Welcome to Gaia! ::

The downtown area had many places to train. The area where the Colts lived was quiet, restful. It was populated with sleepy retirees, who had nothing better to do than watch 60 Minutes at night. There weren’t many children in the area, and it was affluent enough to keep too many riff-raff types out. After 6 o’clock there weren’t many people wandering around. Some of the buildings were low- duplexes or rows of brownstones, like the one Sam lived in. Other buildings were medium-sized apartment complexes, not many over eight stories most were only four or six high. In short, it was the perfect area to for the young senshi to practice.

The neighborhood was sleepy enough that he could go unnoticed, as he climbed up the fire escape of an apartment complex. Since he lived in the area, he knew it well. When he told his parents he was going out for a bike ride around the neighborhood, they didn’t seem too concerned. It wasn’t a total lie either; his shiny red bicycle was chained up to the bottom rung of the fire escape ladder. Sailor Chibi Ixion knew that not that many people would notice his small, dark frame climbing up the fire escape; people either asleep (the elderly) or out enjoying the town, doing fun things like going on dates to the movies (the younger affluent crowd).

As he shimmied up one rung after another, he peeked into a window; yup, sleeping. An older woman was passed out on an ugly, faded floral print lounge chair. The boy continued up until he reached the top of the building. He was only five stories up, but it felt high to him. As a kid, everything looked bigger than it really was. The boy walked to the edge of the rooftop, peering over the edge.

Ixion was king of all that he surveyed; this was his domain. He just needed to learn how to protect it properly.

The youma had literally come out of nowhere. Ixion hadn’t felt it’s presence, either because of his inexperience or because it seemed to materialize straight out of the shadows. Ixion had no idea what was coming for him until he felt hot breath on the back of his neck. Whipping around, he was face to face with the drool covered sharp teeth of an unidentifiable, shadowy youma.

The young senshi had nowhere to run, his body was already pressed up against the low brick wall that marked the edge of the roof.

Before the youma could attack, it was knocked sideways by Themis. Ixion took the opportunity to move away from the ledge and closer to the bright white-coated senshi. The sudden surprise attack gave the boy a stir, his hands were shaking slightly, “Th..Thanks.”

Before the two senshi could get too friendly, the youma got to its feet and viciously snarled.

HIDE? NEVER! Although the charcoal and rust colored senshi was still jittery from the sudden surprise attack of the youma, the boy stayed by Themis’s side. He stayed behind Themis, but positioned himself, ready to back up the older senshi if need be. As much as Themis wanted Ixion to run away from danger, it just wasn’t going to happen.

As a senshi or a civilian, Ixion rarely backed down from a challenge. With the older senshi there to help, he felt confident that the danger was only temporary. His confidence waned however, when the shadowy youma seemed to disappear.

The monster stepped back into the shadows, its form fading into the darkness. But, it quickly reappeared in a flash, attacking both senshi from the side.

Watching Themis, Ixion was a bit awed at how he just threw himself infront of that youma. When it attacked, he didn't cry out in pain or anything. Ixion wasn't sure if we would have done the same thing. He was more like to roll out of the way than face a large beast head-on. But, he was only eleven. The shadow- youma could easily eat him for breakfast.

"I... throw rocks, basically." Ixion was a little ashamed of his powers. Compared to some of the awesome abilities of the older senshi, his seemed... weak and useless.

At least his aim was proficient. "Ixion Coal Rush". Ixion took fired his shot at the youma. The black lump of coal hit the youma's hand, knocking it out of the way before it could take another angry swipe at Themis.

Eyes, got it. Ixion nodded at Themis’s request and conjured up another lump of coal. Hopefully, this one would be able to explode into soot like it had on other occasions. That was his power’s one saving grace, the coal either hit someone pretty hard and Ixion could hope for a concussion or it broke apart into soot, leaving a stain.

The piece of coal that Ixion had thrown early had just fallen to the ground. As the shadowy youma charged at the pair again, it crushed the first lump under its feet. Running away did seem like a nice option, being eaten by the youma certainly didn’t sound appetizing. It was too bad there wasn’t anyone to protect. Just Themis, Ixion, and the shadowy youma stood on the rooftop. Even if he had wanted to run, which he didn’t, there was nowhere to run to.

Ixion took aim and threw his second piece of coal at the youma’s face. It made a satisfying impact, dissolving into a blur of black dust. If it weren’t for the fact the youma was already black, the soot stains would have been noticeable. The results were okay. The youma howled in irritation. Instead of fighting back it tried to rub its eyes as it sank down into the shadows. The youma literally seemed to disappear into the roof.

For a moment, it looked like the youma was gone. Ixion smiled up at Themis, smug that he seemed to have destroyed the youma almost on his own. Approaching Themis, he extended his hand to thank Themis for his help and the tips. His mouth opened to say something, but the youma had reappeared. It was crouched on the ground and reached for Ixion’s ankles, pulling him down. Ixion couldn't help but let out a shriek.

When the monster let go of Ixion, he scrambled and quickly crawled away from its clutches. He huddled in a corner, watching as Themis dusted off the youma.

Dust. Of course, Ixion had seen it happen before and he felt stupid for rejoicing in the youma’s defeat too soon. A mental note was made in his head: always check for dust.

Curled up, Ixion held tightly onto his legs. Being pulled down by a youma, that totally wanted to eat him, really shook him up. When asked if he was okay, Ixion turned his ankles out to examine them. There were cuts through his boots, gashes made from the youma’s claws. Some blood was coming up, but it was only a flesh a wound. It was nothing too serious, almost like being scratched by a dog. A dog, yeah… that’s what he would tell his parents.

“…Yeah… not too bad.” Ixion gave Themis a half-hearted smile, trying to choke back his emotions. Don’t cry, do not cry.

A more chipper smile appeared as Ixion pulled his phone out of subpace.

"Yeah! I do!" Ixion slide his rusty colored phone open and used it to scan Themis, exactly how Sailor Perseus has showed him. The phone made a happy beep.

He turned the phone towards Themis, showing him his own name on the screen. "See, Themis! This means I can call you now yeah?"

Putting the phone back into its subspace pocket, Ixion freed his hands up and used them to push himself up from the floor. He was a little wobbly at first, but soon found his bearings.

Shuffling back over to the rooftop’s edge, he scanned the scene below with his sugar eyes, watching carefully for any further action.

Without looking back, he called to Themis, “Any time? Anywhere?” Ixion bobbed his head, nodding to a response he didn’t even have yet. It was comforting to know that if he was really in danger he could call others to come help him. God knows as a chibi senshi he would need it, even if Ixion thought otherwise.

Glancing over his shoulder, Ixion had a cocky grin on his face. “Doubt I’ll need it.” He said it as if the previous event had never occurred. The young senshi was just trying to act tough and impressive.