Welcome to Gaia! ::

By the time they got to Times Circle Fountain, Astrophyllite's knees were shaking and she couldn't keep on her feet. She sank down, fumbling, until her arms found their way around Camlann's legs. "You promise?" she asked. "I'll be safe. I'll be happy?" She hadn't been happy - truly happy - in months. Maybe not since Avalon had died. She'd just been jealous of everyone who had normal lives and thinking desperately of how to run away into the light, but in an abstract way.

She'd never counted on it actually happening.

And certainly not so suddenly, or after the night she'd had.

Astrophyllite leaned her head against Camlann's leg and let her eyes drift shut. She reached out with her mind's eye, looking for Hvergelmir's soft starlight and Aludra's brick dust and anything, anything, that might be Castor. "I hope they all come," she said softly, her mind awash in worry - what if it was too short notice? What if they didn't know where to go?

"I think I'm too tired to cry anymore," she observed. "What time is it?"

There were too many things in Astrophyllite's letter that Hvergelmir found worrying. The urgency of it, her fear, her proximity to death -- she'd begged for it, begged someone to end her -- the wild sorrow she felt in the story that such a young, hopeful girl had to tell. The names: Camlann, who'd nearly killed another knight, whose reasons were still unknown; Castor, who had murdered Negaverse officers just like Astrophyllite without so much as a how-do-you-do.

Astrophyllite had brought her food and drink when Hvergelmir had been captured, and had wanted to set her free. She had risked more on Hvergelmir's behalf than Hvergelmir ever had on hers.

Hvergelmir spared no haste in getting to her.

The great caribou's hooves tapped breezily down to the pavement, making only the softest of taps in the dark. Hvergelmir slid off its back in an instant, her eyes finding the little pink-haired captain by the glow of the Times Circle Fountain. She ran forward, entirely intent on wrapping the young girl up in a fierce hug.

"Astro!"

Astrophyllite moved from clinging to Camlann to clinging to Hvergelmir without taking any time to support herself in between - she kind of threw herself undignifiedly into Hvergelmir's arms, her eyes locked on the starry caribou behind her. Magic? It was beautiful.

Then. she turned her eyes downward. "Hver," she breathed, burying her face in the shorter woman's shoulder. "I'm so glad you're here. I was trying to be brave."

Camlann said that she had been, but she was pretty sure she'd just been faking that. She didn't feel brave - just shaky, like if she let go of Hvergelmir, she would fall to her knees and not be able to get up again. I almost died tonight, she thought. I might still die if Castor decides I'm not worth saving. I've stolen so much... I've stolen so many years. He might still kill me.

At that thought, she clung tighter to Hvergelmir, until a newly-appeared aura gave her cause to look up. Sweet buttercream and brick dust and cherry pastry. She would know that power signature anywhere. "Aludra!" she exclaimed. "You came! I-"

Astrophyllite looked very quickly from Hvergelmir to the chibi senshi, and then over to Camlann. "I want to hug all of you," she said, loosing her hold on Hvergelmir slightly. "But I don't have enough arms."

Not for the first time, Hvergelmir fixed Castor with a scathingly disapproving look. If the prince of Hail had calculated his every word with the express purpose in mind of irritating her, he probably couldn't have done much better than what evidently came naturally. She kept one arm wrapped around Astrophyllite's shoulder, stroking fingers soothingly through the captain's cotton-candy hair.

"Oh, sweetheart," she told the younger girl bracingly, "You've been brave all along. Don't you know that? It takes incredible courage to stay true to yourself when the whole world around you's trying to make you change. Breaking from the path you're on is very hard -- it always takes bravery to make the choice to do what's good over what's easy."

She cast another glance over to Castor. 'Was it as enjoyable for you as it is for so many others?' Really? Astrophyllite was a scared teenager whose biggest concern at the moment was not having enough arms to hug people with. Was the doom-and-gloom showboating really the best approach? Exactly how frozen was Castor's heart?

"Don't worry about Castor -- his bark is worse than his bite," Hvergelmir said, which as far as she knew was a massive lie. He'd proven his bite could draw a great deal of blood. "As far as I can tell, he doesn't have a Delicates setting. Maybe Permanent Press, who knows. All you have to do is answer his questions the best you can, okay? No matter what happens, I won't let anybody hurt you."

Never once, not even when being beaten down by a youma, could Aludra remember feeling so small. Her initial joy at arriving was banked, though the heat of it still burned in her chest, as she regarded the newest arrival and listened to his words. Here she was a child amongst giants. They were stronger than her and she stood, a chibi and the weakest of all, almost insignificant.

It certainly wasn’t the meeting she had been expecting. There was an undercurrent of threat whereas she had imagined warmth and happiness. This was a good occasion, a joyous one. This was Astrophyllite’s first step into a better life and how dare anyone doubt her choice. They should be celebrating.

You should risk your life, she wanted to say to Castor, because it’s the right thing to do. But she held her tongue and moved to stand alongside Astrophyllite in a show of solidarity, one hand reaching out to touch the other girls shoulder. "He doesn’t sound very princely," she murmured tartly, low enough that only Astropyllite and the pretty Knight would be able to catch it.

To his credit, Castor only rolled his eyes once. It was still a roll of his eyes sure, but he only did it once. He was set to more an... a*****e mode that occasionally glitched and made him a decent human being. Even he could admit that. "And here I thought that you might want my help. I mean, hey, I could go." But as it was, he was set to a*****e. Because s**t had to come from somewhere.

That of course leading into the fact he'd come for a reason, and he'd see results. "My help isn't without a price of course.." He leveled his gaze on Astrophyllite, bending to meet her eye to eye, that sarcasm fading away quickly enough. "My price is truth. If you can offer that, and accept it in turn you might get what you want. Might. Because what they're not telling you is no matter what happens, you are going to die tonight. Mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually, metaphorically. Depending on what we do here, you'll always end up dead- just a matter of how." It was a reality, whether or not anyone chose to say it.

Yet it was what he meant under it all that mattered. If she could figure out that her change would erase all she had been and was- it was a death of sorts. If he didn't purify her, she was a betrayer, the negaverse would kill her before they let her go. Even if they found another to purify, she'd still die in the same way he would have 'killed' her. If he failed she'd die. If she showed him the darkness that was to far to save... Then he'd provide what mercy he could for her. Death was inevitable for her.

"Camlann has already bloodied his hands," he said, pausing a glance to the man. "And I have no doubts he'd do so again. Changing sides in this war won't free you from that. Death is part of this war and as a Knight, that duty will fall to you. You might claim you will never kill, but it is a hollow claim, as we can't know what destiny will bring us." He let himself change, let the power wash over him and the others as dark wings formed on his back, as a tiara formed a laurel of frozen leaves, and clothes gave way to armor of a forgotten era and world.

"I don't glamorize or lie about what I do. I purify and disrupt the balance. I am the hand that can tip the scales but it is you who will determine how far. That's why as the price of truth I want one thing from you."

"Tell me the identity of one of your commanding officers, and you will not die by my hand tonight." He pulled back from her, from the others as well, expecting something to say the least, curiosity, a small flicker of something in the way his lips curled up- he'd once hoped that he could save them, but even he knew the bitter irony. All he offered was an alternative. All he could offer was a chance to choose how they might die.

If she was stone, he would know what rested in her center. Something hollow and sharp, glittering in false worth? Or something worth spilling blood for-worth the fight to take and polish until it was nothing like it had been before.

Camlann looked at Astrophyllite. There was a way out of Castor's request--not asking him to withdraw it, but cooperating. She had a commanding officer whose identity needn't be secret any longer, and could not bring anyone's vengeance upon her head. "Give him Vanya," he said, looking at Astrophyllite. It no longer matters, he thought, frowning as if he could beam his thoughts to her the harder he stared. She is dead to you. Vanya. Or Bischofite. You hate him, don't you?

Astrophyllite glanced uncertainly over her shoulder towards Camlann. What did you do? she thought, frowning. Bloodied hands? What had he done - and had it spoiled whatever good will Prince Castor bore towards him? She felt a pang of betrayal in her chest - had he lead her to her death? "But," she said, confused. "She's dead."

So, for that matter, was Bischofite, and she didn't know Natron's civilian identity, so that left her at a loss for who else she could give up.

"Vanya Morganstern," she said, lower lip trembling. "General Avalon. She was my commanding officer, but she's - she's dead. Her Wonder killed her." She'd tried to send a letter to her earlier tonight. It had disappeared, even, but maybe that was just how the magic worked. Maybe it would bounce back later like some kind of magical mailer daemon.

Don't cry, she thought determinedly. Even if he kills you. Even if you don't get what you want. You can't cry. You have to be brave or everyone is going to remember you as a coward. "Please," she begged, clenched fingers digging little slivers into her palms. "Please. I want to be good. I've worked so hard. Please."

No. No. She was crying. Astrophyllite blinked furiously. "If you're going to kill me," she said, choking out the words, "Do it fast. And send Aludra away first. She shouldn't have to see."

She was just a baby, after all. Astrophyllite didn't want to be responsible for tainting someone so pure.