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((It is assumed that every Negaverser, Corrupt Senshi, and Corrupt Guardian Cat will be summoned to this meeting! Everyone is welcome to RP and participate, but if you are unable to, you can still assume your character was here.))



Nobody was sure what was happening, or why they had been summoned, but the Rift was alive with activity that evening as one by one the agents of the Negaverse appeared within the dilapidated throne room. Even broken down and worn away by time and treachery, there was something regal about the place. Something almost uncomfortably formal. The domed ceiling had long ago crumbled in, and beyond it the churning skies bathed everything in a pale orange glow. Once upon a time, Endymion had sat upon the throne on the room's center dais. What little was left of it was vacant rubble, the Earth symbol that had once crowned it now scattered across the floor.

Broken, like the people who had been called to serve it.

The past several months had not been easy ones for the Negaverse. They had lost a General-King and more soldiers than any of them wanted to count, learned that even their most experience Generals could be turned against them, and saw the rise of a new Prince among the senshi. Their plans had been foiled time and time again, and there was little in the way of up sides to bolster their spirits. Their own triumphs seemed to pale in comparison to the sudden resurgence of the Knights and the sudden bursts of organization within the senshi ranks. What had once been a ragtag handful of unknowing teenagers had become an army, and now that army was beginning to come together.

The danger of losing their war was greater than ever.

The danger of losing their planet... Tanzanite did not want to consider it.

The General-Queen sat quietly upon one large chunk of rubble from the throne, visibly weakened by the effort of trying to summon so large a crowd. Beryl could have done it with a thought, strong as she was in Chaos' dark arts, but the woman who traditionally hosted their meetings was absent. Instead, Laurelite and Apatite stood with her, each doing their part to send out the call to officers. There was an urgency in that tug on their power, and most had only a few seconds of warning before they were ripped from their homes and pulled into the Negaverse.

There was no time to waste.

To her left, a black sheet covered some massive object, half against as tall as the already monstrous General-Queen. Tanzanite seemed rather intent on ignoring it as she summoned the last of their officers. She would have to deal with that soon enough. No soldier could be forgotten; every ounce of their strength would soon be essential.

“I know the past months have taken their toll on all of you, and what I must do today pains me greatly.” Even Tanzanite's voice seemed a little quieter than usual, but she managed to push herself steadily to her feet. She looked at them, one by one, her gaze lingering for a few moments on each of their faces. Some, she barely knew. Others, she had fought beside for years. Some of them were new Lieutenants, their skin still free of scars and their eyes still full of innocence. It tugged on whatever heart strings she had left to think of who they might soon become. What they might soon become.

It was a price they paid willingly, and that thought alone brightened Tanzanite's otherwise dark thoughts.

Her voice was steady as she spoke, but there was no hiding the ominous tone to the words: “We are losing this war.”

Hiro sat as close to Tanzanite as possible without actually perching on her piece of throne. He was here for support and information gathering and whatever other use he could be - but not for trying to steal any part of the General-Queen's power.

One ear dropped slightly as he took in how exhausted she was. Part of him wanted to help her; the other part knew she was strong enough to make it through this meeting even after summoning such an unprecedented number of people - that's why she was their General-Queen. It made Hiro fiercely proud to be part of her command.

We are losing this war.

Ears went down. A striped tail lashed back and forth. Hiro's shoulders hunched as though he might hiss a sharp denial. Unfortunately, he couldn't. If nothing else, they were outnumbered - by the senshi alone, and then with these new Knights appearing, too? Every rumour he heard, every scrap of information he'd stolen from too-trusting enemies, all confirmed it. Maybe not today, maybe not this year, but eventually... they would lose.

Yet Tanzanite wouldn't call them here simply to tell them that. She spoke of actions she would take, even if they hurt her to carry them out.

"You have a plan," Hiro said. It wasn't a question.

Unlike many people, who were waiting nervously, absolutely still other than the soft and worried shifting on their feet, the creamy white cat seemed hardly nervous, softly winding through the legs and feet of many unfamiliar faces. Until the General Queen spoke, she was acting almost as if it was a social event, offering greetings, collecting names, taking advantage of this excellent opportunity to meet and see so many, her tail held high to herald her presence as she made each turn.

When she spoke, General Queen Tanzanite's voice finally stopped Dahlia in her steps, however.. she seemed far less phased.. far less.. dissapointed then the mirrored uphappiness on the faces up above her.

She just hadn't been there long enough to be invested or feel any part of the loss. She'd been part of one failed mission.. but it was just one, and it certainly wasn't her fault that the mission had gone awry. She was perhaps a little surprised, because the forces of chaos she'd seen already seemed pretty tough. But that was all.

Perhaps they were not winning yet, but they'd already taken a step in the right direction by recruiting her. Their next meeting would be a far more joyeous one. With tales of glory, and the insistance that the 'tides had changed'.

Her dual colored eyes tried to peer through the sea of legs and sweeping uniforms to catch sight of the General Queen as she heard a familiar mauvian voice. Just because she didn't feel worried or responsible.. that didn't mean she wouldn't be happy to hear the new plan and figure out the best way to be a part of it.

It was one thing to know the truth in the pit of your stomach - it was another to be told it by the woman who, for all intent and purpose, could lead you both to salvation or to complete and utter destruction.

Fluorite had once been one of these lieutenants, fresh faced, pristine, and free of scars. The innocence that had been in her eyes was now forever lost, a particular light that would never shine again. None of the scars were visible - some on her covered arms. The largest one ran across her midsection, through the biggest, most painful ones... No one would ever see them if she could help it.

The nightmares. The way she howled when she'd cradled the starseed of her first dead senshi in her palm. The fractured innocence that would never be whole again.

And yet, they were losing. Sheer numbers could tell one that. But yet Captain Fluorite remained silent. This was not her place to talk, only listen.

Another senshi made his way through the crowd, head down and ignoring the glares some of his superiors threw his way. For being here. For existing, perhaps.

Even that was not enough to erode Alunite's loyalty. But the floor was a much safer location to direct his brown-eyed gaze - he couldn't see the scorn, and he couldn't see her. It was perhaps better this way.

They'd grown distant, fractured, since his injury, He was growing more and more distant from everyone, including but not stopping at his own sister, and he wasn't sure if those particular rifts could even be mended.

Or if it was worth to.

He settled behind General Zinkenite, right beside Lyra, careful to not step on any part of her hair that might have spilled on the floor, and waited. He looked down when he felt something against his ankles and spared a smile at Dahlia, through it was gone again when he looked up.

Summoning didn't inconvinence Wolframite anymore. He had little else to do, and if he wasn't already patrolling, he was resting. In this case, he had been winding down a few moments before considering bed when he had been called, and groggy, still managed to automatically kneel. In the past, it was done for the Queen, but he had been growing more and more concerned by her lacking presence. They had worked hard to bring her back, and he could only conclude that she was laboring in the background to strengthen their efforts against the senshi. A lot had changed. The Queen was not present, and Tanzanite stood, taking her own throne in a new place. They came to the Rift and not the main meeting room, which always threw him off. Who were they answering to or was it that the Queen entrusted Tanzanite as a General Queen above the rest and her second in command to take over leadership in her busy absence? Whatever the case, he kneeled all the same. Tanzanite had long since earned his respect and adoration.

Most meetings, Woflramite recalled, were never good. There was always a grim note, and often times a new threat, but always to the same side in the end. The hard statement that they were loosing made his eyes widen from almost closing asleep (despite his efforts), and he shot his head up from it's bowed position to look at Tanzanite as she stood and regarded them all. It was not a if, but a solid fact she was addressing, and she looked saddened by it. Whether this was because her own efforts were failing, or personal disappointment that they all were this weak. He didn't know, but the recent energy collection he had managed seemed to not matter now, and he had thought that would have given them a bit of an edge. It seemed not.

It wasn't a wonder they were losing though. They all knew the numbers. A student failing basic algebra could figure out the math. Senshi were everywhere, and ever growing stronger. There were even a smaller, young group now to take their place. He'd been seeing more cats as well, and grew concerned that these creatures would be bringing about even more numbers. And still, despite now kneeling as a General, he felt too weak to fight them. He wished he could do more, but he made due with what he had. He just risen to general position, and he would use every ounce of that power to kill and destroy.

He glanced to notice the looks of concern, and also the curious glances at the covered objects behind Tanzanite that seemed to be in some way linked to her worry and sadness. Whatever it was, he doubted it would be good. Wolframite was about to speak up and ask if there was anything they could do, but they wouldn't be having this meeting if there wasn't. "Have we exhausted all options that could help us?" He asked, not sure if there was an alternative that Tanzanite thought too risky before whatever she was about to tell or show them. He would take that risk - a million times over.

It was Lieutenant Osumilite's first meeting; his first encounter with the dreary city known as the Rift. He looked around his environment with awe, absorbing its magical macabre ambience as a chill shot up his spine. There was something very unnerving about being summoned into a place like this. His mind only found distraction in Tanzanite's even more unsettling words. Losing the war?

Much like his General Painite, the eldest of the lieutenants was not too fond of the idea of losing anything. In fact, he had made it his goal in life to ensure that all he does is win, much like DJ Khaled. However, as an agent of the Negaverse, he had no claims to any great victories yet aside from the anti-terrorist angle he approached in his newscasts. Was he not doing enough? He had no qualms with stepping up his game, but he refused to believe that he was instrumental in any failures.

"Lieutenant Osumilite here," he said, introducing himself to the agents he had not yet met. He was unsure of the protocol for a lieutenant's place in the meeting, but he wasn't one to really keep his yap shut. He eyed the androgynous agent - a General, determined by the uniform and power signature - and then the General-Queen. "I must echo the concerns of the handsome General; what has changed in this war that we are now suddenly losing? We obviously cannot let these terrorists win." The terminology of Senshi was still new to his tongue after years of referring to the short-skirted warriors as terrorists and he had not quite adapted the term.

"Do we need the public to be more on our side?" he asked. "More allies?"

Captain Petalite's blue eyes were narrowed as she listened to the General-Queen. Losing? Losing wasn't an option, not for her. She glanced to her right side where her Lieutenant stood. She was still getting used to the fact that Pectolite was Blake and vice versa, but now wasn't the time to dwell on that. She looked away from him and around the room as various people spoke up. Some she thought had good points, others...well they seemed to be asking to have their life span shortened.

Petal didn't open her mouth, she didn't have a plan or any ideas. The best she could do in the moment was to listen and follow orders. Though she couldn't help arch a brow as Lieutenant Osumilite spoke. He seemed a bit old for a Lieutenant, but she supposed since they were losing the war they were taking anyone they could get.

Lieutenant Zanazziite didn't have to be summoned very far, she had already been in the subspace, spending time with the phoenix dragon youma that were left over from when Tanz became a Great Youma. It was where she spent most of her time these days, her Grandma wasn't getting any better and it was too hard on Zan to watch her waste away, so instead she escaped to the subspace.

Violet eyes were trained on the Youma Queen, not noticing the covered object or the other General-Queens. She was silent as Tanzanite spoke, her words hitting her like a fist in the gut. Losing? How could they be losing, that wasn't right. The good guys always won, and in Zan's head the Negaverse were definitely the good guys. She had to look away from the General-Queen and it was then that she spotted her Captain, or on closer inspection her General. When had Painite gotten promoted? Suddenly the Lieutenant felt horrible. She had been completely ignoring her friend, granted she had a good reason with her Grandma dying but still.

Quietly she weaved through people until she was standing next to Painite, only taking a moment to glance at Osumilite not recognizing him before she looked back to her General. Now wasn't the time to chit chat, but she did bump the General's hand lightly and gave her a small smile before focusing back on the meeting.

Hematite's arms were crossed in front of him, half-shielded by the way his cape was draped. He had his eyes closed and looked like he could very well have been trying to take a nap standing up, if not for the occasional moving slivers of black and white beneath barely-cracked eyelids when an unfamiliar voice questioned or objected.

Maybe he was too used to having threats of imminent death and destruction wrapped up in all the orders he used to get, but he couldn't help thinking that this wasn't as big of a deal as everyone was making it out to be.


Hematine stood somewhere in the back of the crowd, lumped in with the rest of the lieutenants new to the ranks and lacking a team. His fingers twitched nervously at the sight of the dust and decay everywhere, and the. At least the part of the Negaverse he'd been to before this had looked clean. All of this would take some getting used to. His newly acquired sense was reeling from the auras and energy radiating from all around him.

He let off a short sigh once the higher ranking officers began to squabble. Angling his head sideways and down to whatever lieutenant had the misfortune of standing next to him, Hematine spoke quietly but critically. "Is this how they start every meeting?"