Daesva had walked with Fae-fae and Caelyna, her skin prickling with annoyance at the Queen who mocked them. Her fingers tapped, t-tap t-t-tap tap t-tap tap tap t-t-t--t-tap t-tap t-t-tap, against the grip of her blaster. Her hand itched to pull it. To ball into a fist and punch someone. It might ease some of the pressure that was building in her chest and made her pulse go kinda fast. That horned lizard looking woman had seemed like a good target...
The tapping only dulled, her fingertips instead of her nails, as the youma had approached them and lead them out. Walking had... helped a little, taken something of an edge off. But when she filed into the house, it'd picked back up again. T-tap tap tap t-t-t-tap tap tap tap t-tap t-t-tap t-tap tap t-t-tap tap--
As the Commodore spoke, as Vyn and Aliez asked they hold their questions till the morning, Daesva found herself pacing somewhat through part of the room. She stepped away from Fae-Fae and Caelyna, just to give herself more space, and hopefully not agitate them. Stay together, Caelyna had said. She thought of the tree and Velyria, and she had to force her mind away. Focus on slow, even breaths. It kept her movements even and slow in turn.
His logic for everything made sense, and Daesva knew that. It made sense not to tell them the full plan, because what if someone had said something to the wrong person? Information could easily leak, be it accidental or not, and then what? But in her mind she saw that agent with the sparkling, fragile gem in her hand.
"You didn't at all suspect that by the King--the one you yourself vouched for, Commodore--first saying to the 'White Moon' that we would help directly attack Metallia, and you acting upon your plan, wouldn't have any fallout with those of us who believed you two were acting together? That there wouldn't be some who fully believed there was some mistake when the Negaverse were suddenly protecting the device they thought was meant to attack their leader?" Her voice was flat beyond some minor inflections. She continued to force her breathing to remain steady, her movements to remain slow, and her voice to remain even. Losing her temper, letting that pressure in her chest ramp up even further than it was...
It'd do her no favours. She didn't have a tree to punch and destroying some furniture likely wouldn't go over well with anyone in the house, or outside it.
She'd heard Caerynn's words to the cat she'd protected. How it had to be a mistake. She'd died with that thought. Or at least, Daesva hoped she had. She didn't want to consider that the Cadet's last thoughts had been of doubting the Commodore or what they were doing there on Earth. She hoped Rynn passed holding tight that she'd done right. She looked up to the Commodore, and the restraint she held on her body did not keep the mixing emotions of confusion, anxiety, anger, and loss from her face. "And now our Commanders are dead because of the White Moon, two Cadets are dead because of the Negaverse, and one of those Cadets had her starseed shattered." Some of that anger leaked out on the last words. She looked away from him and swallowed thickly. She needed to focus on her breaths for a few beats before she could speak evenly again.
"Both sides are disgusting, just as I'm sure both have redeeming members." Though, she didn't really feel that was entirely true for the Negaverse. Actually. She felt pretty strongly the Negaverse could go float in the vacuum of space for the next billion years. "They are young and unaware of what's out there, not so different from us. I cannot blame them for fighting for their lives and homes, thinking they were in danger then. I do not think any of us should do any less for our own home." He said he was disappointed. Her eyes rolled. They'd acted on information they had. Wrong information. Emotional for some. Herself included, big time. But no one could tell her Rynn was wrong for protecting that White Moon cat, with that information they'd had. And Daesva surely didn't regret attacking the monster, or firing on the generator they wanted to protect.
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Posted: Mon Nov 01, 2021 9:31 pm
Cadet Silvera
Silvera had been silent through all of this, though he was glad to note their currant residence was made safe by Lyndin. He'd done his share of assuming what was happening, and why, back during the battle. Now as their Commador spoke he nodded his head slowly. Letting his own thoguhts fill his head before hs decided to speak, to question just a little bit. He knew their leader needed rest, it was as obvious as could be.
"So, the chaos here is what keeps this planet safe from outside forces? It also makes the senshi and knights work together, towards a common goal, and become stronger. So the chaos here serves two purposes, I assume of course. If it leaves then something else will replace it...will perhaps wipe them out." Make this planet like their own. "But why this plan? Why was this issue not kept between our own people on our home? Why did we involve those here, Negaverse, senshi, knights...in the past and now? That is what I don't understand. I'm sorry, but why did we need someone else to aid us in saving our own planet?" That was the big thing which he did not understand. "You say there were talks, people knew about it, and this was a last resort. But why not handle it back home? Why did we need to do this all in front of others and make them involved? Couldn't Caedus and his starseed have been dealt with back home?" Couldn't it have been pulled, or in some way removed from him, back home? Why did they need to do it here? Why involve what he considered an innocent planet in their problem?
Shifting and finding a place to sit on the floor which was comfortable, his pack pressed to a chair, he let his head tip back as he spoke. "I think, though I could be wrong, that the both sides do not understna dhow special their planet is because they are so closed off from everywhere else. Their homeworlds lack life...and people do not visit here from elsewhere. They do not understand. It's not entierly their fault. This part of space seems rather deserted and so can we really fault them for their lack of awareness and knowledge?" His words were spoken softly, as he turned his pink hued eyes onto their leader.
"If Caedus knew all of this...why? Why did we all suffer and why did he not find a way, or do something, to solve the problem. If it's something as dire as it sounds. Why did it come to what it did so long ago - to leaving him on Earth to die." Which he hadn't done anyway. And why the deal now? Why when Caedus had returned was the issue not dealt with then and there? Why come here, not that he was upset to have seen a planet with rain and so much more to offer.
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 12:23 am
Cadet Yddagen
The sensation that crawled along his spine spiked when the queen opened her mouth again. It grew stronger when she dared speak to their Commodore like that again. It led to prickles along his skin when she sent her muscular abomination to guide them to a house that felt suspiciously like a prison, a trap.
It only lessened marginally when Lyndin placed his shield around the place to provide them privacy and a reprieve. It did not feel like much of a reprieve. Lyndin looked tired. The cadets were already exploding into questions. Yddagen had opinions of his own, the quickest one enumerated by the declaration of his twin into his ear. He could agree, he thought. That gave a good word to the sensation he felt looking upon the royalty of the Negaverse.
He, too, hated her, and he confirmed this with a monosyllabic grunt.
Lyndin's response seemed to emphasize that they were only in an alliance with her because it was absolutely necessary. Absolutely necessary for a plan that was seen as a last resort, but the last resort that also, in its own way, sounded inevitable. He spoke as if he expected that they would, eventually, succeed in their goal of retrieving the starseed, for it was the 'only way'. It felt uncomfortably inside his gut. He knew their history. Velenians had been peaceful people who had been invaded by barbaric people who enslaved them. The concept of taking away someone's bodily autonomy, especially over their own soul, sat in a very similar spot.
He, perhaps, sympathized with how deflated Fae-fae looked.
Lyndin spoke of what made this planet different--Metallia? Was that what made his skin crawl? It did not inspire confidence to consider that the only thing that saved this planet was such darkness. Was that worth attempting to emulate? Certainly, there must have been something else.
Some cadets seemed to be begging for the questioning to stop, but Yddagen did not join them in that desire regardless of whether or not he voiced his position out loud. He believed Daesva had a point--to expect the cadets to end up thinking that Caedus had not really been working with Lyndin seemed... implausible. To expect that the cadets wouldn't be surprised when a force that they were told was so vile--one that was now trapping and boxing them in--was met with nothing but... obedience? It felt odd. Wrong. He did not speak explicitly, but he did volunteer, "Seconded," in Daesva's direction.
His other opinions remained unvoiced.
Commodore Lyndin was still their Commodore. Yddagen would believe him, for now.
For now.
Seiana_ZI
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 2:56 am
Everything about this situation was extremely disorienting and terrifying. He didn't want to be here, every single cell in his body screamed that he shouldn't be here, that he should leave, but he couldn't. Aliez would never abandon his people, and truth be told, Fangnyl didn't want to abandon anyone, either. But this situation was just plain <********> terrible.
Ah, he loved that word very much.
Silliness aside. He was extremely grateful when the shield went up, feeling just a bit safer (but only a bit). He doubted by now that they would be able to go home, thoughts racing through his mind about how they'd never be able to go again, how their planet would wither and die and they would never get to see Valenia and all its beauty. And he loved Earth and all its beauty and everything it had to offer, but he wanted his home first.
Despair crept in. He never would see his home again, would he? Never see what kind of squirrels they had on Valenia, or even bastardous little raccoons.
He took in a sharp breath when Lyndin flopped to the ground, eyes wide. The Commodore... he looked so terrible. And that tugged at his heartstrings, because he still loved and cared for The Commodore, even if he wasn't very much a fan of the decisions that had been made. Or rather, the consequences of the decisions.
But then, something Lyndin said struck him, and he turned to the Commodore instead of watching Aliez help the others learn to heal and get healed like he had been while thinking about all of this in the first place.
"You didn't anticipate Order to be so susceptible to the Chaos?" he repeated in disbelief, trying desperately to keep his even and quiet, "Did you even ask them how it affected them before doing this? How Chaos worked? Did you... You knew you were going to be creating that Chaos field. They lost so many people!"
His heart clenched as he thought of their own losses, taking a deep breath. Don't yell. Relax. He said he'd answer questions. To help calm himself, he took a sip from the water bottle he'd kept for himself after helping Aliez pass things out.
"You talk about knowing how it feels to have people show up and ruin a planet for you, and is that not something like what we've just done? You say they don't know anything—of course they don't, not if humans can't contact anyone outside their planet and species, not with so many dead worlds, not with us being the first other intelligence they've ever met. How could they understand how much bigger the universe is, when they are restricted to their own near-dead planets and Earth?" He struggled to keep his voice even, stop it from shaking, but he was angry, and scared, and worried.
He didn't realize how much his body was shaking until then. He was so angry, and a part of him was very scared because here he was, acting like he knew anything about anything when he clearly didn't from the Commodore's explanations, but the larger part was just angry. This was nothing like what he'd wanted out of their visit to Earth. After seeing all Earth had to offer, he'd fallen deeply in love, and he was angry with how they'd ******** up with the White Moon and Chaos and probably just made it that much harder for White Moon to try and scratch out some semblance of life on their planets, to fight back against the Chaos and protect Earth, what little life they had left to them. He was scared because he didn't want anything bad to happen to them—the Vanguard, their planet, their Commodore. Nothing more bad than had already occurred. Even though he was angry, too, he didn't want the Commodore to suffer any more than he clearly was. He was deeply worried for the other Cadets, that had been with the White Moon, and the White Moon themselves.
He felt so lost.
He just wanted everything to be okay.
It never would be again.
The desire to teleport out then and there rose again, but he swallowed it back. He wanted his answers, and he refused to get anyone in trouble from the Negaverse just because he couldn't keep a handle on his stupid emotions. After seeing Caer Sidi pass out from the sheer energy of Chaos, after she'd been so kind to him, patiently teaching him all she could about Earth, after watching so much loss... It was very difficult to do so. Even when the man he looked up to was collapsed on the floor with wounds and exhaustion.
Earth had changed him deeply, and he was grateful for it, and terrified of it.
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 3:17 am
Itztenoch
Bolstered by Eso's offer of his comfort while in the main hall. Felt the warmth of Eso’s hand where it brushed over his back, let that carry him through as they were herded down through corridors and pathways -- *like humans*. Herded like the humans so often were amongst their streets by cars. He clung to Nessa and Eso along the way. Managed something like a smile for Nessas gentle gesture - her offer to aid him with the use of her source stone - and he would take use of it once there was a chance to do so.
Would thank her in some way --
Later, later, later, because suddenly they were inside and 'relatively alone'. Tenoch would not dare to look at where they were and consider any part of it safe. Momentarily apart yes, breathing room that was necessary, but safe...ohh..not for a second...Not until they were well off the planet and had put lightyears between themselves and it’s atmosphere.
Sighed as he settled himself with the rest. Frown that deepened on his features, and there were no commanders left amongst them, and there was no King that had once been. If Tenoch counted, there were still three others that had vanished when everything had gone up in screaming searing explosives -- when they had been snatched whole down into a dark pit at the bottom of it all.
They were all missing people, they were all hurting deeply. Tenoch’s empathy had an end to it - no bottomless well like their lovely healer Aliez and the ever loyal Vyn.
How they all cried for peace and rest. Things that Tenoch felt were undeserved, by Lyndin, by anyone. They all still had the luxury of life where others had perished.
It was with that knowledge that he laid eyes that sparked with anger on Lyndin. Bit back the bitter snarl that wanted to curl his lip. Twisted feeling that grew as his teammates cried questions - as those were answered—- as the knowledge and depth of the plan was unfurled.
Found kinship with Daevsa and their trite words — how they resonated within him. Echoed his own tumultuous thoughts. Wanted to offer comfort that he did not possess the skills for to Fangnyl - for how their voice shook.
"Commodore, I need to say this…That you have my loyalty always - and my service - as do my brothers and sisters - as does our home. I will not abandon it to die.” However much his heart yearned to go and do so — to go home.
“But know this. No longer will it remain the sort that is unquestioning. No, that particular privilege has been traded away." Tenoch felt cheated — felt that Lyndin hadn’t trusted them nearly enough.
That even if he gave it now— his advice — his ‘keys to survival’ that it was far too late.
Hissed for the urge to want to pace in the place they were not true prisoners of. For the need to -- to ask even more, but he had already asked, hadn't he? An answer had been given - whether or not he liked it. If a murder had to occur, an end, so be it. Tenoch doubted it could occur so long as they remained penned up in a guarded room. Tenoch doubted so many things—-
"I am grateful that you let us ask these things now. Because even though you say there is a tomorrow? You cannot guarantee that it will come. You should not promise things that have not been…like our safety...” There would be no sunrise to herald the dawn of it, had been no true sunlight that Tenoch had observed in passing to the place their ‘guide’ had shuffled them.
”In this I am with Deavesa and Yddagen to some extent. These people -- these murderers of our people --- I do not trust them. Not one side or the other. Not for all the promises in the world. The humans are not of our blood or bonds. They have not earned anything from me but wariness."let his words sit idle, to be heard, to be ignored, to just...to be..
Frustrated he tucked himself aside as he let his gaze fall from Lyndin to the floor. Listened to the others questions in turn as they spoke. He did not like seeing the Commodore weak. He almost didn't like seeing him at all -- not after everything, but he had followed him here nd would follow him home—or not go home at all.
What else was there that could be done?
“I just — Commodore”
‘How would the comet have repaired Caedus starseed - what were the generators for if not to destroy Metallia — how was that being the lesser of two wrongs — a protector?!? What if the warp pads didn’t work—why had they been banned from seeking the negaverse if they were to play at being allies?’
“Commodore……*I am sorry*…..that we must have failed you before…Badly enough that you didn’t wish to trust us with the details…” shunted his other questions aside. For how his mind settled on the Queens words and the Commodores game.
Hadn’t the Queen said that to Cy before they’d left? When she’d smiled that awful smile at them. Wasn’t that what he was saying now?! That he had sought to survive his cadets by keeping information to himself…that the commanders had known too and done the same…that was how Itztenoch felt about it at least.
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Lyndin
Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 5:57 am
Eso
He followed. Stayed quiet. His hand remained on his brother, in his sister's hand, squeezing Nessa's fingers. Stars, he needed that support. He would apologize to Nessa eventually, for being so clingy, but he had a feeling she would be alright.
Everything about him felt heavy. The weight of everything settling upon him like a blanket that was too heavy and too warm. Was this guilt? This was deep sadness, he knew. They had worked toward going home. They had asked the humans for help, then everything went topsy turvy and the only ones to blame were themselves. Following blind orders, not knowing the full plan.
But was it our job to question? Had Lyndin done us wrong before this? Did we have any hints at what's to come in order to prevent it?
He listened to Itztenoch's words to Lyndin and his heart broke. Tenoch had been hurt so deeply by their Commodore.
"I'm the same as Tenoch."
The humans questioned everything, including the people in power. And maybe that was good. Maybe following orders blindly wasn't a good trade off. Sometimes, it seemed, things were too much and too big for a single person. or two people, to make any sort of decision. Especially when it involved their people who were already so limited.
The hand not holding onto Nessa slipped through Tenoch's, their fingers threading together, and he gripped so firmly. He was shaking.
"Commodore, I differ from Tenoch in the fact that if we asked humans for their help, why betray them? Had you not said what you did, they wouldn't have turned on us, I feel. Had you been honest from the beginning with everyone in this plan, maybe someone could have helped come up with some other way. I'm not saying I'm siding with the humans. I'm not betraying us, our kind and blood. I am saying that I will continue... to follow my brothers and sisters in arms.... but I have lost a lot of that trust... for our higher ups."
Perhaps his thinking on this was too simple. He didn't know everything, after all. Maybe he was being too callous with his words, but he was upset, he was hurt.
He couldn't even look at Lyndin as he spoke. Lilac eyes stayed down on Lyndin's feet. Looking down, but his head still up sort of. He clung to Nessa, clung to Tenoch, and used them as his pillars. His hair fell into one of his eyes, the usually perfectly coiffed lilac hair now disheveled from their exit, a complete mess. Eso hadn’t even run his hands through it.
"We're never going home, are we?" He asked in a voice so unsure, so small. Did Lyndin even hear him? If he didn’t it was fine. He honestly hadn’t meant to say it out loud. He was just voicing a thought everyone else was feeling, and probably saying.
He still didn't even know where they were. “What’s our fate now? Do you have any more plans? Do you feel we are adequate enough for you to actually share those thoughts with us, or are we to trust the human that got us out of there? Shielded us and offers us protection now?”
Something about that human woman really sat wrong with Eso.
Lyndin let them speak; he did not attempt to interrupt them or correct them, but he gave them time to share their thoughts. When they spoke, he looked at each one and listened. He had accepted Vyn’s water, but his grip was weak. He forced himself to take a sip, for Vyn, but set the bottle down while he listened.
He drew in a breath, held it, considered. Answered.
“Itztenoch. This is your first mission. This has nothing to do with you ‘failing me’. I didn’t know this world. The last time I was here, it was on the brink of war. A thousand years can change a lot. They have magic we cannot predict. I didn’t want to risk that someone would target any of you and try to force out information. I am sorry,” he said, to all of them, “I didn’t keep secrets to deceive you. I didn’t do it to punish you. I should have told you before we called everyone to us. I should have given you an option to wait by the warp pad so we could leave.”
Because, the plan was in motion. He couldn’t have stopped it by then. “I expect you to question. All of you. That is how we grow. I don’t take offense to that, it’s not a threat. Always ask. Sometimes, I cannot give you the answers you want to hear immediately. There are things I can tell you now that I couldn’t out there. I don’t know if you need to hear everything,” he admitted; his fingers curled around the bottle and he closed his eyes for a second before he seemed to regain composure.
“I didn’t want to scare you with the reality of it all. I did you a disservice by thinking I was protecting you from it. I cannot change the past, but I will try not to make that mistake again. I will tell you what I can, now. But this information is known to very few. I am trusting you all with it. Just be careful with what you do with the information. If it gets into the wrong hands,” he shook his head. “We lose all power to control our future.”
To Yddagen and Daesva, he continued. “Do you think it wrong that I vouched for Caedus before? ...I thought him dead before. I was happy to see him. But, the needs of our people outweigh the needs of one. I had hoped that with his return we would be able to work something else out, but.” He shook his head. “Velencya hardly responded to him at all.”
He didn’t need to be reminded that the Commanders were dead; he looked to Caelyna. He didn’t need to be reminded of the Cadets; he looked to Daesva and Fae-Fae. To all of them. “They will be honored.”
Fangnyl had earned a bit more attention.
“Earth is older than Velencya,” he reminded after a brief moment. “They used to be at the center of this galaxy, with the Moon. They used to travel. Knights used to come from all over to train at their Academy. I don’t know how they’ve lost everything they had in a thousand years. Maybe their wars. I have books, some of the White Moon were eager to warn me of the horrors of their world.”
He didn’t sound pleased with this truth.
“Earth isn’t ruined, Fangnyl. This isn’t like what happened on Velenia. This was one battle. And it is one they can recover from, and one they will be better for.”
He might have said ‘trust me’, but he didn’t waste his breath.
“I did the research on Chaos, Fangnyl. Of course I looked how it affected them.” He nodded to the ComTech. “There are reports there, you can pull them up. The generators were designed to amplify energy on the field. I suspect a few of them were damaged in combat.” He did not point fingers, did not blame anyone. “Or, were otherwise manipulated. I don’t know. I’ll see if I can find any data logged during use. Either way, yes. I knew there was going to be Chaos on that field. And I knew the Negaverse didn’t come to kill them.”
To Silvera, “We could have taken Caedus back, yes. I could have pulled his starseed on the way home. But Archideus and all its energy would have been untapped. The Council and I don’t disagree that the rebirth of Sailor Velenia is our best chance to restore our world and secure a future. But they are more optimistic that Caedus will be returned to us before we run out of time. The facts don’t support that. I will not speak poorly of Caedus. He has dreamed of some greater outcome that does not involve his own sacrifice. Rebirth was asked of him a very long time ago, and he refused. And we were running out of options back then, too. I couldn’t do it.”
He shook his head. “I couldn’t pull his starseed. I had to ask for help. And they failed. And Caedus was lost for all that time because of it. I couldn't risk that again. Velencya will die in the near future. Earth is not a place we can live. The other worlds cannot host life. I made a decision. I made the best decision I could.”
Lyndin coughed, a violent thing, a wet thing, into his elbow. It was sudden, or maybe he’d just lost the battle to keep it down. It lasted for a few seconds and he kept his lips pressed tightly for all of it. When the spell passed, he swallowed, had another sip of water, and continued in a rougher voice.
“There are very few pieces of Archideus left. We used to harness energy from it. This plan had to happen on Earth if we were going to connect with it. The energy we gathered, the energy they contributed during their fight,” he shrugged. “I had to give more energy than I thought I would. Archideus was a plan, too. Not the Council’s first choice, but something they were prepared for if I could guarantee a success. I promised I would make it work. Archideus’ energy is better off elsewhere. That world could never grow, could never live. It is a battery, and nothing more, and it is time someone made use of it. There are a few more pieces out there still, but even just that one might be enough. We’ll see.”
Finally, to Eso. “If the humans could have helped us, this plan would have changed. That’s why it was so important for everyone to gather as much information as they could. This was not an uninformed decision. You can say you don’t trust me,” he pointed out.
“There are no ‘higher ups’ here. The Council is back on Velencya and have no intention of telling anyone any of this. I shouldn’t be telling you,” he said, but he didn’t stop himself. “You’re Cadets. And young. This is your first mission. I chose you all for a reason, over seasoned Vanguardians. I don’t regret that choice, I only regret that this was your first experience. That,” he scoffed, clearly at himself and not at them, “You had to experience failure. I won’t let that be your legacy. I wanted you here because I trusted you could look at this from a different perspective. I thought you might uncover what I am blind to. You are all still growing, all still developing. You have time. I will die with Velencya,” he said bluntly.
“And if that is to be my fate, so be it. It is an honor to have been able to serve it all my life. But I am not asking you to die. I need you all to live. I need our people to live. I am not afraid to die, and if that would save Velencya now, I would do it. But, it won’t. And I can’t go home without a way to fix it. The Vanguard and the Council will continue researching it there. Until then, I only know that Caedus’ starseed must be repaired. I have to fix what they broke. I will not bind you to me. I’m not asking you to stay on this world if you don’t want to. I’m not asking you to undergo any more hardships. If you want to go home, you will go home. I have that much arranged, and I will send you off with all the resources you will need to return safely. I told you, we aren’t prisoners. You are not, to the Negaverse. And you are not, to me.”
He looked to each of them again. “I will not leave Earth to be devoured and destroyed. Humans are very different from us, but they are not inferior. Velencya is my priority. But I did not come here to enslave Earth. I did not come here to let Chaos reign, or to hand it over to them. Metallia’s been here for a thousand years and cannot overtake the Earth. She cannot chase away the Knights and Senshi in her own front yard. But her being here buys time for them to get themselves together. To grow stronger. Their strength is tied to their worlds. Their worlds can become stronger. They can become stronger. They just need to be able to tap into that. They will have the chance to.”
Another shaky exhale, but he continued to push himself.
“You don’t have to stay to see it. If I have to do this alone, I will. But if you can stay, if you think you can find another option to save Velencya, do it. I brought you with me because I believed in you. All of you. Caedus’ starseed is my last option, I have exhausted all others. I have tried everything I can think of. You are a new generation. You are the best we have to offer. If I cannot save Velencya, it must be you.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 8:10 am
Andreiya
He had never felt so disconnected before. Like, he was here, but--not. His body was here, he knew that. His mind felt like it was floating above him.
He knew Naeria was right next to him, and he didn’t want to let her go. He wanted to hold onto her like a lifeline. He could feel here there.
Everything else was a strange, foggy mix. It made him think of the way Earth’s air got thick just before the rain.
He didn’t like the rain.
He didn’t like any of this.
He didn’t care that he hadn’t been told anything; he knew they were only Cadets. He knew this was their first mission. The Commodore had been on--
Well, he didn’t know. Maybe Vyn would have known the exact count, but it didn’t matter. In all those missions, the Commodore had come back successful. And this time, he’d failed.
Andreiya wondered if it was his fault; he hadn’t protected the generators. He hadn’t attacked anyone. He hadn’t done anything.
And Velencya was dying. And the Commodore was hurt. Commander Cydfae and Velyria were gone. Gavaen and Caerynn were gone. He hadn’t seen most of the carnage, but he was putting together the pieces and the cold reality of everything left him feeling empty and barren.
The Commodore wasn’t giving up. He thought there was a way to save Velencya.
Andreiya didn’t really care about Earth. He hadn’t made friends here. He only cared because it was alive, and the planet was beautiful. The people, he supposed, not so much. He didn’t understand them.
After all of this, he really wasn’t sure that he wanted to.
At some point in time, he’d sat down next to Naeria, but he couldn’t remember moving. He still needed time to process, and all of this was a lot.
He wanted to go home. He wanted to be home, to what he understood, to what was safe.
...He didn’t want to fail, though. He hadn’t worked so hard to fail.
stari_maga
Kyuseisha no Hikari
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Dragonslaying Dragon
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Guine
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Lonely Explorer
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 9:02 am
Cadet Aliez
Vyn was getting the Commodore to at least drink some water, which was good. And he was trying his hardest to not cry while he thought about their fallen, and instead focus on helping those around him to heal.
He nodded when Nessaela approached him, holding up his own Source Stone to show her what he was doing. It was his own technique he’d worked on, but if it helped others, he was happy to share. Healing was not meant to be selfish.
“It’s very similar to how we were all trained, but focus your energy just under the skin instead of the surface. It helps diminish bruising and you’ll be able to detect any internal bleeding easier,” he explained, trying to keep his voice steady so anyone else who wanted to help each other could do so, although not loud enough to sound like he was trying to interrupt or talk over anyone else.
While he wished they would let the Commodore rest, they did have a right to have their voices heard. Even if he didn’t agree with all of them.
“I… have research I’ve been working on. My findings haven’t been reviewed or published yet, but. I was hoping by the time we got back…” It wasn’t as though many Velencians experienced physical trauma, given how peaceful Velencya was. But here on Earth, he had been able to collect more data than he cared for.
He tried focusing his attention on Nessaela and on Naeria. When Andreiya sat down next to Naeria, Aliez reached out to give his knee a gentle squeeze of reassurance.
Daesva was angry, and Aliez’s heart broke to learn of a fourth Vanguardian having been killed. He tried to squeeze his eyes shut to stop the tears, but a few escaped. He drew in an unsteady breath and turned his attention back to his task.
Yddagen was upset too. And Fangnyl. Silvera and Itztenoch and Eso all had something to say as well.
Aliez could only swallow back his emotions as best he could.
Until he heard the Commodore say something that made his heart stop.
He turned to stare at the Commodore in alarm, worried about the way he’d been coughing, but even more so about his admittance that he would die with Velencya.
Not only would they lose their world, lose their entire civilization. Lose their family, their friends, their history. Everything. They would also lose the man who had been trying so hard to do everything imaginable to save them.
tefla
stari_maga
Kyuseisha no Hikari
Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 10:09 am
Cadet Silvera
As he got his answers, to the best of Lyndin's ability, his head nodded slowly. "I see, so we needed them really...in order to get to the root of our problem - the starseed." He assumed they couldn't come up with some technology in order to remove it themselves, as he was sure it was likely tried. Why else resort then to asking for help from the Negaverse. "A lot has changed in those thosand years...and so they really don't know now how special they are...like innocent children." And yet also not. They'd seen war and fought and seen others die. The senshi and knights were still innocent in many things, just as they all were.
"Now that this plan has failed we will still need the help of the Negaverse to reclaim that starseed." So t hey could finish the mission and save their planet. If it was so close to the end of their currant home...this had to be done.
"It upsets me that they didn't hold to their end of things a thousand years ago." And kill their prince so he could be reborn by now.
"I think after tonight we can all say, with better clarity, that we understand the fear of dying....like Caedus must have. But all of us, everyone back home, verse his own singular life." Shaking his head slowly. They'd all potentially be damned to die because of one person. Now they needed a new plan and the quicker the better...he didn't want to continue working with chaos longer than they needed to. The senshi seemed to be willing to take a more friendly route and let Caedus live till he died naturally and that would kill them all in the meantime, at least from the sound of things. They couldn't be worked with...but he didn't want them as enimies as well.
"I don't understand senshi and their homeworlds so much...but I wonder why Earth still lives as it does when it lacks a senshi of it's own - at least as far as we know." If here could survive why were they condemed as they were because they too didn't have one. Would that solve their problem or were they assuming it would?
"Either way though...we need a new plan." Looking at their Commador he nodded his head slowly. "I know we can go home, and I'd like to, but I'm staying. I'll see this through...I also find this planet fascinating." And he very much wanted to experience more here. "We'll get this done." They'd honor their dead when this was all over with, when they'd honored them by finishing the task which had been set before them all. Till then Silvera would try to focus on the mission and not mourn for them - he'd do that afterwards. He couldn't let it cloud him and run his emotions. There would be time for it, he'd make sure of it.
The Space Cauldron
Sleet Tempest Snape
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Sunshine Alouette
Eternal Senshi
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 12:54 pm
Cadet Vyn
Though the events of that night had been shocking, confusing, traumatizing, none of the Commodore’s answers came as a surprise to Vyn. They were all indicative of the man he was, who he had always been. Trust was not a difficult thing to offer the Commodore, when he had a lifetime of service and achievements to prove himself.
Vyn sat on the floor with his legs drawn up, quietly weeping into his knees. When the Commodore coughed, Vyn winced and trembled. A part of him didn’t want to know how dire their situation was; another part of him couldn’t stomach his former ignorance.
Through it all, his focus remained on their home. Velencya was dying. If it could not be saved, then they would lose their home, again. In that room, only the Commodore was old enough to remember Velenia, but Vyn still counted it as a loss for all of them, for it remained a part of their history. It was their past and their future. If they could not revive it, and Velencya’s time ran out, what would their people have?
They lost Commanders that night. They lost friends. They lost their King, though perhaps he had been lost to them all along, if the rebirth of his starseed was their only option. They could lose their home in the not too distant future, and in doing so they would lose their Commodore.
“I’ll stay,” Vyn said, voice weak when he wanted to be strong. “I don’t know what I can do, but… I can’t go home knowing. I can’t—...” He paused to swallow, to clear his throat. “I can’t bear the thought of losing so much only to go home with no options. Nothing we’ve done here, nothing we’ve been through will have meant anything if we don’t see the rest of it through.”
When Vyn lifted his head, his face was wet. Flecks of blood still stained his cheeks. His expression was strained and full of misery.
“You can’t die,” he told the Commodore, “until we’ve made a home on Velenia again.”
The Space Cauldron
Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 1:37 pm
Eso
The words Lyndin spoke hit him in the chest.
He would die with Velencya. And the coughing, the way his breathing was after that cough wasn't great either.
The words felt scolding, the way a father would impatiently explain something to their child they really didn't want to yet. Eso felt extremely embarrassed, but he listened with a quiet expression as he tried not to let the tears fall that gathered in his eyes and already started wetting his eyelashes. He didn't want to break down right now. He didn't want ....
Didn't want Velencya to die, didn't want Lyndin to die.
"You won't be alone," he spoke again, quiet, voice tight with the threat of emotions.
Lyndin believed in them. He... wanted to believe Lyndin knew what he was doing. Wanted to believe in him so badly. This wasn't going to be in vain. If anything, they would learn from this and hopefully do what Lyndin was training them to do. Save Velencya.
He looked to Silvera as he spoke, and Eso would continue to stay quiet. Those words seemed to ring true, everything the man said made sense. Things he hadn't even been thinking about despite it being part of their mission. Eso liked this one's confidence. In all honesty, Eso wished he could be that confident. ...And mean it. He could sound like that, but it was a mask.
Caelyna had stayed silent, absorbing the explanation slowly and with mounting horror. THe Elder's Council knew. The Commanders knew.
Velyria had known. Of course Velyria had known. This was why she had put herself between that woman's attack and the Commodore; because she knew that he had been carrying their only hope.
It devastated her. She wanted there to be another way, another answer. For Caedus--the soft, gentle man who had taught her about caterpillars--to not have to die to save their world. She wanted Lyndin to not need to suffer. She wanted their home to be safe.
What she wanted, most of all, was to roll back time to yesterday, but that was impossible.
She took a deep breath.
"I'll stay," she told Lyndin. She looked at Fae-Fae, next to her, a little pleading, hoping her dearest friend would stay as well. "My sister...Velyria....she died for this. And I won't spit on that sacrifice by running away, hiding at home and hoping that someone else finds an answer."
She took a breath, straightened. Squared her shoulders.
"I'm with you, Commodore. Whatever it takes."
The Space Cauldron
cibarium
Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 4:28 pm
Cadet Lysvi
At least Lyndin and Lysvi seemed to agree on that much -- Laurelite was someone neither of them wanted to work with. That was about as far as that agreement went; perhaps that was why Commodore Lyndin was their commodore and Cadet Lysvi was just another cadet, but Lysvi would have done everything in their power to not work with someone they hated. To find another way. A different way. A way that didn't require working with someone who only seemed to hold malice in their heart.
A way that wouldn't have required murder.
Lysvi heard it over and over again; that their only remaining option was to kill King Caedus. That it was their last option. That the Council of Elders had agreed that it was the last option. That nothing else had presented itself as something useful. That nothing else was going to. And a part of Lysvi believed that was desperation -- this planet had such an extensive history and group of people and things happening, how could they find an answer in six weeks -- but another part of them believed that perhaps the ending was foretold before the beginning. There were some books like that. Had translated a few.
It just seemed too fast to make a final decision.
But again, he was the commodore, and they were the cadet.
Was implying that Caedus wasn't their friend the right thing to do? Lysvi didn't think that was entirely it. They gave Lyndin a look of confusion when he stated that in response to their brother and Daesva, shaking their head. "I think we might have just assumed your words were coming from the same place. Saw the Negaverse as the enemies and acted accordingly." They liked Caedus. Saw no reason to see him as someone they should be hostile to.
He had introduced them to fries. He indulged their babbling about languages. He was sweet, and kind, and--
It was important to Lysvi, specifically, that Lyndin reinforced that they were not there to be enslaved or kept captive. They just hoped that Laurelite saw it advantageous to actually agree. At that moment, they sure felt captive.
The others were volunteering their loyalty and their willingness to stay. Lysvi did not have those words; they wanted to stay, but they worried that their desires were different. Perhaps that was why Lyndin had chosen them. They did want to find another way to save Velencya. Another way that didn't require Caedus' starseed. Another way that didn't require the help of ... her. Another way to adapt. And they wanted to learn more about these humans. They were unique, diverse, inhabiting every part of the planet, speaking more languages than they could count. Perhaps the answer lay in them, and their somehow senshi-less thriving.
Perhaps the answer lay in the other pieces of Archideus. Perhaps the answer had laid in the current piece of Archideus.
Lysvi found a lot of agreement with Silvera's words, even if they didn't quite agree with the concept of working with these people, specifically.
"I agree," they said, their words quiet. "I'm curious to know how this place continues to thrive without an awakened senshi. Perhaps the answer isn't obvious, but," she didn't want to think it could be Metallia. "I want to know what makes this planet tick."
Amasis
Yddagen
The Space Cauldron
Lyndin
Seiana_ZI
Codebreaking Conversationalist
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staripop
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Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2021 4:47 pm
Cadet Naeria
At the demands that they give the Commodore space to rest rather than asking questions, Naeria shrank back, her eyes wide and her back pressed flat against the wall she sat next to.
While she was no longer sure that she trusted the Commodore, she had not meant to bother him, or to make waves so soon.
Lyndin spoke anyway, giving answers, but Naeria kept her head down, staring at her own fingertips. She did not dare to speak again, not yet. All she could do was listen as he spoke of how Velencya was dying, of how he was dying.
Her head was still pulsing too much for her to quite process everything he was saying, but she heard that cough. She shuddered at the sound, and found herself leaning sideways until her shoulder brushed against Andreyia's.
He'd been there for her all evening, and with the increase in bad news, she wasn't quite ready to give up that warmth.
Eventually, Aliez's voice broke through and she looked up at him. "My head," she said, brushing her fingers across her temple, where the man had struck her. "I was able to get some energy out of my own stone, but I'm not as good at this as you."
She glanced down at the crystal that her fingers were curled loosely over.
