Super Sailor Vespa was expected to fill his quota by the end of the week or General Mica would take it upon herself to make sure that his punishment stuck. After his stunt with a few Eternals and that damned squire, part of Vespa's worst fears were realized. Mica had not only threatened to punish him, but she implied that the punishment would extend to his family. He remembered her words loud and clear.
"If you cannot find a suitable sustenance in the general populace or our enemies, then perhaps you should start looking into your family as a reliable source of income."
So tonight, he could not afford to fail. Tonight he had to get something, either energy or starseeds, something that would keep Mica and himself away from his parents and siblings. Tonight, he was looking for someone, either weak or perhaps new to the game, and he might have struck luck as he approached one of the many cemeteries in Destiny City. He felt what he guessed was a first level senshi, and perhaps he could take advantage of the rank difference and finally get a win. It wouldn't help him with the overwhelming sense of guilt and despair that festered within his soul, but if it meant sparing his family from this war, he'd take it.
So into the cemetery he ventured, keeping eyes and ears out for any suspicious movement. He couldn't fail. Not tonight!
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Sorry this is late. :l
Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:51 pm
Astarte thought that, given her new form, she might readily see ghosts in the night. She thought she might glimpse the spectral aftereffects given by ectoplasm, as spirits of varying sorts swirled about in the night sky. She thought that, by strolling through the vast expanse of graves, she could discover one of the malicious ghosts that haunted the streets of Destiny City. As a demon, it was her right to pursue them - to disperse them as she had before, at the behest of a talking cat.
Perhaps she should've taken it less seriously, but Astarte knew magic in her life for a number of years before a demon rose within her, at the call of a unique pen offered by the feline. "Astarte," she whispered aloud, as if a holy call to the energies deep within her. She closed her eyes a moment and listened to the quiet air rush between her fingertips, urging her chains to click together almost imperceptibly. Suddenly a strange feeling overtook her, utterly unlike any magical perception she ever felt before, like a dead heavy weight pressing into the nape of her neck. She shuddered, and ice blue eyes flew open to scan her stark surroundings.
Was that a youma? A wraith? A restless lesser demon lurking in the night? "Who are you?" She called out with force, curling her fists as she departed deeper into the vast cemetery.
And as she glanced toward the cluster of trees at the edge of the graveyard. Something stirred, and it took but a moment for Astarte to identify the stray movement as branches bowing to the wind. However, dead ahead of her came an unusual figure - a man striped much like a bee, in black and yellow, sporting impossibly long blonde hair and a ridiculous visor. If Astarte ran across the man as Angel, she would've plainly laughed at the sight she saw - the man looked more like a mascot for a proprietary honey company than any real threat.
In his approach, she realized he was no man at all - what assailed her senses so forcefully was a boy, likely younger than her, and she stifled all sense of mirth to purse her lips and face him with a measure of seriousness. His laughable costume aside, the dark aura she felt was no joke. Astarte shifted into a defensive position as she prepared to address him once more. "You're no ghost, are you boy?" You look just like any other boy, aside from the hair and the ridiculous outfit. Ghosts... They don't look like that.
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Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 12:13 pm
It didn't take long for Vespa to find the source of the Order aura he felt, though it did take a little longer to spot her thanks to the rising fog and mist. Seriously, what was up with that? What was it about cemetaries that seemed to bring out the creepiest ambience around them? Was it ghosts, or some kind of chemical reaction caused by the moisture in the atmosphere and the rotting corpses beneath their feet? Because of the mist, he almost missed seeing her, and yet when he did spot her, it didn't make the setting any less frightening. For a White Moon senshi, she certainly looked menacing... maybe it was the devil horns protruding from her head?
He knew nothing of the plethora of thoughts running through her head, and there was no time to consider how much of a joke she saw him as. He wished he could have given her some kind of warning to flee, but perhaps he just suspected that this encounter would end in failure for him too and thus further damning himself and his family that he felt it wasn't really necessary. She had taken a defensive position before her and that was all Vespa needed to know that she was prepared for an attack, so truly there was no need to warn her. Finally, someone that realized just how threatening he was...
"Boy? Did you just... call me boy?" Vespa was taken back by the phrase, and in that very moment, any misgivings he might have had from having to attack her were gone. It was always on his mind even if it wasn't pushed to the forefront, that someone was thinking ill of him, but somehow, someone else calling him a 'boy' just dug under his skin and immediately festered, and that anger came bubbling out in the form of an angered spat. "I'm no ghost, but you will be!"
Would he really kill her? Could he really kill her? He wasn't sure, but that didn't stop him from lashing out at her, hoping to use his rank's speed to his advantage and take her off guard. He hoped and prayed to whatever battle god Negaverse officers were suppose to pray to for his guidance, at least this one time... because he couldn't fail, and he didn't WANT to fail!
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2014 12:01 am
"Yes, I just called you a boy... Weren't you listening?" Astarte asked, rather taken aback by his vehement objection. The kid barely fostered a mustache, and he intended to be called a man? Astarte didn't fully understand his sudden shock and revulsion at her simple terms, but the returning remark left her in a fit of giggles. "Oh, I'll be a ghost hmm? Prime place for it, wouldn't you say?" Astarte smiled as she drew her index finger to her mouth; her eyes, however, belied a ferocity that hadn't yet translated to her countenance.
Astarte had little reason to believe the blonde posed much of a threat - nothing about his outward appearance inspired terror, certainly not in the same vein as her own horns and chains and glowing blue runes, but she would not discount his potential power yet. From what she understood, this strange world housed magical creatures far beyond those she read about in various texts, and warlocks and witches of all types laced this strange war dressed in garb and ritual with which she was unfamiliar. Lacking demonic seals, she had him figured for the more witchcraft oriented, but even those fallbacks seemed to fail here... So how was she to learn of this new occult landscape but to start from scratch? A shame that all her supernatural knowledge met with an impasse here, but she had little choice if she wanted to survive.
And Astarte was keen on survival.
Astarte kicked off at a run toward her opponent, but soon found she overestimated the time required to reach him and nearly collided with the blonde senshi as a result. Luckily she managed to extend an arm outward in hopes of clotheslining him, but the pace of battle left her quite concerned for her ability to adapt. Additionally, he felt faster somehow... And how old was he? How could he possibly have the upper hand in speed now?
Perhaps he harbored some enchantment that boosted his abilities... Or he himself was a demon of greater ranking. She knew little of this grandiose magical world, but she intended to find out - whether by secondhand knowledge or firsthand experience.
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 9:45 pm
Super Sailor Vespa wasn't one for thinking clearly on a normal basis and never was the type to think ahead on his assault, which is likely what led to his many, many defeats in his tenure. When he was angry, however, any notion of foresight and even hindsight was thrown out the window, as the only thing Vespa could think about was making her pay for insulting him. Any fear he had of the Negaverse and his failure causing harm to his family was pushed to the farthest end of his mind, and if anything, her insolent words only served to fuel his rage. Maybe he'd actually get a blow in! He so desperately wanted to!
He wasn't sure what her sphere was nor what kind of power she held, though given her appearance he could imagine it was something frightening. However, he had no intention of finding out, and it seemed that she was on the same plane of thinking as she had charged at him in retaliation. Which likely meant that he'd be getting his butt kicked, but he was already committed to the act and still far too pissed at her insulting words to pull back now. He had the rank advantage, and with the likes of Mica and Labyrinthite training him, he felt something foreign brewing within him. Confidence. Conviction. Labyrinthite said he lacked these things, and tonight, he'd prove him wrong, starting with this one!
He wasn't sure what to make of her sudden movement and the sight of her arm rising up reminded him of a wrestling match his younger siblings often enjoyed watching. They were obviously fake on television, but he was certain that getting a forearm to the neck would hurt like hell, so he ducked as quickly as he could, giving an out of place yelp and surprised when the arm whooshed over his head harmlessly. But there was no time to celebrate- Mica would expect him to strike at any available opening, and he was going for it, swerving around as fast as he possibly could and lunging at her from behind, letting out a cry as he summoned his attack. At this range, he couldn't miss! Surely! "Vesperian Soldiers Deploy!"
Super Sailor Scout Attack: Vesperian Soldiers Deploy Sailor Vespa has learned the difference between bees and wasps, though his attack could still use some tuning. Like before, he sends a cloud consisting of 20 wasp-shaped yellow and black energy though now the radius has moved to 5 feet instead of four. Like before, the energy will leave a stinging sensation once it hits flesh, but like a wasp, they will linger on the opponent’s flesh and continue to sting for a duration of 15 seconds. If left unhindered, they will last 15 seconds before dissipating harmlessly in the air. Can use twice during a battle. + Will pop and leave a lasting stinging sensation with a duration of 15 seconds; does not penetrate clothing (will dissipate upon contact) + If they don’t hit flesh, clothes or other forms of resistance, lasts 15 seconds before dissipating + Affects everyone (even teammates and himself) in a 5 foot radius around him; no, poor Vespa STILL has no control over the attack, thus making everyone within a five foot radius susceptible.
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Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2014 9:46 am
Her arm met air, and Astarte whirled around incredulously to discover the reason behind her missed attack. In this form, she possessed strength and speed beyond her limitations as Angel, so how could anyone possibly dodge her now? Yet, this boy managed to slip right under her attack like a limbo bar - how could that be? Was he somehow faster than her?
Astarte's gawking cost her precious time, as the blonde uttered a strange (and somewhat laughable) phrase, only to conjure a thick cloud of... wasps? Astarte lacked the inhuman reflexes required to slip away from the cloud, and soon the strange energy balls were upon her - with face and shoulders exposed, painful stings littered her body and assaulted her senses. With a tortured grunt, Astarte focused on wrenching the tiny, glowing bodies from her skin, whether by slapping them off with her gloved hands or trying to grasp and pry them off of herself. Strangely, the curious wasps popped beneath her palm.
However, even with some of the wasps taken care of, the beleaguering sting lingered on her skin. Astarte groaned in pain and attempted to gain some distance between herself and the strange boy - her opponent outmatched her, she knew, but there had to be some way to rectify the situation... She just needed time, and the only means she saw to obtain it was through expanding the distance between the two. Still, as she tried to retreat, a tombstone brushed against her stung thigh, and she winced with a curse toward the seventy-two demons of the lemegeton. She couldn't travel - not like this. Without any available path to gain distance on her foe, she had to stand and fight.
So stand she did. Astarte extended a shaky hand outward, her determined gaze focused on the blonde. With the pained sting still sieging her arm, she doubted she could hold mer magic steady for the attack. Nevertheless, Astarte steeled herself and recited the words as old magic. "Astarte's Hate!" She called, and the runes dotting her outfit glowed an ominous red.
With the speed of her target, she only prayed that the spirits would guide her hand.
Sailor Scout Attack: Astarte's Hate Number of uses: 3 Duration: 3 seconds Number of targets: Variable Astarte holds her hand outward, palm facing the location of her intended target, and calls the name of her attack. The blue runes of her uniform glow red and a red ball of energy forms on her palm as it drains the malice from the people around her* to create the attack. From there fires a laser, about as thin as a pen, which she can aim by maneuvering her hand. It only lasts for a couple seconds, and works wonders in cutting through and dusting youma. On people, however, it only inflicts mild burns upon contact from the laser. If concentrated on a particular area, she is able to inflict a second degree burn, but she has to be terribly accurate and the individual needs to stand still**. Weakness: Laser cannot penetrate solid objects. Interrupting the call of her attack will halt it entirely.
* Once collected, whoever the lasers strike receive a concentrated dose of malice. To clarify, the surrounding individuals feel less malicious due to the collection of the attack, and the target feels exponentially more malicious upon receiving the attack. Effectively, Astarte can redistribute the emotion depending on how she utilizes her magic.
** The attack's strength is variable depending on the amount of malice gathered from targets. If no one is feeling particularly murderous that day, her attack probably amounts to nothing more than a tickle. If she used her attack around a gaggle of bloodthirsty officers, then the strength reaches its maximum threshold as listed in the attack description (ie 2nd degree burns). In order to incur maximum damage with her laser attacks, Astarte requires a solid amount of malice as well as a still target for her to concentrate her laser on for the duration of the attack. For her eternal attack, she requires a solid amount of malice as well as a target in the dead center of the sigil.
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feel free to have her miss, or get clipped if you want to keep him angry!
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Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2014 4:28 pm
Though he felt the brutal stings against his own flesh, which was becoming so common an occurrence that he swore that someday he'd just lose all sense of feeling in his face, neck and shoulders, he took some amount of pride in the fact that his energy wasps were evenly distributed between the two of them at least. Yes, they still attacked wildly and with no sense of control or direction, but at least they did not just immediately cling to him this time around. But there was little time for Vespa to rejoice in this small improvement, as there was still the matter of his opponent to deal with- she may have been in pain, but she was still moving, still in the fight!
She wasn't the only one that seemed to be struggling with the environment, as Vespa had tried to maneuver around and backed into a statue, inhibiting his movement and leaving him exposed to the senshi's own spell. If it wasn't the obstacles of the tombstones and statues preventing the Wasp senshi from moving, it was the sudden glow to the runes on her attire, distracting Vespa long enough for the ray of red light to come shooting from the red ball of what he expected to be doom that formed in her hand. Once again, he thought of only escaping that strike, and when there was no where to go left, right, or even down, he jumped as high as he possibly could, hoping to avoid that laser sight as he had no intention of finding out what it did.
With the energy wasps starting to dissipate in his wake, Vespa managed to get into the air, the laser sight nicking the tip of his long, blonde hair before he came crashing back down. He wasn't sure if it was a leap of faith that was amply rewarded by some obscure battle god or just pure dumb luck, as he had managed to land on top the other senshi, like a cougar that had made a perfectly timed precision pounce, and without thinking, he gripped whatever part of her he could and did the only thing he could think to do. Drain her! As angry as he was at her insulting words, he could not forget the threat to his family, the fate that they would suffer if he did not follow through with his promise!
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I was given permission for him to land on her.
Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2014 6:30 pm
"s**t!" Asterte cussed loudly when her laser missed the mark. The red light passed harmlessly through blonde hair, without so much as a singed strand. Just what was her power good for? If she couldn't strike her target, then why would her magics precipitate in such a precise manner? The tan woman sneered, lips a smear of red across her face, but she found herself quickly out of options. Though still pained from the wasps, Astarte attempted an uppercut to strike her foe but once, yet her fist only met air.
Before Astarte could ruminate on her failures, more unexpected advances came from the boy - and soon she found herself pinned to the ground, her head clocked against a tombstone. Despite her struggles, Astarte found that the boy's overwhelming strength proved insurmountable, and inwardly the Demon herself cursed the spirits that toyed with her fate that day. Was she to die for this? A lonesome, paltry career as a true demon herself, and this was how she met her end? Astarte fought to free herself from the man with primal rage, yet her attempts amounted to nothing. Soon, tears glassed over her eyes as she considered the final outcome of this fight.
She entered this unique and wondrous world, full of sorcery and supernatural alike, yet... These strange foes who struck back against her proved far too much, even with such boons of strength.
And now she would die for her losses.
The man's grip on her forearms tightened, and strangely, Angel felt her energy ebb. Her adrenaline slackened through her body, and initially she never quite recognized it. However, as her limbs turned to lead and fighting back proved an unconscionably difficult task, Astarte soon realized that the boy produced some effect of lethargy. Or... Was he sucking the energy straight out of her? Was he pulling the magic from her body? What strange method was this? A thousand questions flashed through the girl's mind, exceedingly difficult given her exhausted position. And from what she could tell, the blonde had no intention of explaining it to her.
"Let go of me!" She managed in breathy exhaustion, but the anger lit fiercely in her eyes. As she blinked, a tear ran back across her temple and wet her thick hair like dew. However, no amount of struggle postponed the singular bursts of stars clouding her vision. Now she simply focused on breathing, but even that task soon felt undeniably difficult as the man's grip remained strong. "If you do this, you're cursing yourself!"
Soon darkness took her, and her last thoughts were of the years she spent examining the dead.
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Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2014 7:09 pm
This entire encounter hadn't quite gone as Vespa expected, though it wasn't entirely a bad thing. In his tenure as a soldier for the Negaverse, he had met with seldom successes or victories under his belt. He summoned his wasps whenever he could but they never brought him victory, and most of the time, he was his own defeater when it came to a fight. But tonight, it was all different. Tonight, he had been dealt a great hand, despite the threats, despite her insults, despite his inability to control his own magic and his anger. Tonight, everything seemed to be going just right for him, and all he could think was that it was about time!
The moment she was within his grasp, he pulled as much energy as he could muster from her struggling form. He was always repulsed by the idea of forcing energy out of another person, regardless if they were an innocent civilian or the enemy, but tonight, he held nothing back. He couldn't afford to. Even if Astarte hadn't driven him to the point of steam-out-the-ears rage, the lives of each and every member of his family was at stake, and he wishes that he had the time to explain this to her, as he kept her pinned down, relying on his weight and pulling so much energy so quickly. This couldn't be good for either of them, but he had no choice in the matter, he told himself. It was her energy, or his parent's, or his siblings... that alone was enough to justify this in his mind!
Though no one could see beneath his black gloves, his knuckles were white and they were hurting from his own grip on her forearms, but he dared not let up on his grip, even when her struggles were beginning to become weaker and weaker by the second. Even when her arms hung uselessly at her side, he kept his iron grip on her, continuing to drain, and if he continued on for any longer, he'd be the only thing keeping her standing. If it came to that point, what would he do? He didn't think that far in advance as he never had the opportunity to do so before, and in that brief moment of confusion, her words cut through his defense, and just like that, his iron grip gave away, letting her drop at his feet and unable to catch her in time. He feared retaliation, but it seemed like it would not come... the words that caused him to panic and release her would be her last for awhile, as she seemed to have slipped into unconsciousness, and within his gloved hands, he held the energy orb, one of the few he had fought hard for, and rightfully earned.
Yet, he wasn't sure if it was joy, or relief he felt. This orb would spare his family, but for how much longer? She may have blacked out, but her words... they were far more powerful than anything else she had thrown at him this night. He bought more time for his family and himself, but... could he do it again? How many more would he have to hurt... just for another day? And with every Senshi he hurt... did he take away any chance he'd have of redemption?
He dropped the orb, and without a word, he fled. He couldn't do this. He couldn't do this anymore!
'So the little wasp finally mastered his sting...'
General Mica had watched it all, though perhaps not in her powered form. In deterrence of exposing herself and ruining what was an excellent exchange between the two, she remained in her more inconspicuous form of Nyasa Freeman, powering down the moment Vespa found his target, and once the exchange was over, she powered up again.
Everything she had seen was to her liking, except that ending. She was too far away to hear the words being thrown at each other, but she knew something Astarte said had bothered him. It had to have, as the Corrupt senshi had dropped the orb and fled, and this was what caused the general to leave her hiding spot and approach the scene. The senshi was still unconscious, but still held enough strength to keep her form intact, and slowly and with caution, Mica walked around her and retrieved the orb, tucking it into her medkit before it could go to waste.
She was torn between staying a little while longer and gutting the senshi, just to rid the world of one more enemy, and chasing after her distraught charge. It would have been easy, but ultimately, Mica's promise to her General-King was far more important than any personal pleasure that came from claiming another starseed for the Negaverse. She had to protect their senshi... even if it seemed to be from themselves.
"No doubt I'll see you again, senshi," Mica said with a cold whisper, before running after Vespa. "Maybe someone can bring you over to our side one of these days. We could use more feisty ones like you..."
