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 Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:38 pm
Acubens had grown restless. Her epic lose with Xenotime only made her more manic. She hadn’t slept in days, hadn’t eaten in longer. She was surviving on a steady diet of coffee and energy drinks. She was more than just twitchy, she was three steps away from a mental break. The stress of her new station in life, her schooling which was falling behind because of that stress, and the strained relationships with her family because of her frequent and enduring absences were all taking their toll on the young senshi. The Dark Mirror Court was starting to look better and better. If only because no senshi seemed to be taking an interest in Acubens, willing to take them under their wing and explain to her what was going on. As independent as Acubens was, she still wanted to be part of something, a team or a group. Even just a pair of senshi, she and one other, to rely on. It was better than floundering in a sea of confusion.
The distinct metallic flavor of Chaos made her wince. It permeated her nostrils and wrapped itself around her tongue. What was that? It was stronger than Xenotime and Leto and Remarque. Stronger than them all put together. Acubens smacked her lips, the way someone did then they had just eaten something distasteful. It didn’t get rid of the bitter, steely taste in her mouth.
She broke into a run, violet heels clacking on the pavement in time with her motions. Times like these she was grateful for her training as a runner. It made catching up to opponent and running from things easier. Of course, this could also be a bad thing.
As Acubens rounded the corner the taste of chaos smacked her in the face, making her stop and nearly fall over. The intense shiver that ran down her spine racked her whole body. A youma, far stronger than any she’d even encountered before, oozed between trees in the local park. Like a great, nebulous mass of something, it slipped and slid around, looking for innocent victims. At time it looked like oil, glibly trickling over the ground, and at other it resembled smoke, curling menacingly around trunks of trees and in through bushes, not moving the leaves at all.
And then it turned to her. Its three great eyes slid across its face, locking on her as she stood there, trying to gather her wits about her. Acubens had to instantly regain herself in that moment. It changed course, its breath bubbling in gasping sniffs as it smelled her out. Smelled her star seed. No time to run. No will to, for that matter.
Acubens was itching for a fight.
“Velociraptor Dash,” she cried almost happily in the most twisted way. And off she went, straight for the monster. Die.
Acubens felt the tree before she saw it. Suddenly it was dark and she could feel warm blood sliding down her face, dripping off her chin. What had just happened? She looked back, bleary eyed, and watched as the Youma mended the split through its middle that Acubens had just sped right through.
“That’s not fair,” she muttered.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 9:00 pm
Sailor Europa was following something big, and had been for the last six blocks. She hadn't yet engaged the youma in battle, holding onto some small hope that it might run itself someplace where she could attack it with a geographic advantage. However, the creature had changed behaviors abruptly, and her senses were telling her it had found another Senshi to fight with.
Well then, decided Europa. It seemed the decision to engage had been made for her. Time to play. Leaping down from the roofline, she thrust a hand towards the gelatinous youma and cried out, "Europa deep ocean terror!" Although nothing appeared to happen, the effect on the creature was instantaneous. It recoiled away from the purple-clad senshi, seizing and spasming. The senshi of the deep couldn't imagine what sorts of nightmares it had conjured up.
She rushed over to the younger senshi, giving her a quick visual once-over. The girl was flagging, a look Europa knew well because she'd worn it many times herself. "You okay?" she asked, glancing hesitantly back towards the Youma. Terror ought to hold it for a minute, and then she could sic it with pressure and buy another half a minute.
"That'll hold it for a bit," she added hastily, jerking a thumb over her shoulder towards the Youma. "Sorry, I hope you don't mind the help, I know how some people get about kill-stealing. I'm Sailor Europa. And you are?"
She gave the Youma another quick glance. Whatever it was preoccupied with, it's reaction indicated it was probably downright horrifying. Even if the senshi couldn't see it. Europa wasn't entirely clear what that attack did, to be honest, just that it worked. "I've got no idea what that attack actually does," she confessed.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 9:10 pm
Acubens wiped the blood from her face, succeeding only to smear red across her lips and jaw. The blood she’d wiped away was replaced almost instantly. While she was, admittedly, angry at Europa, it was irrational and she knew that. Acubens detested help in all forms, but she knew she needed it. And she hated herself for it. She covered her gushing nose with one hand and pushed herself up with the other, wanting no longer to be on the ground. With her free hand she dusted herself off and watched the monster essentially losing its s**t.
“Looking at that thing, I’m not sure I want to know.” Acubens was plagued enough by nightmares. There was no reason to elicit an attack that looked like it did the same thing. “I’m Acubens, by the way. Senshi of Velociraptors. And whatever that attack does, it’s more effective than propelling you into trees, that’s for sure.” She winced again as her nose throbbed. “Ow.” She bent her head back to try and stop the bleeding.
“But no, you’re fine. I may not like it… in fact I don’t… but I think I might be a little in over my head. And I also think my nose is broken.” The youma roared behind Europa, slowly coming out of whatever trance she had put it into.
“Ahh…” Acubens muttered, lowered her head and point at the youma. “If you have a plan, I’d suggest you put it into action about now.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 9:27 pm
"Oh, god, you're right," cringed Europa, now that she had a better look at Acubens's messy face. At least the girl appeared to have some cursory knowledge of first aide. "Keep doing that," she ordered, gesturing quickly about pinching the bridge and leaning back. "I'll patch you up in a minute."
Turning back to the youma, Europa gritted her teeth. This ought to be pretty elementary, except the thing didn't seem terribly solid. It was shaking off her terrors, which meant it was time to call in round two - she never liked to attack something unstunned when she still had magic left, and while Europa wanted to avoid using blackout at all costs because it had a tendency to harm more than help, pressure was always a handy standby.
"Stay back, 'kay?" she instructed Acubens, and focused on the blob before her. Extending a stable hand, she declared, "Europa deep ocean pressure!"
The youma curdled inwards, drawing back into itself under the sensation of her attack. This was a skill Europa knew the full extent of, and she knew she had thirty seconds to do as much as she could before it would spring back and she'd have no choice but to call on blackout.
She lofted a kick into the condensed mass, followed by another and another. It was still large, but at least it was solid now. Europa continued her kicking, hoping for progress. However, it was difficult to tell if the youma was weakening, considering it was a more or less featureles blob of inky matter.
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Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 12:06 pm
Acubens wasn’t one to just stand by and wait while someone saved her. While she could sit on her hands if need be, this didn’t seem like the time. Whatever Europa did, it had solidified the creature. Somehow. Acubens didn’t really care how. All that mattered was that now she was useful. And she wasn’t going to waste this opportunity. Acubens adjusted herself, now ignoring the slowly clotting blood in her nose. At least the scent of blood was clogging the nauseating stench of the Youma. It made it easier for Acubens to concentrate. Easier to think.
For one thing, Acubens was not keen on acquiring another injury. She couldn’t just body slam this thing into submission; she would need a weapon. Acubens found said weapon in a long, study, pointed branch, fallen from a nearby tree. She tucked it up under her arm like a lance, bracing herself against the ground for her attack once she was ready and Europa was out of the way.
A clear shot. Acubens didn’t waste any time once the monster turned its fact to her. “Velociraptor Dash!” And with her make shift spear, magic rocketed Acubens forward, towards the inky beast. She slammed against its not solid, yet still somewhat spongy exterior, the branch lodged in one eye. It squealed in irritation and shook its head, trying to loosen the branch. Acubens only roared and pushed it further in, holding on with all that she was as it flung her this way and that. With any luck, this thing had a “brain” back behind its eyes, and Acubens had just punctured it.
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 9:02 pm
Thank god she'd found a senshi with some kind of offensive attack, decided Europa, leaping backwards as Acubens made her charge. She'd done as much as she could, she thought, and now it was time to let the rookie (for her greenness was plain as the nose on her face) figure some things out for herself. The senshi of the deep landed and hung back a few paces, ready to jump back in if need be, but need wasn't.
The youma's newfound solid state proved a boon for the effectiveness of Acuben's attack. Her aim with the stick rang true - the youma seized, and then made to dissolve once more into gas - but instead, its borders fuzzed only for an instant before it crumbled into dust.
Europa had already seized a handful of her trailing tulle ribbons and was ripping them into long strips as she approached the younger senshi once more. "I know a bit of first aid," she explained, longing for the medical kit she'd had at the surrounding. It was a pity that more couldn't be stored in hammerspace than just phones and henshin pens. Europa would have given anything to have somewhere to stash coldpacks and liquid stitches and sterile gauze.
She wadded up the strips of fabric in her hands. "Please," said Europa, "Let me take a look at your nose." It was too late in the season for there to be a fountain running, but there hadn't been any snowfall yet. Cleaning Acubens up was almost entirely out of the question without water, but at the very list she could make sure that the girl's nose looked a lot worse than it actually was.
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:29 pm
As the other senshi came closer to Acubens, she took a moment to watch her. She had wings. Thus far Acubens did not have a good track record with eternals. She winced as she recalled her encounter with Kallichore, making a mental note to be more civil with this senshi. As alone as she was, Acubens needed someone stronger on her side, to tell her what to do, to teach her. A independant as Acubens was, she knew when she was floundering in failure, and right now she was dangerously close to drowning. With this in mind she did as she was told by the older senshi, lifting her face up towards her so that the other might tend to her wounds.
"Sorry," she muttered, allowing Europa to clean her face off. "I wasn't thinking. I don't think before I act sometimes. It get me... rather into trouble." Acubens hated admitting flaws, almost as much as she hated being lied to. Still... this was a part of growing up, she'd learned. She couldn't always blame others for her problems. As much as she'd like to.
"Acubens," she grunted. "I'm Acubens."
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:39 pm
"It's okay," said Europa gently, smiling at the girl. She dropped the blood-soaked tulle and ripped off another strip. Acubens's face was smeared with red, but it wasn't as bad as before. It was, at least, clean enough for her to see that the girl's nose wasn't crooked. Tonight didn't need to end with a trip to the ER. She tore the tulle into smaller strips, rolled them up, and handed them to Acubens.
"Here, plug yourself up." she instructed. "Really, don't be ashamed, I've gotten myself into worse scrapes." Until you'd been concussed and run around spewing state secrets in the middle of a huge battle, you had no right to complain. Until you'd taken a huge gash to the stomach or broken a long bone, you had no right to complain.
"Like I said, I'm Europa," smiled the eternal senshi, always happy to help out a rookie senshi in need. "Your nose should be okay once it stops bleeding. It might bruise really badly, but I don't think you need surgery." In her own mind, she classed herself more as a support character than a fighter - negotiator and pinch healer, not a tank.
"You saw a youma, you attacked it," she shrugged, picking at a frayed thread on her bow. It would go back to normal next time she transformed, but for now she couldn't help but pick at it. "It's like cats and rats. Just instinct. You needn't apologize, you were doing your job. I'd only be mad if you tried to ignore it, or lead it into a pedestrian area."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 12:33 pm
Acubens was grateful for the affirmation of her actions. Normally the older senshi just called her stupid and impetuous, getting into situations she could not handle. As she stuffed the tule up her nostrils to stave off the bleeding, watching Europa carefully. If there was one thing Acubens learned as a senshi thus far, it was that it was hard to trust people on your own side. So far they all seemed to be out to yell at Acubens for being stupid. So far this senshi did not. She carefully wiped the blood left over from her upper lip and moved away from Europa, trying to keep her distance.
"Thank you," Acubens ventured carefully, keeping a safe berth between her and the sronger senshi. She wasn't as stupid as she was when she'd crossing Kallichore. She knew that even the super senshi could crush her at her current power level. She had no intention of being in the same position she had been several weeks before. "Um... now that the monster is finished," she said uncertainly, "I'll just... get out of your hair." There wasn't exactly... fear in her voice. More something akin to caution. And that emotion sat funny with Micah who was so used to barreling into situations head first.
The whole thing was too confusing. She had already elected the path fo the Dark Mirror Court, since they had offered her a family and a team she could rely on. After all, it seemed like no other senshi wanted anything to do with Acubens. Now suddenly one not only saved her hide, but was helping her clean herself up. Sudden changes in situations made Acubens itch with anxiety.
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Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 7:22 pm
Europa gave Acubens a concerned smile, evaluating the girl's physical state beyond her nose. "You're not in my hair," she objected, shaking her head quickly. It was always a pleasure to help an ally out. "I hope I haven't given you the impression that you were." Wracking her brain, Europa tried to figure out what she could have given Acubens that impression. She lived by the rule of being kind to every senshi she encountered - you never knew when you might need the connection.
"You shouldn't keep patrolling tonight," she added, concern leaking out in her tone of voice. "I don't mean any offense, but there's something to be said for knowing when to fold your cards. And when you've already been banged up tonight - you'd be easy pickings."
Frowning slightly, she glanced around the darkened park. Who knew what other sorts of unsavory creatures were lurking out in the dark. "If you don't mind, I'd feel safer if I escorted you at least part of your way home. A senshi alone and wounded this time of night, there's a chance of you being attacked again."
Europa smiled hesitantly at Acubens. "What do you say?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 19, 2012 7:49 pm
If Acubens' head wasn't already spinning, then it was now. So much concern for someone who had made a mess of things. She narrowed her eyes as Europa continued to speak. She took a step back, trying to puzzle out the reasl reason Europa was beign so kind. No one was kind without a reason. She tugged on a braid nervously, biting her lip. Acubens didn't like what she didn't understand. And she didn't understand Europa at that moment. It was almost... friendly. Just a touch ever civil, but not quote fillial.
So confused was she, in fact, that Acubens couldn't even be angry with her own fear. Normally she hated being afraid. But now... there was just too much to puzzle out.
At the offer to take her home Acubens took another step back. Find out where she lived? She knew nothing of this senshi... what if she wasn't what she said? To lead her, even partially, to her family, frightened her more. No. Let her get attacked. It was the price she paid for keeping them all safe.
"No," she stammered, cursing herself for doing so. Speak clearly, be confident. "No you... you're probably busy. You don't need to see me home." She forced a small smile, trying to make it look less like a grimace and failing.
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Posted: Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:05 pm
Europa's smile faltered, lips curving downward and eyebrows knitting closer together in concern. It wouldn't have been any trouble for her, but on second thought she understood where the girl's hesitancy was coming from. Even if she herself tended to play fast and loose with her identity, plenty of other senshi weren't nearly so ready and willing. Especially on first meeting.
Sighing, Europa conceded, "Okay, have it your way."
That didn't make her feel any better about letting the injured scout walk herself home, though. If anything happened to Acubens, Europa would hold it against herself. "You should scan me and get my number," she added, trying to be helpful as she snapped her senshi phone out of thin air. She quickly snapped a shot of the younger girl. "And text me when you get home safe?"
She hoped that wasn't too patronizing.
"Sorry," apologized Europa. "That's totally Mother Hen of me, isn't it?" As a team captain and a pinch medic, she was starting to think it came with the territory.
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Posted: Thu Jan 19, 2012 9:57 pm
"Ah... sure." Acubens wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. This was just too... foreign to Acubens. She was liking it less and less by the moment. So tense was she that she jumped when her photo was snapped. She would have squeaked had she been able to find her voice. Unfortunatley, it had run and hidden somewhere in her chest. She coudl feel it, weeping silently in it's confusion. And she desparatley wanted it back now. All she could force herself to do was make small sounds and form simple sentences.
When Europa finished her scan, Acubens pulled her own phone from that strange place inbetween. She fumbled with it again, but less this time. Less buttons were pushed and les slights went off. She scanned Europa and snapped her phone shut, all but tossing it back into the twilight land it belonged in.
"Yeah I'll... I'll do that." She took another step back, shifting her eyes from one side to the other, looking for... something. "I'll... yeah." Just get out. You don't know anything about her, and like she said, you're injured. Run. Her legs itched with the need to pound the pavement and carry her away from this situation. To carry her home, to bed, and to her family.
And who was she to deny that urge?
Acubens gave Europa one last wave before she took another three steps back. And then she bolted. As fast as her legs would carry her, she ran. Ran and ran, all the way home. Somewhere along the line, she didn't know where, she powered down. It didn't matter. She was Micah again by the time she hit her front steps, never looking back.
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