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Transcended Eternal Scylla, Senshi of The Kraken

"We'll talk when they're done," she promised Nephthys, "We can go to Waffle House or a pancake place and get some snacks and chat." Myrrha received a bump in return, a pleased smile alight on the senshi of the Kraken's face. "You can join us if you want, Puck; I can talk to all of you at once."

Scylla listened attentively to what Caedus and this new alien, this... Lyndin had to say.

His Highness mentioned there were a lot of you. Scylla gave her friend the side eye. She'd had some suspicions, but Caedus always had been the deflecting sort. Well. She'd talk to him later about that bit.

There were a lot more important things to consider. And not how apparently attractive these weird purple aliens were. What would Zora call them? Beeshees?

A weapon capable of tearing into the Rift... we need immense power... borrow some from Earth.... no one has to get hurt... stable connection to this comet... a few weeks... harness its resources... some who believe this ancient comet houses magical properties... we can siphon the energy out of it. Its core is pure, compressed energy... we are a part of your universe, and your planet is sick. You can’t fix this on your own. If you won’t help us, I ask that you give us the space to do what we need... If she can be destroyed, there is a possibility that the Chaos she has implanted in her army will be destroyed with her. In one single action, we might be able to destroy all of her ties to them. It would mean no more fighting. And, it would mean they are saved.

"Commander Lyndin," Scylla began, "This weapon, I would assume, would have a failsafe so that it couldn't be harnessed to Metallia's purposes if something goes wrong?" She blew out a blast of air. "Pure compressed energy would be something the Negaverse could use. Also, this comet could have a senshi, couldn't it? Does it have a name?"

Her lips pursed thoughtfully. "Giving energy to help isn't something we haven't done before, as Caedus knows." her smile to her alien friend was warm. "And I agree- so far we haven't been able to fix it on our own. But I have some questions and concerns, and I'm sure everyone else here does as well. This sounds almost too good to be true."


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Aogashima, Page of Cosmos + Hakodate, Page of Polaris

Aogashima didn't normally go out on 'patrols' with her sister, though that had more to do with her sister being a huge stick in the mud more than anything else. Did Hakodate have any real hobbies other than studying and painting? Sometimes the Cosmos page really wondered: it really did seem like her older sister had nothing better to do- along with constantly nagging Aogashima to study more. Maybe also, in a way of speaking, chasing down Mariel whenever she skipped classes... though Aogashima honestly saw nothing wrong with wanting a break from school every now and then. She loved attending Siegfeld, but Mariel and Morie were attending uni, and from what she could see from the amount of work Morie was always doing, it seemed... not so worth it.

Actually, Morie didn't really ever power up that much, except for when she needed to get away from the chaos of the Shimotsuki household, or, as Aogashima was familiar with hearing her say, because she 'had a headache from all the singing'. Tonight was a rare occurance, though, because Hakodate had been meaning to visit her wonder again, to the library of Hakodate, to attempt to do some deciphering of some of the books there, and Aogashima... was going to go perform somewhere private, as usual. The two sisters had felt a pull, though, calling them to somewhere other than their intended destinations, and while Hakodate was understandably a bit reluctant to go following after something that they didn't know the source of, Aogashima was less so, and had practically sprinted off in the direction of the pull, leaving Hakodate to have to take off after her, lest her little sister end up running straight into a trap.

A magical dome awaited them at their destination, or perhaps 'magical' wasn't the right word as much as 'mysterious', along with a large gathering of other Order-aligned powered individuals, cats, senshi, and knights alike. Aogashima was sad to see that Dinara was not among the gathered, or at least she couldn't see her fellow Cosmos page in the sea of people, but her sadness was short-lived, as within the dome was a magical barrier, and standing in front of that barrier... was aliens!

"Sis, sis, do you see that!?" Aogashima excitedly asked, poking her sister, trying to get her attention, "Who do you think those two are?"

Hakodate furrowed her brow, not entirely certain of what to make of this. Neither sibling had met Caedus before or knew of his existence, so the Polaris page felt suspicious at best, even after the two aliens began to speak. So they claimed to have a weapon that was capable of destroying Metallia, to rid Earth of the Negaverse once and for all, to supposedly, she theorized, purify any agents of Chaos that currently swore allegiance to the Dark Queen. Could that really be possible, though? Hakodate couldn't particularly ascertain...

Aogashima hummed a little tune as she listened to the aliens speak of their plans, completely unaware as to her sister's doubts as to their mission. As someone who consumed a lot of idol-related media, including some that took place in outer space, it didn't seem all too far-fetched to her that they could build a Nega-destroying weapon out of a magical comet, or however it was that it was supposed to work out. It was a little hard to follow, with as much talking was going on, voices blending together, but she thought she understood the basics? Well, Hakodate was the smart sister, so if she needed a refresher, she could ask her, as much as she disliked sitting through her big sis's lectures.

She was curious, though, about the aliens themselves, and not just their plan to take out the Negaverse. Obviously Aogashima herself was the reincarnation of someone from another world in the far-off distant past- that much she had gleaned from what little past life memories she had gotten so far. But these two... Caedus and Lyndin... this meant that there was life on other worlds still, right? If so, could that mean... space idols were confirmed???

Puck, Eternal Senshi of the Woods

Puck grinned at Scylla. "I'd love to come. Waffles and conversation -- hard combination to beat. And we can have that chat we were talking about, too."

He listened to Caedus and the Commodore finally explain the reason they were here, and nodded as Scylla spoke in response; he had some questions and concerns himself. The idea of raising so much energy and firing it directly into the Rift didn't sound too sane to him -- that was just what Metallia and her brood were hunting, wasn't it? And if this weapon were to actually fall somehow into the hands of the Negaverse...

A rainbow flash out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and he whipped his head around and scanned the crowd. He finally spotted her, approaching the hill. "Eros!" he called with a smile. Giving Scylla's arm a quick squeeze, he left the small group and made his way down the hill toward his friend. "Eros!" he said again as he caught up with her, picking her up in his arms and giving her a tight hug.

"It was hard to resist the call to come here, wasn't it, love?" he grinned happily, setting her back down on her feet. "It's that alien bloke from years ago, Caedus. He and his mates say they have something that could end this stupid ******** war once and for good. I'm not sure I believe them or not..."

Læraðr, Page of Neptune

Læraðr nodded as Hyperborea explained, staying close to her. He hadn't found many friends among the Order yet, too green to have had the chance to meet many people in the first place.

"It's so cool to meet an actual alien," he whispered in awe, eyes huge as he looked Caedus over.

But he balked at the plan to just—just drop a tactical nuke on the Negaverse? No! Maybe some of them were villains, but he was sure many of them were just misguided and needed help.

"Yeah!" he enthused as Hyperborea said the thing about narrowing to the source, "That sounds best, to me. We need to not just kill a bunch of people when we can give them the option of leaving."

Transcendent Eternal Encke, Senshi of Plasma

The apologies for loudness were met with a lack of concern from Encke, who lifted his hand and shook his head. His husband was related to Greeks. No one could quite do loud like people of the Mediterranean, he had long since decided-- though Realta's ears wouldn't be too harmed by it, right? He knew from Viatrix and Luz that animals tended to be a bit more sensitive to loud noises--

... Wow.

Encke found himself floored by the presence--Lyndin--that had stepped out of the wall, somewhere between intimidated, surprised, and just a bit admiring. He seemed intimidating but friendly, and he was a friend of Caedus', so he assumed easily that this could be a friend of theirs, too. Wanted him to be a friend of theirs, too, especially with what promises he and the apparent Highness Caedus spoke of.

Borrowing some power from Earth, nothing that they would miss, seemed acceptable to Encke to end the threat of Metallia, which was a permanent drain on Earth's power, at its source. The concept that this could be over, that there could be a light at the end of the tunnel, that no one would ever try to steal starseeds or turn people into youma - a thought that left him shuddering as he shunted down the memories - or torment the civilians through her power again was honestly almost too much to bear, and he couldn't help the almost immediate response of, "If this long fight could finally end, I think everyone would be better off."

Perhaps it was something of his old impulsiveness. Perhaps it was because of the intense relief that followed.

No more. Wouldn't have to worry about who of his friends and family might be next anymore. Wouldn't have to worry--

Scylla's words did bear some concern. He was, himself, the senshi of a comet -- Encke's Comet, in particular, and he already knew this comet couldn't be the one they were speaking of because it wasn't due to come back near Earth for at least a couple more years, due for a pass in 2023 -- and could they make sure she didn't get the weapon in her hands? The last thing they needed was for Metallia to become a planet destroyer in her own right--

The question of if the comet had a name, a senshi, did draw a nod of agreement.

Andronicus, though, drew some mild ire. He didn't necessarily disagree that there was reason to ask questions, to formulate concerns, and make sure they were addressed, but the way she tightened her grip on her staff, the way she let her magic flare up--

"To imply that there will be new evil to take evil's place is an awfully pessimistic view of things," he replied, crossing his arms under his chest. Encke's stance became defensive. "If we can go directly to the source, if we can rid this planet of Metallia's deep horrible soul-destroying stink and the way it infests, it's a risk worth taking. This war of hers has gone on for too long, killed and harmed far too many people."

He glanced toward Caedus and his tall friend.

"He's only taken from us that we've given to him before. I have no reason to believe his people would take from us and harm us in the way the Negaverse does selfishly or and without approval."

He did have questions about the comet, but Scylla had already asked that question. He would wait for a response.

Bifrost, Transcendant Knight of Chronos

Was it normal to miss the feeling of the call, the pull the directed her steps towards the outside of town? Was it normal to see the barrier and step through and suddenly feel like she was home again? Even when her heckles rose and she suddenly felt on edge because there were so many of them in one place?

That even though she scanned the crowd and saw none of the Chronos knights among the crowd, she still felt... hopeful? That she still felt like this was correct and right and that she'd spent too long away? That perhaps the past was in the past, and it was time to move forward?

The Knight of Chronos took a moment to orient herself. Both Ganymede and Castor were here in their Royal forms, several old guard senshi and knights were happily chatting away, and there were so many faces she didn't recognize. So many new knights and senshi and guardian cats that had awoken while she'd been away. Her Court may be small and lost to the four winds, but Order as a whole was thriving.

It made her smile, really smile.

There was hope for them yet.

Bifrost kept to the edge of the group for the most part, still unsure if anyone would even remember her much less want to talk to her, until Caedus revealed his Commander. He had said he'd return someday, though she'd not actually expected him to bring an army this time. As people started to air their concerns - or threats as it may be - she quietly weaved through the crowd.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Commander Lyndin, and a pleasure to see you healthy and whole Caedus," she said to both, bowing. Bifrost was not quite the same knight as before, but at the same time she was. Hopeful, a tad cynical now, but wholely devoted to fighting Chaos. Even if she'd not fought a lot of Chaos in recent years.

Transcendent Squire Pendour

"Oh," said Pendour, with an amount of nonchalance that could only come from spending hours and hours on forums and various online support groups for people with vision and eye loss. "Okay. You could send a description instead, then?"

It turned out there wasn't time to get much farther in that conversation before a familiar blindfolded senshi came to join their little group. Pendour's face lit up, and she waved. "Or maybe she can just observe for herself. Hi, Metis." Her smile was bright, although it flickered somewhat as the Eternal mentioned a direct attack on the Negaverse.

It flickered farther as the Caedus himself began to talk. He spoke of treachery, of violence, of the original betrayal of the Negaverse. He'd been badly hurt by them, it seemed. Then, like so many of the others, he'd gotten all caught up in the cycle of vengeance. He'd lashed out.

Pendour understood. It did not mean she approved.

Her stomach was twisting in on itself at the thought of his words, at the thought that he'd brought more people, some kind of elite force. It twisted tighter when the taller man came through the barrier, the Commodore who spoke like a politician. He talked of weapons, of energy, and Pendour was expecting him to start a propaganda filled speech about how they should start a true military campaign against the Negaverse at any moment.

Instead, he said that they could save everyone. Pendour's jaw dropped. Her eyes lit.

Rooting out the source of the Chaos without hurting any people? That was the sort of final, war-ending answer that she'd been dreaming of for years.

Others brought up concerns, and valid ones. The twisting in her stomach came back, just a little, but she didn't think that there was any reason for people to be immediately concerned, or at each other's throats, not before the full scale of the information was even out.

"You've got my attention," she called out, when there was a short lull in the voices. "I want to free the Earth and it's people from Metallia's grasp so, so badly." There were times when she hid her face, but this was not one of them. She showed herself to the outsiders as who she truly was; one eyed, a battle-scarred, broken thing, and yet someone who spoke softly. "But solutions like what you're offering, they always come with a price, don't they? What will this cost? Is it human life?" She blinked, tilting her head just a little. "I don't want to assume, or make accusations. I'm asking. What will the scale of this weapon be? Will it just target Metallia, or will it be all of the Negaverse's realm, or is there a chance it could break out beyond that?"

Her eyes flicked to Encke, and then back to Caedus. "And who's comet, like the others are saying? If it's a senshi's, if it's the source of someone's power," her lips pressed together. She thought of Encke's Comet and how proud her friend was of it, the way each and every building there crackled with energy. "That's a lot to take without their consent."

Hyperborea’s analogy was visibly lost on Caedus, who spent too long trying to understand why she was throwing babies. Lyndin was less readable, especially given some of the other outbursts. He listened patiently and seemed to be giving a few people the chance to speak before addressing their concerns. He had growing concern with some of the questions, and finally, when Andronicus spoke, it seemed as if he could no longer delay.

“I think there’s already been some misconceptions. I apologize if my understanding of the language is a bit rudimentary. Let me try to clarify.”

He looked to Hyperborea, and Læraðr, and Pendour after that.

“It seems we feel the same way on the matter. I don’t want any loss of life. I’m not here for bloodshed. I’m here to help. And, I hope in doing so, we will earn Earth’s favor to help us as well.”

Caedus nodded quickly, far more eager to clarify that they were not there to hurt Earth. “I am fond of this world,” he said defensively, perhaps almost as if hurt by the implication of Andronicus’ words, or the harshness of Lourdes’. “I do not want harm on this city, or this world, or the people in it. You were kind to me when I needed help.” Most of them, anyway. “I wish for Earth to be happy and healthy and whole. I want you to be free of danger. I would not do something to endanger you. I miscalculated when I opened that portal. Commodore Lyndin is a professional. He knows what he is doing. I trust him with my life. He has kept Velencya safe in all the years I have been gone. They are thriving. We have talked of Earth, and how we can keep this universe safer.”

Lyndin put his hand on Caedus’ shoulder, as if to remind him to control himself. There was a fire in his eyes, but it was passionate, not hateful; he was far more reserved than Caedus.

“Destroying Earth would be wasteful. You have to understand what a rarity this planet is. I don’t know how you’ve avoided detection for so long, or how you’ve managed to survive when other worlds fail, but you must know that I hold nothing but respect for this world. It would be criminal to destroy it. I don’t want anything to happen to Earth. We want to restore our own homeworld. When we lost it, we had to build a new one. From scraps. A synthetic world, to keep us safe until we could strengthen our forces. Until we could reclaim our own world. And yet, in all the time it took us to prepare, our world has died. It is a shell of what it once was. It has no core, no life, to beat inside of it. I am told you cannot leave this planet?”

He didn’t wait for an answer. “So I don’t know how much of this universe you’ve explored, if any of it.” He shook his head. “Something about your planet is different from the others. Something has kept you alive and flourishing and alive. We only want answers. We have pushed our luck for so long now that I expect every day that we will find ourselves with some critical failure. Or that we will drift into some dark corner of the universe and be at the mercy of some spiteful force. We want the stability of a real, living world. We want to survive. I will do everything in my power to protect my people and give them a future. And it seems, destiny has chosen that our worlds should align. I think we can help each other.”

Caedus had exhaled; he was standing straight and during Lyndin’s words, he had managed to calm himself a bit. His brows were furrowed but he was no less passionate about things, even if he was trying to reel himself in.

That said, Lyndin looked to Scylla. “This weapon cannot fall into the wrong hands. You don’t have the technology to command it. It is programmed to only one location--the comet we've been tracking. There is no senshi to protect it, it has no name. No life. The comet itself is a broken piece of an older world, Archideus. The moon was demolished when it collided with another. This comet is no more than debris, I’m afraid. Frozen in the depths of space. I can get you a data analysis of its composition if that would reassure you?” he proposed, but there was no hint of deception when he spoke.

While Alpha Leporis’ enthusiasm was not lost on either Caedus or Lyndin, they both seemed a bit too serious to join in her elation.

“Are you in contact with any entity from space or beyond?” Lyndin asked, eyes once more on Andronicus. “I am not familiar with any you would want to contact. I don’t know what I can do to assure you, but if you have questions, I will answer to the best of my ability. If you are worried about our energy collection, let me be the first to reassure you that this is a completely standard procedure back home. We don’t sleep much. Our synthetic world gives us somewhere to live but it severely lacks the comforts of home. The hum of energy is inescapable, and adjusting trajectory can be rather distracting. When you're constantly moving, rest doesn't always come easy. Everyone has a crystal to help them sleep,” he shrugged. “We’ve brought our Source Stones--that is, refined crystals, capable of drawing out energy quickly and painlessly. It can’t hurt anyone, it only borrows energy. It takes what can be easily recovered. I would demonstrate on myself, if need be.”

While Caedus had been grateful to have Encke’s support, and while Bifrost had been pleasant, he still seemed as though he wouldn’t be comfortable until they could reassure everyone.

Lyndin continued, "That is the cost. Volunteered energy, gathered over the next few weeks. Enough time to comfortably replenish energy sources. I understand that you've all had to sacrifice much to gain what you have now. We, too, have sacrificed. And I hope that what we have already lost is enough for all of us. I ask for nothing you cannot replace. We don't need more than borrowed energy. A temporary sacrifice--to end this conflict. You are all willing to put your lives on the line to fight. We are asking for far less than that which you already freely give. And I am promising that in return, when this is over, Earth will have access to whatever resources we can provide. To help you keep this world safe. To help you reclaim your own worlds, the same as we want for ourselves."