus didn't seem to mind, and instead used its free arm to tear the strip in two. But by little more than the earlier moisture and a prayer, it remained affixed just enough to her bosom that she wasn't completely exposed, even though by now it was extremely easy to picture what was under the very little bit that was still covered.
And, just for giggles, the Billy started to emit another small electrical pulse from its trapped arm. Not even enough to be noticeable, but enough that she'd feel it, and feel good as a result...