2014.03.19- You Can Do Better

Central Park.
In Mid-March, it's not very warm. But thankfully, it's above freezing. And thanks to recent weather, the bulk of the snow has melted in the park. Or at least the areas where huge mounds weren't created and aren't constantly in the shade.
But either way, there's always some, little areas of the park where people rarely go. And odds are, given the temperature out, people are less likely to be there.
And in one of these spots?
Well, there's a person. In the form of a early twenty something woman with her hands in her pockets, who'se wearing a red jacket, ear muffs, and blue jeans. One who has the look like she might be waiting for someone, or something. But then again, considering it's the woman known as 'May Parker' (and we're not talking Aunt May here) she may very well be waiting for something...
Or someone.
Jocelyn is dressed in a pair of jeans and a grey jacket. She had arranged to meet with May in Central Park after Ben had gotten them together somehow. He had asked Jocelyn to help train May, and the woman had agreed. She didn't know the details of who May was during the night, so to speak. Ben had left that little bit of information out of his summary to Jocelyn.
Of course, Jocelyn had been more interested in finding out just what May knew and what May wanted to learn, not what Ben thought she should learn.
Approaching, the redhead spots the woman waiting. She moves confidently forwards. "Miss Parker I assume," Jocelyn says by way of greeting. Because most people wouldn't be waiting in that spot in Central Park if it hadn't been planned, and on a day like today, there weren't as many people about.
"Yeah, that's me..." May starts to say as she turns towards the source of that voice. And yet as she looks right at the person in question, she... Blinks. And then lets a rather large, amused smile cross her face...?
"And I knew that Ben wanted me to meet someone. But you're not exactly who or what I was expecting. And I mean that in a good way."
Yeah. After all, considering that if this person is anything like the one she may have worked with before... Or she at least knows of...
There's a raised eyebrow of confusion. Obviously Ben hadn't let Jocelyn in on the joke. She digs around in her brain, but comes up empty as to who this person might be. "Oh? Who were you expecting then?" Jocelyn questions with a laugh. "Name is Jocelyn Stream. Ben's had me training him for a bit and said you were looking for some help in that area". Jocelyn offers a hand as she draws closer.
It's perfectly possible that in May's universe, Jocelyn had worked with her before. One of Jocelyn's core beliefs was the whole spirit of cooperation thing. "Though I don't want to assume anything either. Ben sometimes gets an idea in his head and doens't let go for a bit". A grin is given to May. "You want to sit down?" She gestures to a nearby bench. "Figure out what you'd like out of a trainer, see if we're a good match".
There's a slight nod before May admits, "The whole trainer thing is more Ben's idea than it is mine." even as she glances around, before moving to sit down on a nearby bench.
"I've had some trainers in the past. Some good. Some... Odd. It's... Complex."
Then well, there's a grin.
"And I wasn't sure who or what to expect, to be honest. Considering Ben, it could of been almost anything, or anyone."
"Welcome to New York. It's odd and complex and good at the same time, all the time," Jocelyn responds. She notes that it was more Ben's idea, and simply nods to that. "Alright. Well, what would you like then?" Jocelyn asks. "Are you looking for a trainer? A sparring partner? Someone to hang out with around this city?" All of these were totally valid questions. She takes a seat on the bench as well. "And if you're looking for a trainer, what do you want out of them?"
"Even without the DeLorean Building." May lets out with a slight grin. "But hey, at least Cats isn't still on Broadway."
Now what she means like that could mean anything.
"And to be honest, I'm not sure what I need in regards to a trainer. I know I always could get better, and usually need to, but well..."
There's a bit of a glance to the side, as if she's checking for something. But then again, since she isn't feeling that familiar tingle...
"Let's just say that anyone even trying to spar with me might need to be able to do more than they'd think at first."
Confident. If Ben wasn't dating Jubilee, maybe Jocelyn would suggest Ben date May. Of course, that would be weird for reasons Jocelyn doesn't know.
"Yeah?" Jocelyn says as she looks the woman over. She was a bit taller than average, and looked pretty athletic. She's heard these comments before. Mostly from metahumans hinting at that sort of thing. But Jocelyn figured Ben would have told her about that. "Well, how about giving me a demonstration of what you can do, and we see where you're at? Might be you're better than me and I should be asking you for training". There's no mockery in the tone. Jocelyn accepts all possibilities.
Jocelyn stands up and assumes an easy defensive position, though she does enhance her toughness a bit. Just in case there was a metahuman surprise waiting for her. Because she seemed to run into that every other day.
As she stands back up, that smile...? Returns.
"If you want to...? Sure."
Of course May might not be as tall as Jocelyn, but she looks athletic as well. All though it's more like a basketball player kind of athletic.
"And I doubt I'm better than you. I might not be a pushover, but.. I'm not going to be as good as you."
And with that said, May takes up her own pseudo defensive position, but it doesn't look like any of the major, well known martial arts styles.
"First mistake. Assuming someone you haven't fought before is better or worse than you," Jocelyn says with an easy smile. "Don't worry though. Everyone makes that mistake. The key is confidence in your own abilities. Now, I want you to come at me. I'm just going to stay defensive for now. I want to see how you attack before I test your defenses," Jocelyn says.
The fact that the style is unfamiliar is a little bit of an oddity to Jocelyn. It looked kind of like a martial art, but kind of like a brawler's stance to her, and May didn't initially strike Joce as a street brawler. "Don't hold back. I'm pretty durable".
"Is it?" is said with a smile. It's /almost/ like May might know something that Jocelyn doesn't. But if that's true she doesn't say so.
And yet...
Well, that style might look a bit like a brawlers, but there's also other bits to it. For example, there is a quick couple of steps forward, before the shorter redhead lashes out with a kick. One that has an edge to it. A purely martial arts edge. 
"And trust me, you don't have to stay on the defensive. Not with me."
The normal retort is kept back for the moment, as Jocelyn blocks the kick with her arm. As she does so, she attempts to catch the leg with one arm and flip the girl backwards. It's a simple move, and one that would take advantage of Jocelyn's height advantage.
"Good opener," the teen says, noting the style. "What style is that? It's unfamiliar to me".
The woman moves forward and feints a punch with her left arm at May's face. The real strike comes at the woman's midsection with Jocelyn's right arm. She hasn't augmented her strength or agility, however, so while they strikes are quite quick and powerful for a human, they're on the upper end of the mundane scale rather than at a superheroic scale.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." is said as May jerks her leg back before it can be grabbed. Heck, it looks almost like her eyes might be closed for a moment or two as she does that...
Then though, well... As both that feint, and the real strike come towards May, she sort of jumps, and spins slightly, to move out of the way, before she up and kneels as soon as she lands and she tries to do a leg sweep?!?
There's an advantage to being able to see energy. Jocelyn has some idea of where the kinetic force is being directed the most, how much is being used in various movements, and other things like that. It wasn't the Spider Sense, but it helped her out in fights a little. So far, Jocelyn hadn't put together exactly how much force May was putting out with her quick moves.
Of course, she's not fully expecting someone to pull off that move either.
The leg sweep catches Jocelyn's ankles and she falls backwards. She turns the move into a backflip, catching herself on her hands. Okay, this May was quick. Really, really quick.
Jocelyn assumes a defensive position, waiting for May to come at her again.
And since Jocelyn didn't push...
May lets out, "I was trained for a little bit by a ninja. Once upon a time." as Jocelyn gets up.
"And a couple of police officers. And a couple of people with even... Odder fighting experiences..."
With that said, she sort of raises her own, 'odd' fighting stance again, before this time, she backs away.
"And as I said, don't hold back. I know you can do better."
"Like I said. Maybe you should be the trainer, since you seem to know a bit more than I'd expect" Jocelyn responds as May explains the various trainers she's had. Though the comment could be taken a couple different ways. Of course, Jocelyn thinks May is a mundane human. A skilled human, but Jocelyn wasn't going to break out her enhanced agility or strength yet. She trained against Ben, sometimes without her powers active. She could totally deal with May.
The woman smiles a little and darts forward, launching an elbow at the woman's midsection.
Jocelyn then pivots to her left and launches a couple quick punches at May's side, aiming for some weaker points on the human body that tended to be more painful than others.
And as Jocelyn comes towards May, if she's really observant, she might notice that the shorter redheads eyes are /shut/.
Yep, Mayday is fighting with her eyes closed right now. Somehow.
And yet, as that elbow comes her way, May back peddles. Still, some of those other blows do look like they're about to hit, or should hit, but somehow May moves just in the knick of time.
And yet... She's not fighting back...?
There's another eyebrow raise. Hang on. Something didn't sit right here. Jocelyn knew those strikes should have hit. And the woman was fighting with her eyes closed?
Okay. Time to test the woman a little more.
Jocelyn augments her own agility, now bringing it up so she can react much faster. And the woman closes her eyes as well, focusing purely on the energy the woman puts out. Life energy, kinetic energy, the little bits of electrical and other energies that were present in people, all that.
She moves more quickly now, her reflexes now matching with May's, her strikes come more rapidly and with less time between them, which will make reacting to them far more difficult. A kick is aimed at May's left knee before Jocelyn swings to the side and launches a fast series of punches, striking rapidly at the shoulders, the stomach, and the woman's sides. The final move in the series is an axe kick, designed to drive hard into May's left shoulder.
And as Jocelyn does match the speed May has shown, well...
The shorter redhead is hit. By all those strikes. First the strike to the knee causes her to stumble. Then the hits to the shoulders start to knock her back. And then, before she can even start to recover... There's the harder blow from the axe kick to the shoulder, and she falls.
"That is more like what I was talking about." is said, even as Mayday lies there.
The woman opens her eyes and offers her hand to May with intent to help her up. "You're a meta," Jocelyn says. It's not a question, though it is said quietly enough. "That's a little detail that Ben left out, and given you knew I could do better, I'm guessing you knew I was one". Though she doesn't think Ben would out her like that. Which meant there was something else going on.
"There's no other way for someone to move that fast. The amount of energy you were putting out is beyond the limits of an unpowered human". Now that she reviews it in her head, it was clear to her.
And in regards to the energy that Jocelyn should of picked up, she more than likely would of been able to pick up that yes, May isn't a 'normal'. But it wouldn't be clear if she's a mutant, or meta. Definitely not alien though. Odds are her bio-electric patterns would definitely be different, and unique. And on top of that, if Jocelyn has any experience with 'The Negative Zone' or certain other realities, she'd probably be able to detect some faint traces of the energies from those realities, albeit they would be very, very faint, and slowly fading. Much like someone who may have been there a few months back, where those unique energies were taking their time to drift off of her.
"So are you." is said back to Jocelyn as the shorter redhead does a kipup back up onto her feet.
"And normally I wouldn't do this, but since Ben vouches for you, and we /still/ haven't been able to find a way to get me back..."
A hand is extended."
"Hi. I'm May. Ben's sort of kind of 'niece' from another reality."
Jocelyn has seen lots of weird energies. Lots of various time travel and alternate reality energies. It might not be exactly the same, but similar enough.
Jocelyn takes the hand and laughs. "Another alternate universe, huh? One of my best friends is from a different time and reality, so I do believe you," Jocelyn says. Jocelyn used 'meta' to mean a powered individual, simply because she didn't know what type May was. "I'm guessing you know me in your reality? Here I tend to keep a little more out of the public eye," the woman says.
The woman laughs. "Though I suppose that this means I do exist in at least someone's timeline. There goes my theory that I'm a unique outlier in this reality," Jocelyn comments with a little grin.
"So a niece, huh? Given what I saw, I think I can make some guesses as to what your thing is".
Jocelyn shakes her head. "I suppose this means I'll have to actually work a bit harder with you, if you still want a training partner".
There's a bit of an... Odd smile there, before May shrugs.
"You could say we know of each other. I don't want to give away too much, but well... There's differences. Namely where I'm from, the year is the same, but a lot of people who are either at their height or just starting out, were that way twenty years ago instead. So you're older, among other things. And definately more high profile. And the last time I saw you, well.... You were on the verge of cutting loose, just like a couple of others."
Then there's a nod, "And yes, I don't mind the training. But well... Since Ben set this up 'out of costume' you trying to train me would be difficult, since when I don't want to be hit, it's very, very difficult to do it."
"Fair enough," Jocelyn says. She accepts that whole timeline thing. "I've been tossed through time a few times, into other possible realities. I know that stuff is different and such".
The woman laughs at that. "You're aware now, May, that you've just set me a new goal, which is to beat you in a spar without my powers". A grin crosses her face. "Anyway, around here I'm known as Channel. Your call if you want to share what you're going by".
The woman pauses. "Also, what the hell style was that you were using, anyway? Seemed like a brawling, martial arts mix, but nothing in there I really see much of around here".
With a slight grin, May admits, "In costume, I'm Spider-Girl, despite how old I am. I've been doing this for oh... About five or six years. So some of that was more experience than teaching."
Then well, there's a grin.
"And you can try. But not all of us can turn off our powers. So hitting me or catching me by surprise will take a bit of work."
Then there's a shrug, "As I said, I fight with a little ninjitsu, some police hand to hand training, plus some tricks taught to me by a pair of other former super heroes, including the Spider-Man of my reality, plus I would spar with American Dream." Pause. "Think a female successor to Captain America for the last one."
"That would explain it," Jocelyn says. And the niece comment makes more sense now. Though Jocelyn could have made some guesses that she was part of the Spider Family, she didn't want to assume. "I assume all the same web slinging stuff then," the teen comments. "You certainly have a bit more formal training than Ben does," Jocelyn observes. A nod is given about the individuals listed. "Sometime I'll rope you and Ben into the same spot, do a bit of work that way". Plus it'd be more efficient.
"So, any interesting differences you can share about your world? I'm always a little curious about how the different realities diverge". It's a little bit of a hobby Jocelyn has picked up, mostly thanks to pure chance.
For a moment, May bites her lip, before she responds.
"Well, I already told you, or hinted at the big ones. Time is a bit off. The people who are active today were active twenty years ago, but despite that the technology level is still the same as it is. And the 'next generation' of heroes are the ones doing things, with many having been established for a few years, and more coming out of the wood work every day. The X-Men gave away to the X-People for example. The Avengers have a whole different, and younger lineup. You use to be in The Justice League. Things like that."
Then there's another shrug.
"As for what I can do... It's similar to Uncle Bens, but odds are not the same. Every spider is a little different. Or in some cases, like the Spider-Woman of this reality, a /LOT/ different."
So the X-Men got politically correct. Interesting. Jocelyn nods a little. "I don't know all the spiders that well. Honestly, Ben is the only one who I've interacted with regularly, though I've met the original flavor". The fact that Jocelyn was in the Justice League gets an easy smile. "I can see how that might happen. Though that's about as public as you get, and that's not where I am now. Sounds kind of like everything started a generation sooner, and a lot of today's heroes started back then". Almost like a transplant of this generation into the previous years. Odd.
"I imagine it's a little different, yeah. Well, I won't push. Like I said, just curious about the bits that would be safe-ish to share. Your timeline sounds a lot less...apocalyptic than what I've heard before". Which was a refreshing change.
"Anyway. Here's my number. We'll set up some sparring sessions, see what we can learn from the other, and go from there," the woman says. "I've got a few things I need to tie up today. Good meeting you, May".
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