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Cybele might have had a reputation for being violent, but it was all situational. It just happened that a lot of the situations involving the Negaverse were situations that required those more extreme measures.

If there was a starseed in someone's hand, she wasn't just going to ask politely for them to give it back. If she knew that someone was a murderer, a torturer, an unapologetic devotee to Metallia, she wasn't going to come up to them with a gentle smile and ask how their life was going. She certainly wasn't going to let them run around the city unchecked.

An unknown Captain approaching her and asking to talk wasn't something that made her immediately spring on the defensive, though. She wasn't really looking for violence, anyway. Her ribs were still a bit tender from her encounter with Jet.

So, as the woman came closer, her smile was polite if not quite warm.

"I'm not here to attack unless you give me a reason to," she said. "What is it that you'd like to know?"

Was she going to try to talk and then turn heel and punch this woman across the face? No. Again, there were certain situations where she might turn to that extreme, but this did not seem to be one of them. The question might have made Cybele's lips press tight, but she could see the earnestness in the woman's face.

There might be a chance to say something here that would get through to her.

"I can tell you something better than a theoretical," she said, her voice still polite, if cool. "I can tell you what it took, when it happened."

She settled herself on a curb, ankles crossed in front of her, a distance from the other woman so that she would not feel threatened. Her fingers curled around the concrete, all of her tension going into gripping so hard that her knuckles turned white, so that she was not tempted to turn to violence that might ruin things.

"It took one of my allies betraying me in the middle of a training event that I was running and turning me over to a Negaverse ambush. It took an agent draining me until I was unconscious and dragging me into the General-King's office. It took both of them forcing Chaos into my chest while I couldn't fight it anymore."

She looked over, meeting the Captain's eyes.

"And I can tell you something else. I can tell you that I was broken. I was numb, borderline suicidal. Some of the agents tried to cheer me up afterwards but it didn't work, not really. Even in that state, I could tell that something was off. Without my memories, I had no context for who I was. It was just that Chaos that kept me following orders, kept me going through the motions. I was nothing like I am now. I was nothing like I was before."

Everyone had agreed on that.

"So, if you do something like that? If you wipe that woman into a nice clean slate that you can nurture? Whatever you love about her might not come out the other side."

"I don't know," said Cybele, honestly. "I don't remember much at all. All I know about that night is from what people have told me. He corrupted afterwards. I do know that much."

That wasn't really the point, though. That wasn't what she was getting at, and it wasn't what this Captain needed to hear.

"As far as your love life?" some of the tension actually eased from her fingers. Her polite smile cocked sideways. "One of my best friends is a lot like the person you're describing. Almost exactly, honestly."

At least, the situation was similar. She didn't know much about this mysterious senshi's personality in order to compare it to Alastor.

"He's from another world. He's been alive for a thousand years while slowly losing everything. He has a dead husband, and when he came here he found the one who had been born with his starseed."

Not all of it was her story to tell, so she kept it simple. "They worked it out without anyone having to lose their memories. It just took time and communication, and now they're married."

"It's different for everyone," Cybele agreed.

She had found out that one of the corrupts that she'd been in an extended death match with had been her spouse in a past life, which was something to wrap her head around. That realization hadn't changed much. She was still with her current partners, still trying to kill him.

Starseeds didn't always mean that you were destined to be together.

"His name is Alastor," she told her. "I think he would talk to you, although they were never on different sides, so I don't know that he would have advice on that."

A moment passed.

"What has you committed to the Negaverse, anyway? Would you consider leaving? Not just for love, although it might simplify that part of it. It would mean you wouldn't have to be on the side of things that forces people into corruption."

If she was so disgusted about that, then maybe Cybele could get through to her about the rest.

"I'm not talking about a sexy fish woman," said Cybele gently.

She could have, if she'd wanted to. She understood the appeal of the aquatic aesthetic. One of her partners was a Neptune knight, after all. Perhaps someday they'd be able to compare notes, but that seemed a bit personal considering they'd only met about five minutes ago.

It also wasn't the point.

"How much do you know about Chaos?" she asked, because this woman seemed to have something of a moral compass. "How much do you know about its end goals, about what it does?"

"All right," said Cybele with half a laugh. "I won't try to lecture you about morality if you just want to think about your crush."

At least, not in so many words. She could tell by the expression on the other woman's face that she'd already made her think, and it was a bit of a relief that she was no longer asking about how to corrupt this person.

"But, while you're looking for that information, I'd ask about where youma come from. I'd ask about where starseeds come from."

Cybele stood up from her perched position.

"And then, if you see me again, you can tell me if you think it's worth it, this work that keeps you away from the woman you clearly love."

"I can ask," she said.

It would probably be helpful if she could see if she could get someone else to broaden Retzian's perspective so that she was no longer trying to think about corrupting anyone.

"And no," said Cybele, her smile growing. "Not a fish man."

With a final wave, she said, "See you around, all right?"

Because she hoped that they'd be able to meet again.