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 Posted: Sat Sep 26, 2009 5:20 pm
Gunn Killingworth hated the world and all the petty, ugly pieces of offal in it.
The name itself struck fear -- well, initial amusement -- into the hearts of those at Hillworth. No way, they said. No way is that a real name. He picked that. No way. The name was a coincidence: little boys read in what they wanted to read in, which was fear. Little boys liked putting a name to things. Little boys could not deal with the nameless. They put words to the bump going on underneath their beds; it was -- human.
Gunn Killingworth was the Physical Education teacher at Hillworth Grammar School. There was a long, wet, slippery stretch of field all the way to a fence at the other end of the school that you got sent to run -- there and back -- if you did some misdeed bad enough: they called it the Killingworth now. This was contempt too. It was little punishment.
General-King Charonite knew intimately the ways of punishment, pretty much.
He sat in his office (the only staff teacher who regularly -- and was allowed to -- lock the door; the principal too lived in stiff, quivering fear of him) as he looked over not academia, but the newspaper. GIRLS ATTACKED LATE AT NIGHT. One in hospital. Not critical. It was little more interesting than the piece of s**t rag sitting on the other side of his desk, clumsily entitled the Hillworth Sound. He was going to rip Franz St. Germaine's face off; he would make him weep like a baby; he would peel his teeth one by one from his mouth.
"Caine," he said. "I know you're there."
He closed the newspaper and leant back in his chair, dreadlocks neatly tied back behind his neck. Charonite looked calm -- well -- calm for Charonite. "Attend," he said. "Less of your god damned skulking."
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 1:24 pm
"Nothing slips by you unnoticed, General-King", a voice echoed from under a nearby chair. Though the words were hinted with bitterness, it still garnished the respect the man before him deserved. Caine couldn't help but admire Charonite as he was powerful and he got things done. What he detested was being on the bottom rung. Many did not take him seriously because of what he was and while the General-King would never be considered a kindly man, he at least gave Caine purpose. He took pride in his servitude though he did aspire to move on to greater things.
With the grace befitting his race, the feline strutted out from the chair that had served as a temporary respite and quickly turned to pounce on top of it. He circled the metallic surface a few times before giving up. Humans made the most uncomfortable chairs. Some small comfort would have been nice as he was about to share some news that would displease the General-King and the last thing he wanted was to be thrown into -- and perhaps even through -- the nearby wall.
If he had learned one thing, it was that wasting time only made things worse, so he just came out with it. "I regret to inform you that the youma in the basement is dead. The cause of it is unknown at this point in time." Afraid of the smiting he was worried would come, he quickly added, "It's nothing we have ever encountered before, General-King. We do not share your vast knowledge and experiences." At least there was truth in that. Caine couldn't remember anything from before he joined the Negaverse.
Caine could not help but feel like he was letting down the General-King in some way. He had been scouting the city day and night, even avoiding sleep whenever possible and he still had no idea what had got to the youma. If he was going to move up in life, he would need start bringing Charonite some good news.
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 9:34 pm
Charonite crossed his arms on the desk. He looked at Caine for a long time, as though absorbing the info, dark eyes fixed on the feline in front of him as he stared, fathomless.
He didn't respond to the flattery either; just stared. The chairs in his office seemed particularly designed for discomfort, too; the one that Caine had hopped up on was a horrible godforsaken desk chair that belonged in one of the Hillworth classrooms, and was probably meant for one of the schoolboys rather than a guardian cat to sit on. It was cool and hard.
"When you tell me that the youma in the basement is dead, Caine," he said, "I want you to describe to me everything you can about the goddamned body, you got that? If you're telling me that it didn't just keel over and die of its own accord -- and my youma DON'T keel over and die of their own accords -- then you better come up with some forensics."
He tapped his fingers on the table. Really, if there wasn't shouting, it meant his master was being gracious. "Were there signs of a battle," he said. "Report, cat. You're only an inch less useless than the screaming children I have in my ranks right now."
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 5:37 am
If one thing pissed him off it was being referred to as cat, despite the fact it was his obvious form at the moment. He was much more than just a cat. He was a guardian cat. Of course, the General-King wasn't incorrect either. His information had been direct but lacked the necessary details for his master to make a proper assessment. In the end, he resigned himself to the fact that he had indeed, deserved the scolding. It didn't mean he had to like it though.
"I apologize, General-King. There wasn't much left of the youma. Ah, that reminds me," Caine paused briefly to jump back down under the chair to pick up the dark rock with his jaws. He pounced up to set it down on the edge of the General-King's desk before jumping back into the chair.
"However, there were signs of a struggle. The boilers were damaged, as if hit by what I could only guess as tiny balls, though no balls could be found. There was also a puddle of water on the floor. What was left of the youma was found in the middle of that puddle, Sir. There were no signs of struggle outside of the room." What he did not tell Charonite was that something had felt vaguely familiar when he stumbled upon the scene but he couldn't figure out why and he didn't want to be questioned about something that he would not have a real answer for.
What he did know was that he felt extremely filthy after at carrying the damned rock in his mouth. While he waited for the General-King's response, he began to idly lick his paws and wash his face.
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 6:06 pm
Charonite held the rock in his palm; it was crumbly, oily, very much a dead thing. Without changing expression, he closed his fingers over it. A jerk of his arm out to the trash can sent the sooty, crushed remains to their ashy death over the rest of the things in there.
The General-King stood up from his desk and went over to the window, arms laced behind his back. "Water," he said, dully. "Balls. Water."
He whirled around to face the dark-furred cat again, leaning down over his desk, one fist trembling at the side of it. There were still black smears on his fingers from where he had crushed the youma's decayed star-seed. Killingworth took pains to control himself, closed his eyes, and spoke through his teeth. "Caine," he said, "do you know what those signs tell me? They should tell you the same thing, Caine..."
He breathed once through his nose, hard. "We have a goddamned senshi in our goddamned midst!"
The Shitennou straightened up. "This is too far," he said. "Caine. Snap decision. Of all the Lieutenants I have in my ranks, which of them is the least shitty? Pick one."
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Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:20 pm
Of course. That's what was so familiar about the scene. It was almost as if he was trying to deny it, hoping it was something else. Why would he want to protect his enemies? What was wrong with him? Ever since those blasted dreams started, he was beginning to go soft. He would have to stop that before it ruined him. He was part of the Negaverse now. He was a guardian cat to General-King Charonite and that was not something to be taken lightly. He also remembered enough to know that when there was one senshi, others would soon follow. It wasn't good. Extermination would have to start now.
He had been asked a very serious question. He was sure that his master was of a similar state of mind. That this problem would need stopped as quickly and efficiently as possible. Least shitty was about right. Caine didn't have much faith in any of the Lieutenants at the moment. Linarite was driven enough, surely, but you could rarely tear her away from a game and you had to especially watch out if she was in an instance or one of those raids. This called for someone more mature and the idea of being hit with her hammer was equally unappealing. Celestine wasn't a bad choice. He was probably the most intelligent of them. He also believed he would succeed at any task given. Of course believing and doing are different things entirely and if the General-King needed him to approach people, Celestine would flop worse than a fish on dry land. Mnnnn... fish.
Then there was that newest one. What was her name, Nealite? And her gaurdian cat, Grendel. He couldn't help but wrinkle his nose at that. Perhaps it was his territorial nature that made him exceptionally harsh. Then again, perhaps it was the fact that it was the laziest guardian he had ever come across. Practically worthless. He also knew little about Lt. Nealite and wasn't entirely comfortable suggesting someone blindly. He would make it a note to learn more about the woman. She was beautiful, stunningly gorgeous but was she someone Charonite could depend on with an important task? He was uncertain. He raised his head to look squarely into the General-King's eyes. Now was not a time for his sarcasm or stubbornness.
"Lieutenant Celestine," Caine stated surely, having made his decision. "I believe that at the moment, he is the least shitty." Despite his flaws, he was the most intelligent of them. He would also take any assignment seriously and try his best. While all would fear failure and the General-King's wrath, Celestine would take it a step further. He'd consider it a personal let down as well.
Caine was confidant with his decision.
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Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 6:46 pm
So was Charonite, apparently. "Noted," he said. "Since Lieutenant Nealite has her own guardian cur, I'm going to take this to believe that Lieutenant Linarite is the one who needs your help the most at this time and place -- Celestine's under my watch; Linarite's the one in the better position at the moment, Caine. I'm assigning you to work on her in the interim."
Obviously Caine should have named Lieutenant Linarite the one holding the coveted position of 'least shitty' instead.
The General-King leant his weighty elbows on the desk, looking at the guardian cat in front of him directly in the eye. Charonite always met people's eyes, unblinking. "Caine," he said. "Emphasise this: I have been soft on the Negaverse as we stand, as we were -- annhilated. Failure won't be met with death. Failure will, however, be met with my displeasure. My displeasure will mean Lieutenant Linarite will merely have wished for death. I've no time for goddamned children."
He leant back in his chair. "I want a starseed to start," he said. "Begin there. I've no damn time to baww on the basics."
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Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 8:50 pm
Caine groaned inwardly. That was the last one he wanted to team up with. He considered the gamer to be the worst of the group but if Charonite said she wasn't, it was true. There was no debate, no questioning. Simply acceptance. They were his lieutenants after all so he would know them inside and out. He also wouldn't have hired someone completely incompetent so there had to be some promise to Linarite. He was beginning to feel more like a mouse in the paws of a cat and he did not like the irony in that.
"Duly noted, General-King," Caine stated with a quick nod. "I will see that she -- we -- do not fail you." If he had to be hard on her, so be it. If he had to unplug her computer or beat her with her own hammer, he would. He would shape her up to be the best Lieutenant, dammit. He had a kniack for advising and shaping the inexperienced.
"If you have no further need of me, I will teleport to Linarite right away and give her your orders." He would be sure to tell Linarite just how much her a** would be on the line. His would be too if she failed. She could not fail. He would not fail.
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Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2009 2:34 am
"None," said Charonite, but stopped before the cat could disappear in the shimmer of shadow and slight smell of ozone that heralded teleportation -- "Caine."
The General-King was looking away from him now, somewhere over at the wall, hands folded on his lap as he stared. The Shitennou was very still, always, when he was thinking. "Caine," he repeated. "I want that senshi..."
He wiped away the last few blackened crumbs of the youma's heart. "Dead," he said. "I want them dead. Continue investigating. And tell Linarite I damned well don't reward pity."
So that was that.
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