Welcome to Gaia! ::

((This RP is for Queen Beryl and all Negaverse officers. Regardless if you post or not, it is assumed that all officers, corrupted senshi and cats are present for the meeting. If you wish to post, please PM the mule and we will adjust the post order accordingly. We have several big Negaverse changes coming into play so bear with us if it takes a few posts to get to yours. Danke!))


The pull came close to midnight.

The majority of the Negaverse, to the Queen's great disappointment, had not been searching for star seeds or murdering senshi. Most were asleep, tucked away under comforters, clutching their stuffed penguins, their cell phones, their pillows. A handful were up studying, several tapping away at keyboards with last minute reports. All fell victim to the summoning, every last one of her minions quickly teleporting into the subspace, jerked away from their happy dreams or gaming. More than a few look groggy-eyed, several more stood around, slightly dazed. One poor Lieutenant was forced to hide a scowl, having left behind a very confused (and soon to be heartbroken) date.

It only took moments for all to fall to their knees, remembering their place as they recognized their surroundings. The last meeting with their Queen had only involved those awake during Tartaros - with all members now awake and present, the subspace had never been more crowded.

The woman who stood before them looked different. Her facial structure and eyes remained that of her former host's but the hair had darkened tremendously, her mauve gown following suit. But there was no question of who she was - the powerful aura alone separated their Queen from the rest among the subspace. If that wasn't enough to remind them, the sound of her staff slamming against the freezing ground silenced the remaining whispers scattered among the officers.

She said nothing at first, dark eyes scanning the crowd. Several dared to meet her gaze, others quickly averting their stares to their uniform shoes. And then, finally, she spoke.

"You have disappointed me."

The tone was that of a mother's or teacher's - not yet to the point where mental alarms and red flags were going off in heads but dangerous enough to keep the attention drawn to her. One did not disappoint their Queen, after all.

"I gave you power. I gave you youma. I gave you basic instructions and yet it takes nearly all of you to carry out a simple task."

There was no pacing as she spoke, the tall woman remaining rigid where she stood, one hand grasping her staff while the other rested at her side. "This greatly concerns me. It leads me to believe one of two things. One, your leaders in the past have failed to train you adequately."

Her eyes narrowed. "Or two, you knowingly choose to allow the senshi to destroy our planet and murder your own families."

Bowed heads rose at her second suggestion, dozens of eyes widening. Murder their families?

Her face remained grim as she explained. "Two of their leaders hold powerful crystals - the Zodiac Princess and the Moon Princess. These Great Crystals caused the plague that swept through Destiny City - it was their power that forced your loved ones into comas, their power that killed those who never woke up. There is nothing stopping Chronos and the Moon Princess from causing such a disaster again, so it is up to us to put a rightful end to this chaos as quickly as possible."

She paused, her fingers tightening around the mirror staff. Some faces looked at her in confusion. Others in awe. Even more, however, grew to look furious - the senshi had been the ones behind the magical plague? That meant the senshi had nearly destroyed them all!

"Crystals are the key to our success."

Her voice remained firm, but the tone of disappointment had disappeared. "Allowing the senshi to obtain the shards, however, and you are allowing your family, your friends and yourself to die by their hands."

Silence filled the subspace once more, but she was quick to continue. "So, before I begin with our new course of action, you are now allowed to ask any lingering questions you may still have."

Eyebrows rose as a blue-haired Captain's eyes met hers.

"Zinkenite?"

She had been up late watching a wrestling match on TV. It was not normally her preferred form of entertainment, but she hoped that by watching enough muscular meatheads beat each other that she might learn some wrestling moves. She was sadly mistaken. Most of the matches she saw on TV were obviously faked. She knew real damage when she saw it – she’d had to patch up her own, after all – and these phonies were faking it.

When she felt the tug and her dimly lit living room shifted, Lt. Mica straightened and looked at her new surroundings. She could not say that she was surprised that a meeting had been called. She dropped to her knee, keeping her eyes fixed on her Queen’s feet. The story about the Senshi being the cause of the coma epidemic was news to her. At the time she had not known about ancient celestial feud going on. She had only been aware of the long, sleepless hours spent treating the dead and seemingly dead, of constantly feeling tense and jittery from running on adrenaline, determination, and caffeine. After it was over her calmness had earned attention – from various sources – and praise, but it been a s**t storm, to put it nicely. She was not eager to experience it again, so if the Senshi were the root of the problem, that was all the more reason to be rid of them.

No one liked being a disappointment, Mica included. She knew she could do better, but she also knew she’d have to admit her failings in order to do so. However, if it meant that it would make her more successful, Mica had no qualms in asking for help.

“ My Queen. As you are aware, I have the Amber Crystal. I am forced to admit that, though I have had it for a little while, I have had little success in tapping into its power.”

Little success was a diplomatic way of saying “none.” Mica could feel its power, and once she had managed to make it do something, but since that had been an accident that she’d been unable to replicate, she didn’t bother to count it. The Queen did not seem the sort to give her leeway simply because she was inexperienced, and it truly irked her that some crystal was besting her. If she could rip a person’s starseed from their chest, how could a crystal pose such a problem?

“ I would also like to make a suggestion. Silent Night is now a popular figure, with many fans. There must be a way to take advantage of this. If this idea pleases my Queen, I would seek aid in making plans for Silent Night to become a tool for the Negaverse.”

Mica could lie when it suited her, but making use of Silent Night’s fame and following would require a number of things that she lacked, such as acting skills, and of course the ability to wrestle. The logistics of such an idea were enough to make even Mica so uneasy as to nearly not bring it up. In the end though she had because, while she could be wrong, but the idea seemed to have too much potential to be ignored.

Dark orange eyes traveled from Zinkenite, to Mica, then to Chromite. She said nothing as she listened to them speak. Zinkenite was formal, as always, Mica carrying a determined air about her as she revealed her plot. Chromite held her confidence in her wrinkled notebook page but no response was made to any of them until the pigtailed girl finished speaking.

With a smile, her staff shifted from one hand to the other. "It pleases me to see such eagerness - it also tells me that it is your training that is lacking and not your motivation."

Eyes returned to Zinkenite and her head nodded gently. "You may form your team, Captain. Information is key to our success. Collect all that you can and report back to me; I will assist in making all our officers aware of your findings."

She hesitated then, moving on to the next subject. "Serenity is dead - I highly doubt your prize in question bears any significance. You would have noticed magic by its energy - I'm sure some fool saw the same illusion as you did and is trying to profit from it."

Subject dismissed, she turned to Mica. "I am not against the use of icons for our endeavours - as long as you succeed, Lieutenant, I have no issue with you using a facade. Should you fail, however, I hold both you and your Captain responsible for the results."

There was no mention of the crystal - had she deliberately avoided the subject? Was Mica expected to figure it out on her own, with no help from her Queen?

"The time has come, Chromite, that star seeds are no longer our focus. I agree that the amount collected has waned to an inexcusable number since the comatose have awoken, but we have a sufficient amount to see us to our goal."

This brought even more stares - no more hunting star seeds? But...wasn't this their mission from the beginning? How else would the youma be created?

"The resurfacing of the Rainbow Crystals means a great deal for all of us." Their stares were returned by the somber Queen, "No longer will we need to take the lives of our fellow man to gain our strength, but we will return to our roots to collect that which is essential - energy."

Her free hand extended itself out, motioning from the darkness behind her. A lone youma stepped forward - it looked almost human, its height and appearance similar to that of a teenager's. The skin was a faint blue, hair a dark, jet black. She (or it, rather) wore a slightly worried expression on its face as approached the benevolent Queen that had created it.

"Puteu - your hand."

The youma nodded as its own hand extended out, the Queen's pale fingers reaching out to take hold of the wrist as her attention turned back towards her officers.

"As your star seeds have been purified with that of the Negaverse's power, you are enabled to channel through another being to collect their energy."

While she spoke, the youma's eyes closed, a puzzling expression now crossing its face. There was a soft glow where the Queen's fingers met the wrist, but the youma said nothing as the Queen spoke. "You must be in your Negaverse form to successfully collect the energy - as Lieutenants, all that is required is direct contact with another living being. Focus your own energy into channeling theirs."

By this time, Puteu's legs had buckled from beneath her, the youma slipping to the ground. Her face had paled (as far as the officers could tell, at least - did youma really pale to begin with?) and her eyes remained closed. It was only then that the Queen released the hand she held, dropping it atop the unconscious body of her monstrous creation.

Her hand then moved towards the crowd, a small pearl pressed between two fingers. It glowed softly, catching the eye of many officers.

"Once collected, the energy will form into an orb. You will turn in these orbs to either your superior officer or to myself. It is through this energy that we will continue to thrive. Should the orb break, however..."

Eyes glanced down at the youma resting at her feet, eyebrows raising ever so slightly. The pearl was dropped, sailing down and immediately shattering upon contact. The glow disappeared and soon after, the pearl fragments evaporated. Puteu's eyes opened within seconds, the youma rising back to her feet as if nothing had happened.

Ignoring the monster, Beryl continued. "Which is a waste to us, so do not allow them to break. Your target will regain their energy over time with no other harm done - consider this their sacrifice to the Negaverse's cause. Any creature bearing a star seed will produce the energy our power feeds from."

There was a pause - as if she were about to accept questions - and then Beryl turned back to the shadows behind her as she spoke.

"But energy collecting is only the beginning. Now that the Rainbow Crystals have been found right here in Destiny City, I have called back the others to return and aid our forces."

The...others?

Three silhouettes stepped forward from the shadows as Puteu skulked away from the powerful auras approaching. All three radiated power - not nearly as powerful as the Queen's aura, but terrifyingly powerful nonetheless.

Her free hand motioned for them to come closer, the trio stepping into the light for all to see. Three figures stopped once they stood alongside their Queen, two women, one man. All wore decorated uniforms, similar to that of the Generals of the Negaverse. But these three held more power than any of the officers had ever felt...who were these others?

"Your training has been inadequate...until now." Turning back around to the officers, Beryl motioned towards those standing beside her. "I introduce you to your commanding officers until the time has come that any of you prove your worthiness of such a rank. Each General-King and Queen has been given a task - a focus that they are committed to, aside from overseeing those they remain accountable for.”

Her eyes narrowed, but she chose not to elaborate, instead, making her way back to her throne. Once seated, her staff tilted forward in the direction of the trio of strangers now standing before the Lieutenants, Captains and Generals of the Negaverse.

“Officers - I leave you to explain why you are here.”

With that, her hand found its home on the throne’s arm, dark eyes watching as three of her most loyal officers resumed the meeting in her stead.

If the lovely Laurelite lacked any sort of intimidating qualities in her person, the lanky man that stepped from the shadows and bowed with reverence to his queen more than made up for this shortcoming. It was a wholly different sort of intimidating than Charonite had ever employed, however. The Commander in Chief of this assemblage had intimidated much as the queen did, with persona and silky threat alone. This man simply radiated authority and confidence in the fact that he could and would easily dispose of anything in his path. Efficiency, in this circumstance, was his trade.

His skin was the coffee color that signified African descent, and the inflections in his voice when he spoke confirmed that to any knowledgeable listener. "To the point as ever, Laurelite." The inflections were torn between French and tribal, that musical dialect of the deep Africa. His head inclined towards her, green eyes flicking to the ends of her hair with interest before turning to the group of children before him. "I am General-King Marthozite, and I am in control of the jungles of Africa. There has never been a guardian cat in my homeland, and there shall never be." He stood there, at parade-rest while addressing the lesser officers, eyes roving the crowd and nodding to himself as they lingered over several there.

"Our glorious queen is correct; your training has been quite lacking. There is little organization, and even less consideration for the meager teams you have been able to cobble together. In any case, you have done well. The invaders from the Moon have not taken over, and I congratulate you for it." Apparently, this was a very important thing to Marthozite, giving them the pep talk that they deserved, while telling them exactly what needed to be worked on. It was, as always, efficient. Beryl might have been the one to whom he gave reverence, but it was the God of Efficiency that held his soul.

"There is little to say otherwise about my goal." A fist came over his heart, rapped there at the plating over it to make a hollow echo into the subspace. "There is a star seed within. What you may not know is that the senshi have a belief that when a star dies, it returns to the place it was born, somewhere in the galaxy. They all gather there, millions upon millions of star seeds." His eyes lit now like an eager boy, giddy with the idea of so much power at his fingertips. "It is the ultimate source of power, and it is my goal to find and harness that power for our Queen." Marthozite turned again, bowing to the woman to whom he had given dominion over himself, as well as every man ever under his command - willing or not.

"To that end, we must capture one such as this Chronos princess, or the girl parading about as the descendant of the Moon Princess." Apparently, news got around. "They may know of this place, this power, and may deliver it to us when we bring them to the light of our cause. It will change our world." The light in his eyes, the only thing that ever showed emotion in his stoic face, grew. "Already the queen has changed my homeland. They do not suffer needlessly under wars and the brutal tortures of it. She has changed my world. She will change yours, if only you can give her the power and the sacrifice. It is worth it." Those words, words that none had really heard before, were perhaps more needed than the little assurance that they were not all personally lacking. People needed a reason to follow, and this was proof in the pudding, so to speak.

Bowing once more, with nothing else to really say Marth stepped up behind his fellow General-Queen. What he had come to say had been said, and there was little else to follow it up. Besides, the third could speak easily for herself, and did so when it struck her. He'd been told clearly that what he stood for needed to be outlined to these poor, unguided children so that they might choose for themselves where to lend their skills. He did that. Now, Marthozite simply wished to observe. It always showed you things that you needed to know.

As the pink haired General-Queen disappeared, the Queen of the Negaverse rose from her throne once more. Laurelite and Marthozite took a step back in unison, allowing their revered monarch to resume the meeting.

There was no need to wait for a reaction - there was no reason to desire one. The General-Kings of the Negaverse had returned to Destiny City and the senshi would suffer for their resistance, for their attack on Earth.

"While my General-Kings are competent in their own right, it is by the power of all my officers that we will succeed in our endeavors. You are dismissed for the evening - should you wish to contact any of your new commanders, return here or place a request in with your Captain."

The explanation was brief - nearly as brief as the hand wave that returned all of the Negaverse agents back to their homes, their computer games and their (still heartbroken) dates.

With the subspace now void of all but her General-Kings, the Queen returned to her throne, her loyal subjects more than prepared to give their latest reports.