Welcome to Gaia! ::

Stella's request rang loud and clear to the General where she stood, silent and alone, next to her eternal conundrum in the tower. There was no alarm in the voice and, though she knew it must be somewhat about the time for energy collection, she was actually awful with dates and had no idea why Stella wouldn't just come find her if that was the case. Stellerite knew her expectations.

Curiosity peaked, she reacted in an instant.

With a fizzling, electric crackle to announce her, Alkaid apparated only feet away from the duo where they stood on the rooftop in (what she assumed was) chilly January air. She didn't move from where she had appeared and both hands were tucked at the small of her back, fingers laced. Her eyes slipped first from her loyal lieutenant to the tall, pale-haired civilian that didn't appear to be here against his will. It was her best attempt at not seeming threatening since she had, more than once, scared older men than this one into running for their life. It was a part of the package, unfortunately, and she wanted to get a good look at him before he tried to climb down a ladder or (worse) plummeted over the side like an imbecile.

It wasn't hard to connect the dots despite how much Alkaid would have loved a bit of a snack because she did so enjoy a good night chase. Penny had been very clear about her conditions and since she'd proved so loyal an asset already, it was only a matter of time before her brother was brought to Alkaid's attention. Those bright, orange eyes stared at him with their eerie back glow, trailing the lines in his face and trying to decipher the thoughts in his head. What did he think? Was he worth as much as his sister? She supposed it didn't matter in the end.

"Are you sure?" Those eyes had still been studying Alrik but her words, tinged with familiarity, were clearly meant for Stellerite. She made the point clear as she looked away from him, to her lieutenant. "He seems very young, Stella."

Alrik Rey always considered himself to be brave.

Yet, up until this point in his young life, Alrik Rey never truly had his bravery tested.

As soon as the crackling began, his worn out Nikes had begun a slow backpedal towards the fire escape they'd climbed up. When the pale, terrifying woman appeared out of thin air, he began to tremble. It didn't matter what his sister had said or the reassurance she had offered. The woman standing there next to Penny - no - Stella, looked like a shattered porcelain doll from out of a horror game that someone had glued back together again and imbued with darkness incarnate.

Had anyone else called him young, he would have puffed his chest out and argued that he was nearly old enough to be out on his own, that he was already half an inch shy of six feet tall. But this woman, no, she could call him anything she wanted to, as far as Alrik was concerned, as long as she didn't murder him where he stood.

His sister, on the other hand, looked as if she were about to burst with how ecstatic she'd become. She was pointing out that Alrik would be her muscle - her muscle for what? Had she been serious about all of that talk about ripping souls out and punching folks? Her giddiness alone proved to be a minor solace and the thought of starting into a new adventure, a new game as she'd called it, didn't sound as terrifying when he knew she'd be there beside him.

No, Alrik Rey was not necessarily a brave person, but as long as his sister stood by his side, he could find the courage within himself to face the future ahead of them.

"Penny's the brains," he conceded, his voice coming out almost squeaky as he struggled to stay calm. Stella continued to beam proudly at him, but his eyes were glued to the General and her pale, god she was so pale, form and those fiery eyes that had glanced at him almost dismissively.

"I wouldn't be whole without my sister."

While most people would have quivered beneath the weight of Alkaid's gaze, Stellerite only stood taller having never been afflicted with the fear that plagued her brother. Wonder, certainly, but she had never quivered.

"I wouldn't bring him to you if he wasn't ready," Stella said firmly, chin tipping up. The blonde knew that the negaverse was wrought with struggles but she was better with Ali, no matter what her general thought. Implied were the these were the conditions of my recruitment. "Where I go, he goes," she insisted, bright blues watching as Alkaid crossed the rooftop and trying not to let her sudden uncertainty show.

What if Alkaid decided that he wasn't worthy?

No, she wouldn't do that. There was no one better to stand beside her than Alrik.

It was unnecessary but she reached her hand out to her brother, looking at Alkaid with a steady gaze. She couldn't answer for him, but she trusted that he would say exactly what she expected him to.

"Good."

It was one word, but all the answer in the world.

There was no warning apart from that single syllable before her hand slipped from a delicate touch of his face, grazed the length of his jawline, and finally came to rest where she gripped the base of his head to anchor him against her. If it was alarming, he'd have no time to object - the second hand was just as fluid as she arced it through the air and brought it to rest, dead center, on his sternum.

If she had been more human she might've tried to ease his worry, whisper something calming, but the truth was simply that she wasn't. There was naught but a narrowing of her bright eyes as she sank her fingertips past flesh and blood and bone, deep into a cavity he had no idea even existed, searching a part of him never meant to be touched. It wasn't his heart that she sought but, instead, something most humans took for granted every day of their lives. His life source beat beneath his flesh, calling to her as her fingers inched closer and closer to the thrum of energy she was too familiar with.

There was torture in that first, glorious touch as her need to consume raged beneath her battered shell. Stellerite was forgotten. She let her attention narrow upon the tall blonde boy, at the way he reacted to the violation, until there was nothing but him that existed in that moment. With his face swimming in her vision, she called her power and let it crawl along her flesh, igniting the cracks in her plates like glowing ink seeping between them. It ran the length of her arm and down, deep beneath his breastplate where her hand had curled around his starseed. The first push was the hardest, breaching what little defense he had without breaking it or overwhelming him. Alkaid was no longer a creature of reservation - but she would kill him herself without care.

The energy flowed, arcing between them, and seeped from her more quickly than any General could have claimed they had felt. It was a blessing and a curse, she thought. Too much and she would lose herself - she could feel it in the way her energy bled at her command - and too little would do nothing but twist him. As with his sister before him, those few moments seemed stretched into eternity, dragging her through a dance of power and self preservation. She wasn't just giving him the power of Metallia and creating a tether for her creator to grasp, she was giving him the very essence of her being.

When the flow stopped and her hand retreated, there was silent triumph in her suddenly weary eyes, but triumph none-the-less.

"I expect you to live up to your sister's word."

As Alkaid approached him, he could feel the blood begin to rush to his face. Aside from Penelope and their mother, no woman had ever gotten so close to him in his life. She was inches away, those fiery eyes staring him down as he suddenly felt something clamp against the back of his head.

Freezing in place, his eyes widened and his mouth shot open in surprise as the ascendant buried her pale fingers into his chest. The pain was incredible, the air leaving his lungs as he felt his heartbeat pounding inside his head. He couldn't breathe, she was twisting his insides, burning him from the inside out. The very core of his being was being transformed and he felt like he would shatter before she could finish.

A squeeze around his fingers brought his strength back, the comforting reminder that Penny was still with him and had never left his side. Her fingers remained entwined with his, even as his hand gripped hers with nearly all the strength he could muster.

After what felt like forever, the senshi finally released him. In doing so, he finally had the ability to catch his breath and reopen his eyes.

Already, he knew something was different. He felt different. The jeans and t-shirt he'd been wearing only minutes earlier was gone, replaced with a crisp, dark uniform belonging to the Negaverse's newest Lieutenant.

Alkaid's words echoed in his head as he stared down at the remote control in his hand, then back up towards his new General. Giving his sister's hand one more squeeze, he braved a tired smile to mask the lingering ache in his chest that was slowly subsiding.

"You won't be disappointed, ma'am."

While Penelope's attention was predominately directed towards her brother, she hadn't missed the sweep of those bright orange eyes of her general as they swept across the sibling's joined hands. Her heart stuttered at the notice but she kept her composure and pretended like she hadn't seen it at all. If the general wouldn't comment on it, Penny saw no reason to bring it up herself.

Besides, she didn't think her companionship with her brother was an issue. She was better with him and she knew it.

"Of course, general," she answered, making a point to meet the woman's (could she even be referred to as a woman anymore...?) eyes. Stellerite looked confident and proud, with her shoulders only sagging with relief when the ascendant had made her, admittedly dramatic (and Stella was so proud) exit.

"Isn't she lovely brother?" She asked, considering him in all of his new powered glory. "Oh," she frowned, thinking about how he hadn't been given a game. It was no matter, she'd been poking at names since the day she had decided he would join her in this magical wonderland. "She didn't give you a name, no matter. I have the perfect one in mind."

Stella was grinning too broadly, like a cat who'd gotten the bird. "Epidote. Now, come on Epi, you must be exhausted."