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 Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:36 am
The orders came to her abruptly and suddenly, but she knew better than to deny such orders. From the first day she was 'enlightened' she was told she was to listen to all orders, she was below the ranking systems of the negaverse. Plus when it was an order from a high ranking official, you did not deny them. You just followed them. General Queen Tanzanite was not someone you ignored. She had not told Ever or Zac where she was going, Ever was at work and Zac not around. She figured they would not be upset. She was ordered on this after all, and besides she did not think it would be super bad.. right? Somewhere deep in her gut she knew better, but the feeling never really made it way out.
The senshi stayed in human form while she wandered towards where she was told to go. it was somewhere on the far side of town, so it took her a while to get there. Remembering back to a previous conversation with Fluorite was the reason she chose to stay in human form, she did not want to be giving off a signal to every senshi in the area to come and investigate. Holding up a map she discovered she was close to the location, it was already pretty deserted as she looked around. With a shrug, she stepped forward. When her right foot hit the ground the corrupted senshi was already in powered form. The last of her hair finishing its growth before she took yet another step. It was a good thing that corrupted senshi were stronger, or the weight of her hair alone would have probably sent the girl topping backwards.
Boots clinked on the pavement as the rubble started to appear. "....What happened here?" Green orbs blinked as she looked all around at the destruction. A building had exploded... broken glass and rock were everywhere, and what looked like a fire had been here. Yellow tape that read 'caution' was surrounding the whole area. Why would Ares be in a place like this? With a simple jump Sailor Lyra made her way over the tape and wandered deeper in to the wreckage.
"Hello?" Her voice echo'd.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:37 am
Coming to the old battleground of Operation Rota was never a wise decision. Ares was typically the kind of person who tried to make wise decisions, but lately, her mind and heart had been at war. She had done what needed to be done and accepted the consequences of it, but she had never anticipated such a backlash from within her own ranks. The court that she had created in an attempt to replace the whole the parallels had left in her life were not made of the same stuff. She respected many of them, cared for some, but she found their hesitation to do the necessary unsettling. It was a weakness of the White Moon, she thought. They were the type to hesitate to pull the trigger.
That night, Ares was walking through the ruins of the old warehouse. It was stupid. The police had been keeping a closer eye on this place, and she had been chased out of here more than once by Negaverse agents ordered to track her down. But whenever she felt utterly lost, she tried to come here to atone for the lives that had been lost. It was a loss that every Blood Moon senshi had to be prepared for. It didn't keep guilt and doubt from rattling in Ares' chest.
She had been there, prowling through the rubble, when a strongly chaotic aura flared into existence. Her heart stopped. It wasn't a GQ, and so she relaxed her shoulders just a fraction. Experience told her there was a corrupted eternal senshi here. The presence was close, but sensing auras was not like following a simple path. She felt the aura in the area. She had no idea where the individual actually was.
Rounding one corner, torch firmly in hand, Ares found herself staring at the back of a redheaded girl. She lifted her torch, ready to strike, and then the girl turned her face an inch to the side. Lyra. Something pinched in Ares' stomach. Her battle instinct told her to take the surprise attack while she had it, but her heart couldn't do it.
"Lyra," Ares said coolly, stepping partially out from behind her cover.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:38 am
A familiar prickle in the back of her mind told her someone was close, someone strong enough that she flinched at the feeling, a eternal was close. So close in fact, it felt like it was almost on top of her. Aura reading was not a perfect art, the few times she followed someones aura was like a shot in the dark. Hit and miss. This one though, after her orders, she chose to be wary about. She was not exactly given much information, only a place, time, name, and rank. Which was... Where she is now, the time is now, the name is Sailor Ares, and she is looking for a eternal.
It was feeling like Tanzanite had her facts right, but was this aura Sailor Ares...?
Her name called from behind caused the girl to go stiff, quickly turning around she looked to see who her stalker was, spotting the woman with the torch in her hand. One would think with all the history the two of them had together... all the bloodshed, meetings, conversations, and even sometimes bonding... you'd think Lyra would recognize her old leader. As it stood? The green eyed senshi had no idea who the woman in front of her was.
"...No.... no. Why does everyone keep calling me that. It's Ammolite." Lyra let out a fake sigh, before tilting her head up a little, trying to get a better look at the eternal senshi veiled by the shadows. She was taller, also had red hair... a aura equally as powerful as her own clung to the woman. This was the aura she had felt for certain.
"Are you Ares?"
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:38 am
Gray eyes fixed on the girl who stood before her. She was someone the Blood Moon Court had been on the hunt for ever since the end of Operation Rota. Before she fled to France, Ares searched every inch of the city for a sign of her former teammate: nothing. She even spent three days camped around her house and her dorm at Crystal Academy, but Beth was nowhere to be found. After two weeks, Ares prayed that she was dead. The alternative -- the grim alternative -- was worse than that, at least from where Lyra stood.
Ares could remember the words the girl spoke a month ago. The Captain of the Blood Moon had shared one of her most guarded secrets. When she was corrupt, Ares never felt out of control. She told this to Lyra, but the redhead did not have the same cool head about it. She said she would rather be dead than corrupt. Granted, the White Moon senshi had a much different method of corrupting than the Black Moon.
Unfortunately, this changed nothing. The energy rippling off the familar girl was as dark as the sky above them. It meant one thing. Ares gripped her staff. "I am Ares, yes. You and I used to be very close," she said. "And you are Sailor Lyra, corrupt or not. I don't care what petname your brainwashers gave you. You can call yourself Ammolite, but I will always know the truth." She bent her knees, habitually falling into a stance prepared to dodge.
"They stole your energy. They stole your identity. They stole your memories. And now they are stealing your name," Ares said, a shrug rolling over her shoulders. "So you won't remember that you told me to do what I must now do." Her fingers braced themselves against the side of the torch.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:38 am
Head shaking back and forth vigorously, Lyra kept a smile on her face that did not meet her eyes. Emerald eyes that were once warm, friendly, hopeful... were now a deep vortex seeded in chaos.
"No that is where you are wrong. They gave me a new name to my new life." They had been nothing but kind to her, gentle. They were making sure the red head had everything she needed to guide her on her quest of re learning the world. "I remember nothing of my old life, only that I was brought back... enlightened into the dark kingdom to atone for my sins."
What Ares did not know, was that she would be the first real battle Lyra would have. Sure Lyra fought mucephei, but all the girl really did was cry out her old name and then run. Inside she wondered if she was mentally ready for this. The answer? Yes and no. The chaos within was egging her on. Demanding blood... she wanted to see it flow. At the same time she was frightened. Ares was just as strong as she, and Ares was also senshi. Would she attack a old comrade? The battle wary stance said it all.
Ready or not... "No one insults my family. Nebula scatter! " Ares would soon find that the eye burning effects of the particle attack that once had no effect on her, now did.
Lyra knew better than to just sit there, but being newly corrupted and this being her first true battle she was being cautious. Over thinking, leaving Ares a opening.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:39 am
The magic thrown by Lyra sent Ares stumbling backward. Her eyes burned as if someone was rubbing sandpaper on them. She slammed them shut, expecting a follow-up move, but none came. "I taught you better than that," she choked out. Speaking had been a mistake. Her throat sprang up in irritation. In many ways, Lyra's attack was similar to Ares' own. It didn't make the effects any less bearable.
Her torch was gripped in her hands. Ares tossed it to the side, useless thing. This was personal. This was something she needed to do with her hands. Running blindly, Ares headed for the place where Lyra had once been. She had relied on her hearing before, but it was a half-formed skill.
An arm flashed out, attempting to tangle in the ridiculously long hair so that she could pull Lyra with her outside of the area of effect of the nebula scatter.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:39 am
Lyra would not know if Ares ever had truly taught her better, after all... the senshi did not remember the other read headed woman at all. She was still drawing a blank at the words, at the actions. A clanging noise sounded to her side, causing the corrupted senshi to instinctively causing her to turn her head in that direction. The brief pause and turn of her head was enough time to allow Ares to grip the mass of red hair tightly.
"OW!" the senshi let a wail out, something that was also done before realizing it. Her mouth clamped shut a moment later. She was being pulled out of the effects of her power, Ares's insistent yank on her hair did cause the senshi to move forward a few paces. tears leaked out of the corner of her eyes as something within snapped, something that allowed her to see that Ares was not a friend, and why Tanzanite had asked her to do this.
Not that she trusted any white moon senshi anyways.
Using momentum she allowed herself to be pulled to the skirts of her nebula scatter attack, but instead of pulling against it the senshi pushed herself in the same direction. A attempt to tackle Ares, a attempt to push her to the ground and possibly claw at the other woman. Lyra no longer had gloves on her exposed hands, so her fingernails did not have cloth shielding them any longer. They were just normal human nails, not claws, but if they connected she hoped they would do something.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 7:40 am
The unexpected push from Lyra set Ares off-balance. One booted heel scuffed over the ground. She might've regained her balance, but the following strike sent her tumbling to the ground. Lyra's nail bit into her bare flesh where her flashing hands struck. Ares flipped onto her back and kicked both legs outward. The movement was like wrestling a sibling, if only Ares had ever had one.
When Ares finally broke free, she rolled backwards and flipped back to her feet. Lyra wasn't the only one with a party trick. "Ares Smothering Blast!" she shouted. Twin columns of smoke erupted from her wrist, aimed for where Lyra lay on the ground. The blasts converged and shot upward, forming a churning column of inky-black smoke that assaulted the eyes and throat and deprived the brain of oxygen.
Gray eyes flashed across the field, looking for a weapon to deal a killing blow. There was a gnarled piece of rebar. Ares picked it up, tested the heft of it in her hand. "You're an empty doll now," she hissed. "You can't withstand corruption -- and I swore to you I'd kill you if this happened. I'd apologize to Lyra, but I know that girl is dead." A curse of the White Moon -- they corrupted so easily, she thought. Not like her. No, no, never like her.
Ares raised the pipe and made to swing.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 12:18 pm
The feeling was... indescribable.
Far above them, Tanzanite sat perched on the corner of a rooftop like some ever watchful gargoyle, her silver eyes half-lidded. Had Ares not been fighting for her life in the streets below, she likely would have felt the energy signature. As it were, she went toe-to-toe with Lyra as the Youma Queen watched, too distracted to notice that distinct aura.
It was like watching the pieces of a puzzle falling into place, laying the foundation for a world that a woman like Ares could not even begin to imagine. It was a world free of senshi, free of poverty, free of the corrupt and the greedy. The oppression of the White Moon would finally be brought to a swift and violent end, and there would be no place left for them to hide. An Earth without suffering would come to exist when finally guided by Metallia's hand. With every punch, every kick, every exchange of hate and pain that flew between the two, Tanzanite could see that world slowly forming.
And it was beautiful.
There had never been much of a chance of Lyra winning; Tanzanite had known that much from the start. Without the memories of her senshi life and the experience that went with it, standing against the now Eternal Ares would predictably prove too much. She'd known, and she'd counted on it. There could be no better way to prove to Lyra, once and for all, the true nature of her former teammates. Of her former captain. No better way to show Ares the true power of the Negaverse. Ares' bloodlust and heartlessness shone in her eyes, and for a brief moment Tanzanite felt that fiery, kindred spirit.
Too bad she would someday have to snuff it out.
By the time the pipe came down, a mass of feathers and scales stood squarely between the Blood Moon Captain and her prey. The pipe hit hard on the scaled claws of one of those secondary hands, but Ares might as well have been swinging against a brick building for all the damage it seemed to do. The wing snatched for the pipe and twisted with surprising strength, wrenching it from the woman's grasp and tossing it aside in the same smooth motion. A sharp clang rang out as it collided with a chunk of rubble.
Tanzanite's face came into view as the wings parted; a pale mask emerging through a curtain of tattered feathers. The monstrous arm that had begun her transformation shot out, claws wrapping around Ares' neck. Dozens of sharp teeth pressed against her dark skin, surprisingly gentle and restrained. She could kick and pull and thrash all she wanted, but the grip was vicelike. The Jaws of Life could not have pried Tanzanite's hand off of Ares throat as the General-Queen slowly pulled her closer. Her silver eyes were wide, almost childlike in their sense of wonder. There was no real joy there, nor any pity. They were the eyes od For she held the life of Sailor Ares, Eternal Senshi of Smoke, Captain of the Blood Moon Courst in the palm of her hand. She could feel the woman's heartbeat through her fingertips, and a strange awe and joy gripped the woman at the mere idea of letting those teeth clamp down.
Tanzanite briefly imagined the sound it would make, and a shiver ran down her spine. But it would be far too fast. Far too easy. No, Sailor Ares deserved a better death. She deserved a brutal and painful death. Sailor Ares deserved to suffer unlike Tanzanite had ever made anyone suffer.
For a moment, Tanzanite simply held her, their faces inches apart. Those teeth pressed in, enough to nearly break the skin, and Tanzanite leaned her forehead in to rest against that of her captive. The mass of purple hair tangled and snagged on the two sets of horns that spiraled back from her temples, framing her soft smile with a curtain of deep purple.
Two words, spoken in a soft sigh: “Not yet.,” before as twist of her arm sent Ares soaring back towards the pile of rubble.
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 10:39 pm
The sensation of a General Queen's aura in her vicinity did not go unnoticed by the Eternal Senshi of Smoke. She felt it as surely as she felt the sting of Lyra's magical attack still burning in her eyes. There was simply nothing she could do about it, not with a corrupted senshi standing in front of her waiting to kill her. There was always someone waiting to kill her. The inky black, unmistakably chaotic aura of a General Queen seemed to chase her around the city. Why should tonight be any different?
When Tanzanite descended from above, Ares felt her stomach drop. In all of the nights she had spent sensing the strong aura of a General Queen, this was the first time one had actually approached her. The metal pipe she wielded was useless, and when the sickly claws of Tanzanite's warped hand lashed out, Ares herself became useless. She struggled briefly, relenting when she realized the futility of it. Better to seek out another strategy than encourage Tanzanite to kill her then and there.
The tips of her boots dragged across the gravel as she was brought closer. An idiot would have snapped at Tanzanite then -- if they had been able to speak. Ares just held her eye contact, refused to look away. If this was to be her death, then she would not go out crying for mercy or wincing against the pain. The glare was heated, but Tanzanite held all the power. It was the worst feeling in the universe to be so weak beside her. There was an odd intimacy in the closeness between them. It was lost on the Senshi of Smoke. Her thoughts were too focused on mortality.
Then Ares was sailing through the air, colliding hard against a pile of rubble. Her hands gripped the ground, and she stumbled to her feet as quickly as she could, anticipating a return blow. A few long seconds punctuated those moments it took her to realize that there had been no follow-up. No blow had been aligned moments after the toss to end her life. Ares had no idea what Tanzanite was playing at, but she would never spit in the face of survival. Without a single glance at Lyra or a word of anger, the Captain of the Blood Moon Court turned on her heels and fell into a dead sprint, running until her legs burned, running away from the monster standing amongst the rubble.
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Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 7:58 am
It all happened so quickly.
One moment she felt the two of them falling to the ground, and the next she felt a dose of her own medicine. If she had to say, smoke attacks? They really do suck. She so far, in this new life, has never been on the receiving end of one of them. They clogged her lungs, stung her eyes, and made her gasp for breath. A slow burning sensation that if she remained there, would have done long term damage to the corrupted senshi. Not waiting for an invitation she rolled out from under the smoke column. Eyes watering she gasped for air, not looking too pleased with herself nor happy with her current condition. Emerald orbs shooting up, she would have been a sitting duck if Ares had time to bring the pole down... if not for a flash of feathers and scales.
Unlike Ares, Lyra pretty much had no clue Tanzanite was in the general area. She still was having issues with Auras, not perfecting the art of Aura tracking... if you could even hone such a skill. She doubted it. Plus, Lyra had her eyes on the prize. She was so focused on killing Ares, orders given to her by the very woman standing before her. Eyes wide the senshi watched in Awe as she tossed the red haired woman away almost like a rag doll. Using her knee as leverage she pushed herself to her feet, wobbling a little as her brain attempted to regain the oxygen lost from being in the smoke attack.
Moving towards her General Queen, Lyra stood near her... watching curiously as Ares fled the scene. A instinct to chase caused her to start to take a step forward, only to pause and move back. She stood close, but only a arms length away from the winged woman. Instinctively the shorter girl also did not stand next to tanz, but a step behind her.
"Should we chase her?" Lyra did not feel as if she DID much of anything in this fight. Oh sure.. she felt the womans skin under her fingernails, but that was not much of an attack. If not for Tanzanite being there the senshi would have painted the floor red... with more than just her hair. Biting her lip she looked down and away, shifting uncomfortably.
"I failed."
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Posted: Thu May 26, 2011 12:19 pm
Tanzanite watched as Ares ran, her smile not once fading as the skirted figure became little more than a silhouette, and finally faded into the labyrinthine streets of that old, abandoned part of the city. Ares was bold, but she was at least smart enough not to press her luck. Tanzanite had considered Ares a great many things, but a fool had never been one of them. For a short while Tanzanite remained silent, her eyes focused on the empty space where Ares had previously stood. When finally she returned her gaze to Lyra, it held emotion that it would forever lack when regarding Ares. There was sympathy in those gray eyes as Tanzanite wrapped her human arm gently around the senshi's shoulders.
Pride was clear in her voice as she spoke: “You did not fail, Lyra,” Tanzanite said softly, as though she knew the feeling all too well. The Negaverse was not an easy group to be a part of. It was demanding and at times those demands were impossible to meet. They were pushed far beyond what they should be capable, and those who did not somehow rise to the occasion were often the first to fall.
She had given Zinkenite a warning once that until Lyra proved herself, she would always remember her as the Blood Moon senshi who carried Dioptase in to her death. That girl still existed in Tanzanite's mind, but she was being replaced. Replaced with someone vastly more deserving of the Negaverse's power and attention. Tanzanite's claws gently combed through Lyra's long hair.
“You needed to see what Ares had to show before you could understand why we do what we must. Why we have no choice but to eliminate them. Defeat does not mean failure. You might not have killed her, but I assure you,” Tanzanite smiled, and her eyes lingered briefly on the place where Ares had stood moment ago, “You've done more damage to Sailor Ares than I ever could.”
Well, short of ripping her eyes out, which Tanzanite also would have accepted as victory.
“Come on, let's go home. I'm sure General Zinkenite would like to know you're safe.”
Together, with only the scent of ozone left to mark their teleportation, they left that haunted place behind.
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