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Acubens had never seen someone die, at least not really. She’d seen someone corrupt… sort of. In that she had run into a corrupted senshi who had been pure the last time she’d seen them. This… this had been her first encounter with death. And then there were two so close to one another. First was the officer who had only been trying to help – Acubens was still not convinced that he was at all a criminal – followed by another civilian that the eternal senshi, despite her best efforts, could not save. Maybe they had made some poor decisions but no one deserves a death like this. No one deserves to die, really. Acubens herself had done her fair share of bad, but nothing she’d been condemned for… yet anyways. So why should she assume these people guilty. She hadn’t not once. She’d fully intended to save everyone – to have them all save everyone. And were this a perfect world good would win out. The bad guys would be punished accordingly and maybe even see the error of their ways. That Ovaltine character seemed a pretty good candidate for purification, after all.

This is not a fantasy world.

No. No it wasn’t. And she wasn’t the perfect hero.

Acubens’ eyes began far to grow far too hot. Why was her vision blurring? Oh god, yes. Yes! This was going to help. She was an adult now, and this was no time to cry. Not when there were still four lives to be saved. Rooted in place, Acubens called out shakily to her stranger c** ally who had performed so valiantly.

“Three is better than none. Go – good job.” Her chin trembled violently as she tried her best not out full out sob. Taking a deep breath, Acubens tried her best to settle back into her skin, listening to the knight as he spoke. This, of course, didn’t help her to calm down. Like. At all. In fact it made her vibrate right back out of her skin, senses at an all-time high as she tried to pinpoint what the knight was talking about.

Sure enough, there it was. Somewhere close by, the youma leaked energy. It was hard to pinpoint as the energy was buffered and tossed around by the other powered energy signals around her. Still, she squinted and exerted herself as she tried and tried to find the source.

“I can’t… I know what you’re feeling I just… where is it?”

Like an itch that just kept moving around, the energy signal made Acubens twitch and squirm in place, trying in the back of her mind to find it. Maybe that was why she was so off when the knight gave the order to attack. That distraction combined with her already compromised emotional state caused Acubens to totally ignore her powered ability. Half mad with strain and ripped apart with her first sight of death, Acubens just ran. Granted, she did already naturally run faster than normal, and that combined with her magical speed gave her a fair advantage, but the boost of her attack might have given her a slight edge. Was just… she was just so… angry. And magic felt like ignoring the problem where are striking out physically just seemed more… freeing. Like the anguish that threatened to tear Acubens in two and reduce her to nothing but the same screaming, crying pile of nothing that she had been once upon a time could be circumvented if she could just get flesh to connect with flesh. If she could just hit the captain hard enough, she’d feel something like herself again. She couldn’t be hemorrhaging anymore.

Johnathan doubled over in pain from the punch from the Captain, blue eyes locked onto amber through tousled hair. "You'll... you'll regret that..." the boy hissed through clenched teeth. His stomach lurched when the telltale CRACK pierced their ears, a perfectly good waste of a perfectly good starseed. Oh well. Bischofite did promise a buffet and a powered starseed tasted oh so much better than one without. He'd just have to be patient.

Keep waiting.

When was someone going to save him?

"God... this is a nightmare..." he whispered, bracing his knees to support his weight against the noose. Too much shaking of the building would send the other civilians sailing to the doom. "Please... somebody... anybody..."

As Acubens neared her target, a smile split her face wide open. I’ve got you know, sick ********. So elated was she by her impending victory that she didn’t see that he’d gone until it was too late. She’d forgotten that agents could teleport like that, not having been exposed to very many, to be honest, and suddenly she was shoved from behind when he clearly once stood before her. It was like her world was passing in slow motion as she fell through space, each second taking an hour. Did she scream? Did she say anything at all? Acubens couldn’t even tell if her mouth was open or closed.

Her world was brought back into sharp focus as her shoulder cracked and gave.

This time Acubens knew she screamed, dangling from Bischofite’s hand like a rag doll. One shoe followed her downward trajectory, whatever mineral it was made from cracking at it hit the ground. Somewhere between gasping and screaming, Acubens looked frantically from her impromptu allies to the Captain. He was going to kill her. One way or another, he was going to toss her off this building and watch her shatter against the concrete like her shoe had. Even if the other senshi complied with him. Acubens knew, somehow, that Bischofite wasn’t going to let her off so easy. A cracked starseed would take one of them out, and with their forces weakened and in shock they would be easy pickings. For all they knew the lieutenant was just as ruthless as Bischofite, just a good actress.

The only option was to take Bischofite out while he was still distracted.

“Why are you just standing there,” she shrieked, feet still scrambling frantically in the air for purchase on something. “Keep going! Save the civilians and get lost!” And then, suddenly, Acubens’ foot caught on the ledge of the roof. It caught hard. For just a second she looked up to Bischofite, smile flashing across her face.

“Now I’ve really got you,” she whispered.

With a great cry, Acubens twisted against the ledge, pulling Bischofite across her back and she turned, and jumped from her precarious purchase. Again, her world slowed to frames as she fell. Air rushed by her and if she closed her eyes, Acubens could probably fool herself into thinking she was just running. If this was how she was going to die, then Acubens was glad it was like this. Running and saving someone.

The Eternal sank to her knees, folding over and shivering uncontrollably. One hand went to block her mouth while the other went to her stomach. She did not spew her dinner--yet--but she aws dry heaving. Tears ran down her face; snot dripped from her nose. this couldn't be happening, the civilian could not be... could not be...

She barely heard Bthe Negaverse general gloating.. at least not until Acubens ad the other Senshi went pummeling over the side. Pasiphae found herself trapped by the sight of them. Her first attempt to call her magic this night had cost an innocent life. It had not been her fault, but that did not stop her guilt. All the same... her shields had stood strong before and two of her allies--one old, one new--were falling. She owed it to them. The Shame Senshi had sworn that she would not allow anyone to fight alone after the Ambush and had thus far stuck with her vow. No matter what aches consumed her heart... she would not break it now.

"Pasiphae... *Social Stigma!" The attack was summoned in a half-sob, even as she forced herself back to her feet. The two of them would be safe... but there were still others to try and save. She looked to Sessrumnir for support and direction. Her drive was going mostly on autopilot - hopefully she could receive a shoulder to lean on as she tried to keep up her drive to fight.

*--Social Stigma - Defensive
The most powerful attack, Social Stigma allows the energy shield to exist for a longer period of time, anywhere from 45 seconds to 60 seconds depending on the amount and intensity of attacks absorbed. The energy shield can now activate around up to four people, including Sailor Pasiphae. Whoever Sailor Pasiphae shields will find their mobility restricted and unable to attack as long as the shield lasts.

In addition to shielding up to four people, whenever the weapon/her attacker comes into physical contact with her shield, it induces an overwhelming sensation of shame which can actively affect the enemy for as long as the shield lasts.

NOTE: How each opponent experiences this shame differs based on their personality. For example, a proud warrior might feel shame at attacking a purely defensive opponent, whereas a chivalrous guy might feel shame for attacking a girl.

--Drawbacks -
Only works on 4 people
Only works for a limited amount of time
Reduces mobility, making it impossible to attack as long as the shield lasts
Can be broken by a powerful enough attack/multiple lesser attacks

The load on his arm wrenched him from his stature, and in the breadth of a moment he left the ground. Suspended. Breathless. Thoughtless.

And in that span of time he realized his life span shriveled to

s
i
x

s
e
c
o
n
d
s

before nature would reclaim its abominations.

And this girl, this vociferous b***h sought his demise through intertwining their own mortality? Didn't she understand that fate would kill him in its own whims, not her pointless endeavors toward stopping him? Or was she so impossibly arrogant that she thought her actions superseded any predetermined plans?

It didn't matter; he had no time to think.

He had
a wall break
[broken] his train of thought momentarily, end stopped with a sudden solid mass halting their progress.

The impact stunned him temporarily, sending him reeling from his wayward internalizations. Now he lay against a surface that never garnered visual form, and his every muscle protested violently over movement. In this sudden gasp of limbo, he no longer spelled a scene from his fingertips, and tragedies through his actions. No, he lay prostrate across nothingness, near the one senshi who tore him from his better graces.

"You can't understand what you'f done," he began, as he craned his neck across the imperceptible wall. Slowly he splayed his fingers across the floor, arms bent backward as if to push himself off the ground. "Your body will be my saving grace, you wors'less, vapid little senshi..." And he reached out toward her. She would feel the deepened claws of misanthropy poison her soul; he wouldn't relinquish his hold on her until she couldn't stomach even the vapors of kindness. In those six seconds, she would taste the fall of mankind with the sting of her own blood.

And he would relish her countenance, bathed in dying realizations, as he picked apart the better half of her ribcage.

His leg splintered his thoughts as easily as the wall, echoing all the agony he never felt during its initial inception. And he let out a wordless facsimile of that pain, grinding his vocal chords ragged with its clarion message: Anger. Hurt. Derision.

But that wasn't enough.

It took little time to deduce that someone tried to claim his mortality. Someone sought finite cries of pain, staccato breaths, desperate scramblings for some measure of relief. Someone wanted him dead. Someone wanted his blood on their hands. Someone wanted to sport the title of murderer. No matter how he tried to maneuver, no different than a roach struggling to escape its caustic chemical death, it yielded no reprieve. He remained a victim to one of the aimless monstrosities he sought to study that night, and despite his fate-altering magics, death appeared a certainty tonight.

For all of them, he realized, death appeared a certainty tonight.

Wind snaked and coiled around them once more, a tide of wild writhing, while the three tumbled toward the earth. He didn't have much time; should he falter in his decision, he'd surely fuse with the scout's shoe in a wet mulch. In a last attempt toward salvaging the situation, he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the

whirling rushing jerking disjointed burning sweeping scathing coiling
breathing seething searing scraping hospital tearing scalding boiling roiling toiling
peeling paring bleaching bearing breaking blustering grating whispering

The ground greeted him with caustic distaste, and he shook systemically with looming exsanguination and complete exhaustion. No longer was he able to function on his own; Bischofite couldn't sustain his identity much longer. It didn't matter; if anyone was around, he would soon succumb to his wounds and his unraveling identity would be the least of his problems. He just. couldn't. sustain it.

And with one labored breath, Alois yearned for assistance in a single hoarse call.

---

Ovaltine trembled with mounting anxieties when she saw her captain vanish over the edge of the building. Would they pursue her next? She didn't want to die for obeying his commands! And why should she? It wasn't like she wanted to push these poor people to their deaths. She might not have known them, but she wasn't the one plotting their demise either. And following orders didn't warrant a swift death, did it? Despite her attempts to assuage her nerves, she still stepped backward toward the edge of the building, especially when the squire began his approach.

"Look, all I wanted to do was follow orders and climb the ranks, okay? I didn't want to do anything like this, but he said I could get a promotion if I helped him with his plans! It wasn't my idea, none of this was! Besides, if I tried to stand up to him, do you think he'd let me live?" She paused a moment, eyeing Sessrumnir with clear trepidation. Slowly his words sank in; he never accused her of plotting this setup, nor did he hurl any threats to convince her to free the civilians. She knew they were her single lifeline, but he wasn't trying to murder her, either. "How can you hope to protect me when you let some of these people die, huh?"

The remaining captives behind her struggled to part from her path; surely they sensed her anxiety as easily as they recognized their own.

"If I help you get them to safety, what's stopping you from killing me? We're enemies, even if you promise to help me!" Her heel caught the edge of the precipice, and she stepped atop the raised lip, echoing the petrified silhouettes of the other victims. How could she possibly escape this? She couldn't even feel her captain anymore. Was he dead? Did they kill him? Was she next?

Ovaltine was the only obstacle between them and saving the remaining strangers.

However, his last question caught her off guard. In her quavering, cracking voice, she eked out an answer. "I... I don't know. I don't know! He never told me anything about that one! He sent me out to find people, and when I came back, that one was already there! I just thought he managed to catch a roof attendant or something. I've never even seen a human-looking youma before! How can you even tell?" She paused in her superfluous ramblings to draw a steadying breath. Still, her mind swirled with suspicions that she'd die tonight, much like the misanthropic captain that started this unsalvageable mess.

"But..." She began in a marginally calmer voice. "I wouldn't put it past him. If he'd trick me, and he'd trick you, why wouldn't he use a youma too?" Was she really helping the enemy to save her own skin? So she wasn't the type to die for the cause...

Though she might find herself at the mercy of the Negaverse for this.

She turned to Ovaltine and flat out begged, all of her tears, sweat, and snot still apparent. Desperation gave her a form of boldness to overcome worry about her appearance, "Please... just help us free them. No... no one else needs to die. Please... please..."

Her pleading gave way to a horific scream at the explosion of youma energy that appeared. It was potent and on top of everything else... too much. Too much. Pain, anxiety, fear... all boiled up. She could not contain the hot liquid that spewed from her mouth now, retching and burying her face from the sight. She could not make it in time. She had failed. She had... failed. After so long, after gaining so much strength... she could not protect them.

No. No... I can't... leave them... I won't... I WON'T!'

A white glove dragged across mouth, wiping away whatever gunk remained on her face as she shakily rose to her feet. The tears continued, as she shouted hoarsely at the youma. "Leave them... ALONE!"

Done. The boy was absolutely and utterly done with it all. He had accepted his fate, closing his eyes as his wall dissolved around them, too far from the building to summon another. He would become part of the ground, mixing in with the dirt and pavement and dampness that was below. And he was simply alright with this.

Yet there was something there to catch him. Something stopping him mere inches from the ground, cradling him so. As soon as he realized that he could move again, that there was to be no impact, he scrambled to his feat, his hands pressed against the barrier that protected him. It had to vanish soon, right? Nothing could keep him locked up forever!

And when it did vanish, so did he. Without a second though, he sprang forth from where the shield dropped him, and he took off, powering down when just out of sight.

He ran and ran, not caring who saw him, not caring if he had knocked over someone in his panic, or caused a vehicle to swerve violently to avoid him. He had to go somewhere safe, somewhere away from all of this chaos and insanity and death. He did not deserve this!

There was no more caring about the people back on the rooftop. There was not going to be any 'attempts' at being heroic, or trying to save the girl who held his hand. They didn't need him, he drove the monster back into his hole, and he played a purpose he was forced into. The stronger ones could keep themselves safe, they were no one to him now, just faceless beings who shared in a night which he never wanted to think of, to feel for again.