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 Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:32 pm
Dia was lonely.
It was Friday night and she had absolutely, positively nothing to do and no one to do it with. She’d delayed on getting her energy for the week - wasn’t that always the case, though - and when it came time to find a partner to hitch her ride with, there was… well, there was no one available to mooch off of, frankly.
Tourmaline had been busy with her new friends. Who had time for best friends when there were boys around, apparently. Not to mention her own boy was… well, he wasn’t ideal for partnering up with, not unless she was in the mood to nurse a few of her own wounds, afterwards. It was hard, dating a General who’d much rather take out his aggression on his girlfriend than the civilians they were supposed to be taking advantage of.
She wracked her brain for other options, palming her communicator and letting the device roll back and forth in her hand.
Sigh.
Being lonely also happened to make Dia very, very grumpy. Doing her own work was always a chore but doing it without anyone to keep her company just made things downright miserable.
Nevertheless, a job had to be done and a quota had to be fulfilled. A hair flip and a pearl toss had her attempting to shake her doldrums away as high heeled shoes leapt from one rooftop to the next, searching for the perfect area to scout out some vulnerable individuals to sap a little energy out of.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:49 pm
Midgard had come a long way.
Or, at least, he felt as if he had. It had been at least seven months going on eight since he had made the leap of faith and crossed from one side to the other. Most days, the fact he had gathered the courage to do such a thing was still startling. The nightmares didn’t help, leaving him with more sleepless nights than any where he was well rested but, they had seemed to lessen even as the panic and anxiety attacks had increased.
Meeting Amelia had helped, she was a third party bound by oath and duty to assist him and that make things...easier.
Midgard could burden his ancestor with the weights he carried because she was bound to him and this way...he wouldn’t have to burden the few friends he treasured with anything more than small, menial tasks mean to distract from the sin that was buried beneath it.
He had begun feeling more confident about himself, his place in the world. While he still knew so very little about what it meant to be a knight, he was proud that while he floundered, he was making it on his own.
He had no mentor besides one who was dead and only knew of the past and the wonder she could not leave. While he knew of a few other knights, one was only ever mentioned in passing with no meeting having ever come to pass and the other...he was a green as Midgard was and...distracted, busy with a new life that seemed to be carving itself neatly before him.
He thought himself to be a burden and he did not impose himself on those he didn’t think cared enough for him.
Tonight was another sleepless night, one where he woke tossing and turning with sweat keeping his shirt stuck against his skin and hair matted in a nest. As always, in an attempt to shake the discomfort that had made a home burrowed in his chest, he had left the home graciously opened to him by Fiona and set about to patrol.
What he would do while on patrol was a mystery and yet- despite the rampant fear that he would rise from the shadows and drag him back into hell, Midgard pushed forward.
It did not take him long to reach a semi-populated area of the city. Despite the dangers, the nightlife still managed to thrive and he could feel a sickening pulse accompanying the throng of bodies but he couldn’t locate it. The longer it took him to find the chaotic aura’s owner, the more anxiety crawled beneath his skin.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:54 pm
In return, the nauseating aura of White Moon had the frown on Dia’s lips curving upwards into a minor smile.
While the feeling was downright despicable, the knowledge that there was another powerful being running around helped quell the disappointing feelings that had been stirring up within her. Granted, it would have been a lot easier had the powerful source been on her side of things, but an enemy would provide a decent distraction, all the same.
From her position high up along the rooftops, she was able to peer down and gaze into the sea of faces passing along the sidewalk, clearly unaware of the Negaverse agent staring down at them from up above. None of them seemed oddly out of place (save for the occasional cluster of nerds on their phones - but that was more pathetic than odd), so she knew she had yet to locate whatever frilly little joke of a senshi she’d been sensing.
Then again, there were other ways to sniff out a do-gooder.
Grinning to herself, Dia pulled away from the edge of the rooftop, ensuring her long, beautiful pink hair was out of sight from anyone down below. Taking a deep breath, she tilted back her head and let out a long, shrill scream.
It lasted approximately four, maybe five seconds. Enough to have the crowd below confused, voices carrying as they looked around for the source of the scream. Grinning wildly, she raised her voice and added a desperate, “No - no! Get away from me, p-please!” for dramatic effect.
Now it was just a matter of time before Mister or Missus Goody-Two Shoes found their way up onto the rooftops to investigate the fearful cries of the “victim” in question.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:56 pm
The sound of a scream shattered his senses and for one moment Midgard was thrown off balance, spinning in a slow circle as people around him winced and grew uncomfortable the longer the scream carried. His heart was a lump in his throat, thumping erratically before something more distressing reached his ears.
Instinct screamed, but what if this is a trap while his desire to help people argued, but what if they’re actually in trouble?
Naturally, his instinct to help outweighed his instinct to survive and Midgard was pushing through the crowd to find an alley he could slip into with a fire escape stair well. He couldn’t find the source among the crowd and thought that perhaps a bird’s eye view would give him better insight when he reached the top.
Unfortunately, to his surprise, when he climbed over that last ladder rung, he saw a familiar bundle of pink curls and dread seeped through every pore in his body. No sooner did his boots hit the cement roof top did his tonfas materialize into his hands.
Narrowed eyes took in the black fuku and the candy stripes that were all too familiar. Immediately, he was searching for something or someone else who might be lurking in the background but there were no other auras around and he doubted that she had planned some sort of thing to trap him.
He had no regular patterns and he knew very few left on the other side nor had he truly engaged with any of them.
Still, fear crawled up his spine and made it’s home in the spaces between his bones as he looked upon her. “Dia,” her name spilled from his lips in a strained sort of way.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:01 pm
She waited with bated breath for any sort of response to her trap (which was very clever, if she did say so herself). The aura she felt was growing stronger, which was a fairly good indication that whoever it was nearby, they were growing closer. Probably responding to her scream, judging by the way the crowd down below still seemed rather confused and alarmed at the sudden shriek from the skies.
While the aura was strong, she felt safe in the notion that it wasn’t as strong as her own. A comfort to rely on, at least, whenever this stranger decided to --
”Dia.”
So the twerp decided to approach her from behind. How cowardly. How White Moonish. How terrible it made her grand reveal look.
Already armed with a haughty hmph, she flipped her curls behind her as she turned to face this infuriating adversary. Considering her current attitude, she’d probably also teach them some manners about how to not ruin a girl’s fun by mucking up her trap. Her plan fell short, however, when she realized who it was.
Rose colored eyes widened and then narrowed, her surprise evident at seeing the traitor who had refused to help her. She’d been struggling, she’d been desperate and this… this son of a gumdrop had made it a point to keep secrets away from her. Her! About her own boyfriend!
“Aluminite.”
The name was heavy on her tongue, thoughts of long nights spent searching for answers, only to come across a man who had them and refused to share them. No, the coward had kept his tongue still, hiding behind the little shields he still wore around his arms.
“Still alive, I see. Surprising.” Her eyes moved down to glance at the tips of her gloves, as if intentionally behaving dismissive towards the Squire’s existence in front of her. “I’d have figured someone would have finished off a little traitor like you by now.”
Blinking, she glanced back towards him, flicking invisible dust away from her hand. “Are you still tongue-tied in French or have we moved back to speaking proper English, now?
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:08 pm
It wasn’t like he had planned on coming up the wrong side of the building. Midgard hadn’t even known that she was above him, he had merely been looking for a better vantage point but now that she had turned and was looking at him, he could feel his lungs closing in on themselves despite his determination to stand strong and tall.
Dia would not intimidate him.
His first instinct was to respond, That’s not my name, but he bit back the urge. To say such a thing would be to suggest that he would give her his other name, his true name and she didn’t deserve that. Everything about who he was as a knight was a closely guarded secret, made only for those he deemed worthy.
Dia was not one of them and never would be.
“I am stronger than you think I am.” Midgard stated boldly, green eyes shifting to meet pink ones. For all their accusations that he was weak and a deserter, the squire knew that he was living the truth. His truth and he was stronger for it.
He had nothing when he stood with the negaverse and now - now he had people he cared deeply about and a small community he sought to keep safe. Maybe the girls didn’t understand, and he wished desperately that he could show them the light, but he didn’t need them to.
Fingers twitched around his weapon’s handles, as if in anticipation of an attack and he exhaled through his nose, hoping it would calm the restlessness attempting to claw at his heart and lungs.
“Still on your own I see.” His eyes narrowed and something cruel sat on his tongue before he swallowed that particular thought down his throat. “I used to think you two were inseparable, but here you are, on your own again.”
That wasn’t much nicer, but he was tired of being nice to girls who kept their claws out just for him.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:11 pm
So the little twerp had a spine to him, after all.
Her eyes narrowed as she took a step towards him, heels clicking against the concrete of the rooftop. The shields did not go unnoticed, but if it was anything like their last interaction, he was all bark and no bite. Granted, his bark had gotten a little stronger since the last interlude, but she was a big girl. She could take her licks just like the other big boys could.
“He’s back, you know.”
Dia had no idea if he really did know. The bet was safe that he didn’t, though - had Labyrinthite found him, the mop of brown hair would surely be dust in the wind. Not that anyone but the General and Tourmaline would care, really. “No thanks to you, of course.”
Pausing in her walk, she let out another airish noise of indignance, clearly prepared to address the remainder of his comment and not the fact that his callous words had stung her far more than they probably should have. She wasn’t some pretty little shadow to a General - was that how everyone saw her? No. No, James was just being a terrible little jerk and hitting her where he knew it would hurt her. Leave it to the White Moon to stoop to such levels of attack.
“And we’re doing quite fine, by the way,” She quickly added, lying through her teeth with a cheerful, sing-song voice. “But I mean, if you’d rather see for yourself, that can certainly be arranged.”
The purple communicator appeared in her hand and she dangled it out for him to see as a cruel smile curved the scowl on her face. “I mean, I would much prefer to take care of you myself, but if you’ve got your little heart set on the good General doing it, I’d be happy to summon him for you.”
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:15 pm
To his own surprise, Midgard managed to keep his expression impassive as she attempted to taunt him with knowledge he already knew. He waited a minute, allowed her to think that the news was settling over him like a second skin before he spoke.
“I know.” The squire was surprised when his voice didn’t shake because he could feel his body trembling beneath his skin. “I’ve seen him.” It was still a fresh memory in his mind, when he had looked out the window at the power plant and seen his boogeyman standing despite the damage he was sustaining.
He didn’t point out that Labyrinthite hadn’t seen him in return, instead, he diverted.
“I wasn’t talking about him, anyway.” His shoulders lifted in the smallest of shrug. Something flashed in his eyes at her threat but his body remained in place. He couldn’t place the emotion; was it panic or fear or something else entirely?
Was Midgard ready to potentially face death?
“I was doing what he asked, what he ordered you know,” he stated, even though the conversation was a dead horse they never seemed to stop beating. Tourmaline was always going to be angry that he left her after she left him and Dia was always going to be upset about the information he withheld. “But if you need him to do what you can’t, then fine.” Lips curled up in a self-deprecating grin. “Call him, because you were always good at letting other people do the work for you.”
Midgard knew that he was intentionally going for things that might hurt or upset her, but he had to hope that her pride and ego were large enough that she felt she had something to prove to him.
“I bet he still won’t tell you anything. The good general was always so keen on his secrets.”
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:18 pm
Her face fell. The man formerly known as Captain Aluminite had successfully stolen the wind from her sails and she glared at him gloomily over it. He’d known the General was back? He’d even seen him already?
So then why wasn’t he dead???
The brunette had the audacity to even shrug at her over it, pointing out that he hadn’t even been talking about Labyrinthite in the first place. Whoops. Well, it wasn’t her fault if he was wanting to talk about his ex-girlfriend instead of his former boss. Tourmaline was an adult, she could handle her own battl-- hey wait, why would he even care about her, anyways? Hadn’t he washed his hands of the other woman just as well as he’d done with the rest of his “team”?
“Because running away with your tail between your legs is really doing what you’re told to do. Uh-huh.”
Snappy comebacks were getting harder to interject when he was hitting her in all of the wrong spots. Slighting her on relying on others was one thing, but to rub in the fact that Labyrinthite was still keeping secrets…
He hadn’t told her. He hadn’t told anyone but this little turncoat twerp who didn’t have a lick of sense to run the fudge away when he knew he was facing a worthy adversary. Or… or did he not really consider her to be someone worth being intimidated by?
That stung worst of all.
“I can do whatever I want.” If he was baiting her, then she was surely falling for it, hook, line and sinker as her face grew more and more red. “I don’t need anyone to take on the likes of you.”
A handful of candies appeared in her hand, as opposed to the singular one she’d used before during their last meeting. Eyeing his shields, she made a point to aim for his feet as she scattered the small collection of candies onto the rooftop, her voice barely above a whisper as she murmured her attack’s name. Once they landed, she took her own step back and conjured a second candy into her hand. This time, it was a single, simple hard candy, which received exactly one toss up in the air before she caught it and launched it in the Squire’s direction.
“You’ll have to let me know if this isn’t sweet enough for you, Captain!”
Nuxaz
Eternal Sailor Attack
Rock Candy Explosion
Sailor Dia conjures a handful (10-15) of small, rock-like candies, which she throws onto the playing field (radius and aim based on her personal throwing skill, no further than 10-15 feet and thrown in a frontal, cone direction). Once landed, these rock candies become magical mines, which trigger upon touch. Once triggered, they erupt into an explosion of sound and enough force to send an opponent back at least a few feet. Pain/result would be no more than superficial wounds and bruises. After 45 seconds, any untriggered mines disappear.
Super Sailor Scout Attack
Candy Coating Shatter
Second verse, same as the first. In addition to the Candy Coating sticky goo effect, she now throws a hard candy filled with jelly instead of a gumdrop. Upon collision, the sticky goo that releases now has sharp, broken pieces of varying/random types of candy within its goop (think: shrapnel grenade). With its impact, it has potential to cause superficial cuts/slices on open skin, tears on clothing. The goo lasts for 30 seconds. 1-2 uses per battle, depending on if she's already used her basic attack in the fight.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:37 pm
“Act high and mighty all you want Dia, it’s not going to change anything.” For all the anxiousness running through his system, Midgard’s voice was surprisingly calm and he thought he was holding himself better than expect. Still, the thought that she might call Labyrinthite had his heart rate spiking and he worried he would freeze up.
If what happened to him on Bifrost happened in battle, he was screwed.
Luckily, his digs had worked and it appeared that the candied corrupt wasn’t going to bother with anyone else. “I don’t expect you to understand.” He said as firmly as he could managed. “You were never good at considering anyone else but yourself anyway.”
Anything else he might have said was lost when the candies were summoned to her hands and he was forced to act quickly, the edges of his shield slotting together as he lifted his arms and the pink shield extending to either side of him. Several of the candies exploded against the shield before being absorbed into it. Others remained scattered around him.
The second, hard candied, attack caught him off guard with the tonfas splitting as he lifted his arm in an attempt to deflect. It smacked against the wood, splintering and spraying with with candied substance that left scratches and cuts across his cheek and chest.
Stumbling backward, Midgard tripped with his boot triggering another candied explosion and he was thrown off his feet.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:40 pm
She watched as the candies littered across the shields, loud pops echoing through the night as each explosion erupted against the wood. Her hard candy had proven to be more successful and when the Squire had made the fatal mistake of stepping back onto one of the mine candies, her face lit up with sheer joy.
Two fingers rose and pressed against her cheek as her head tilted in feigned surprise.
“Me? You're going to talk about me only thinking about myself when you clearly didn't give a rat’s behind about anyone that cared about you before deciding to up and leave us all?”
Heels clicked as she began her slow saunter over towards the toppled traitor. “Do you realize how upset Tourmaline was over you?”
Too many unhappy brunches and sleepovers had taken place where KittyKat had remained solemn and broody over the disappearance of James. This joker had some nerve, poking at her when he'd done so much worse. She hadn't toyed with anyone's feelings.
Stopping next to him, the other candy mines faded as she leaned over to sneer at him, perfectly painted lips curling up. “I know you're not much of a fighter, Aluminite, but I'll give you a little tip: you can't accomplish much when you're laying on your back, sugar.”
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:44 pm
He was halfway to sitting up when Dia came to loom over him, a fake expression plastered on his face. His skin stung from where the candy had exploded and latched on to him. His tonfas were still in his hand and he gripped the handles tighter as if to brace himself.
“You didn’t care about me,” Midgard stated plainly. It was even said without heat because there was no accusations, just fact in the statement. “None of you cared about me. Except maybe Tourmaline.” And Domeykite but their relationship had been fostered on their mutual disdain for what the Negaverse required of them and what they saw it do to the people that it got deep claws in.
They both remembered a Labyrinthite before the general. That boy didn’t exist anymore, not even deep inside the man behind the reaper cloak.
“Bet you,” he wheezed, bitter laughter spilling from his mouth,” she didn’t tell you that she broke up with me before I left did she?” Based on Dia’s accusations she hadn’t. “She broke up with me when I was trying to cope just like you.” Except everything was worse because it was his hands that were stained with the death of Labyrinthite’s mother. He was still plagued by space and space things but Tourmaline hadn’t cared.
She had only wanted him to support her and refused to be there for him in return.
They had been good for lighthearted, in-the-moment fun but nothing substantial.
His refusal to speak and her refusal to respect proved that.
“She made her decisions and I made ones that made sense to me when it all happened. I don’t expect you to understand.” No one seeped in chaos understood. Labyrinthite hadn’t even tried to, despite being present during everything going on. With his grip on one of his tonfas shifting his green eyes darkened and narrowed.
“Just because I choose not to fight does not mean I don’t know how to.” He was throwing the shield at her, doing his best to spring to his feet.
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Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2017 4:47 pm
She hadn't expected him to fight back - Aluminite had been a coward and when she'd met him again initially, he hadn't put up a fight. Relying on the assumption that he'd continue to be the wussy gentleman he'd always been had backfired on her and she realized this as the heavy shield came flying upwards, directly at her.
Rose eyes widened as the weapon crashed against her abdomen, the tip clipping against her face as she stumbled backwards. It was her turn to fall as her hands flew up to cover her mouth, a flash of red disappearing behind dark gloves as her heels skidded against the concrete and she landed with a thud.
There hadn't been time to discuss the fact that no, she hadn't been told that KittyKat had done the breaking up. Even so, what guy didn't fight for a girl? Hadn't he gone out of his way to protect them from the dragon’s attack?
Had they meant so little to him, despite being on the same team?
Fingers gingerly pressed against her upper lip as she hissed. The mark stung as her head spun from the pain - who did this jerk think he was?? As she pulled her hand back, the sight of her own blood caused a panic in her throbbing chest. Was her face okay? Would it leave a scar?
“Hitting a woman in the face - how noble for someone who thinks himself so much better than everyone else.”
She scowled and remained seated, one foot nudging to kick off her heels as she stared him down. Striped stocking feet were exposed, aiding her ability to crawl up faster, should the need arise.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:07 am
Dia could think that she knew him all she wanted, but she knew nothing outside of what she’d been told by others. As far as he could remember, they had so few interactions that the idea of him abandoning them was laughable. There was no them.
Not that he’d been apart of anyway.
He was halfway to his feet, breathing a little labored and those green eyes of his narrowed while he gripped the other tonfa tightly. Worse case he could desummon and resummon if he couldn’t get to the other one in time. He knew how to use his fists too, but he wanted to avoid it if he could.
Midgard was only fighting now because she was forcing his hand. There wasn’t anyone to protect but himself and Dia had made it clear that she had a bone to pick with him now that she’d found him.
“I never said that,” he bit out, clearly defensive of the accusation. “Keep trying to put words into my mouth. You don’t have anything to fall back on the next time he chooses to leave you behind.” Midgard was rebuilding himself from scratch, but he remembered caring for himself as long as he could remember.
Boots shuffled forward and he stood at all of his six feet and four inches above her. “It doesn’t have to be like this.”
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:14 am
As the Squire approached, her body visibly tensed up as though she expected him to kick her while she was down. Her eyes squeezed shut and her fists balled up, bracing for impact as a warm, wet sensation trickled down her chin. Other senshi and White Moonies wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of the opportunity - why would he?
And yet...he didn't.
An eye peeked open hesitantly as she stared up at the tall brunette. His words stung as much as his others had, a constant reminder that her General hadn't confided in her. Someone he'd made a point of, in his own words, choosing. No, he'd picked some other lackey, someone who hadn't even cared enough to stick around, ultimately. What had he entrusted to her, besides nearly becoming a sheath for his scythe? Nothing. He'd established expectations as a commanding officer, but even as they'd discussed future affairs, he'd dismissively told her that he'd take care of the details.
It had seemed sensible at the time but as she sat there, wiping the blood from her chin with the back of her hand, suddenly things were contorting into a bitter, ugly view.
“He didn't leave me behind.”
The voice was stubborn, almost childlike in its clearly determined attempt to convince herself of her own words. “He...he wouldn't do that.”
Letting off a huff, the candy senshi reached down and plucked up one of her black heels. Without hesitating, she tossed it up at the “enemy”, aiming for nothing in particular as the force was halfhearted at best.
“You don't get to say those things!!” Dia's tone had turned huffy, “He came back for me!”
He had come back for her.
...Right?
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