Lucifer Force
The evening air was pierced by a shrill shriek of half-defiance and half-pure terror.
“BAD YOUMA-MONSTER-THING! BAD! BAD STOP THAT!”
One Sutai of something-or-other was trapped atop a parked SUV of some make or model. She wasn’t sure. It looked rather fancy with its shiny wheels and fresh paint job but really, it was life or death and surely they wouldn’t mind the fact that she was saving lives, right? Her heels shouldn’t cause too much paint damage, right? But the telescope being bashed against the side of the car was another story entirely. There was a short, squat and very very wide spider-like youma crawling around beneath the vehicle, scaring the ever-living daylights out of the page, who had scrambled up onto the car for safety. The youma couldn’t get a good grip on anything to climb up and grab the page because a telescope came down on it as soon as it tried to lift a leg.
It was like the Orkin Man’s game of whack-a-mole.
Sutai’s aim wasn’t the best so she made up for it in the number of swings she used. Six or seven per actual hit wasn’t a terrible ratio in her mind. She was zealous for certain but the water-spider youma thing was scaring her senseless. She imagined Caelian or Camelot saying how disappointed they were in her, which made tears come to her eyes. She sniffed loudly but her voice was garbled. “Noooo, stop it! Please! Mr. Monster you hafta stoooop!”
“BAD YOUMA-MONSTER-THING! BAD! BAD STOP THAT!”
One Sutai of something-or-other was trapped atop a parked SUV of some make or model. She wasn’t sure. It looked rather fancy with its shiny wheels and fresh paint job but really, it was life or death and surely they wouldn’t mind the fact that she was saving lives, right? Her heels shouldn’t cause too much paint damage, right? But the telescope being bashed against the side of the car was another story entirely. There was a short, squat and very very wide spider-like youma crawling around beneath the vehicle, scaring the ever-living daylights out of the page, who had scrambled up onto the car for safety. The youma couldn’t get a good grip on anything to climb up and grab the page because a telescope came down on it as soon as it tried to lift a leg.
It was like the Orkin Man’s game of whack-a-mole.
Sutai’s aim wasn’t the best so she made up for it in the number of swings she used. Six or seven per actual hit wasn’t a terrible ratio in her mind. She was zealous for certain but the water-spider youma thing was scaring her senseless. She imagined Caelian or Camelot saying how disappointed they were in her, which made tears come to her eyes. She sniffed loudly but her voice was garbled. “Noooo, stop it! Please! Mr. Monster you hafta stoooop!”
Silverah
Relatively weak order energy signature? Check. Screams of utter terror? Check. Babylon pf Mercury didn’t need any more evidence than that to know that there was someone nearby who would appreciate his help. Fur cape billowing behind him, the knight ran towards the sound, lantern extended to light his way. He couldn’t tell whether the girl atop the SUV was a senshi or a knight (her uniform sort of walked the border), but either way he was going to help her.
“Never fear!” he boasted, leaping at the spider-youma. “Babylon’s here!” With a swing of his spiked lantern, he knocked the creature skittering across the street. Putting some distance between himself and the youma bought him some time. “Milady, you may want to get down off the roof and prepare for round two.”
The youma flipped itself over and began to make its way back towards them, walking unevenly on only seven of its eight legs. Babylon grasped the handle of his lantern tighter, readying another swing. “I’m not saying we need to knock it into next week,” he said, “But actually that’s exactly what we need to do. Batter up!”
The youma leapt, spraying a sticky web-like substance towards the pair of knights as it flew through the air. Babylon swung his lantern in a wide arc, aiming to catch the beast’s body at its widest point.
“Never fear!” he boasted, leaping at the spider-youma. “Babylon’s here!” With a swing of his spiked lantern, he knocked the creature skittering across the street. Putting some distance between himself and the youma bought him some time. “Milady, you may want to get down off the roof and prepare for round two.”
The youma flipped itself over and began to make its way back towards them, walking unevenly on only seven of its eight legs. Babylon grasped the handle of his lantern tighter, readying another swing. “I’m not saying we need to knock it into next week,” he said, “But actually that’s exactly what we need to do. Batter up!”
The youma leapt, spraying a sticky web-like substance towards the pair of knights as it flew through the air. Babylon swung his lantern in a wide arc, aiming to catch the beast’s body at its widest point.
Lucifer Force
The last thing she’d expected was for her hero to arrive! Stars flashed in her eyes and she struck the of-course-I’m-a-maiden-in-distress-can’t-you-tell? pose (completely by accident) and watched in wonder as the youma became an incredibly creepy but high velocity baseball, bounding down the street until it unfurled to a stopping point. Gratefully, Sutai oozed off the top of the SUV and managed to wedge herself between Babylon’s cape and his back. “Oh Mr. Babylon, thank you SO much for coming to save me! I’m so terrible at this page thing and the monster’s so scary and I dunno what to dooooo~!” She sniffed at the last part and hid her face in his cape. “Oh it’s so fluffy!”
This was well before the youma decided it had had enough of the bonking and the bashing and the incessant wailing from the fledgling page. Leaping up in the air with a great hiss, it spat sticky web all over the street, the SUV and what it had hoped would be the Easy Meal and Its Protector. Unfortunately, its body was again turned into a baseball as spiked lantern connected solidly with squishy-youma-body and sent the creature careening into a jewelry store window.
Sutai felt that was the appropriate time to unwedge herself from Babylon’s cape and sling insults. “Yeah, you take that you... you... icky monster nobody likes!” she cried through cupped hands. When a spindly leg poked out from the wreckage of diamond jewelry and glass, Sutai squeaked and returned to her post as Guardian of Babylon’s Back and Also His Cape. Her telescope poked out from her hiding place.
“Umm... locked and loaded, captain!” she said, parroting the one episode of Star Trek she’d ever seen. Or at least she thought she was.
This was well before the youma decided it had had enough of the bonking and the bashing and the incessant wailing from the fledgling page. Leaping up in the air with a great hiss, it spat sticky web all over the street, the SUV and what it had hoped would be the Easy Meal and Its Protector. Unfortunately, its body was again turned into a baseball as spiked lantern connected solidly with squishy-youma-body and sent the creature careening into a jewelry store window.
Sutai felt that was the appropriate time to unwedge herself from Babylon’s cape and sling insults. “Yeah, you take that you... you... icky monster nobody likes!” she cried through cupped hands. When a spindly leg poked out from the wreckage of diamond jewelry and glass, Sutai squeaked and returned to her post as Guardian of Babylon’s Back and Also His Cape. Her telescope poked out from her hiding place.
“Umm... locked and loaded, captain!” she said, parroting the one episode of Star Trek she’d ever seen. Or at least she thought she was.
Silverah
“Oh, ********,” swore Babylon as the youma went through the window. He’d been trying to avoid property damage tonight, and to top it all off the jewelry store had a burglar alarm. Ears ringing as the siren blared, he advanced on the spider as it struggled to rise to its feet once more. “Let’s just finish this and get out of here,” he said to the girl wedged at his back. She was tiny and thin and he felt protective of her mostly on the grounds that she reminded him of his little sister.
The youma rose to its feet, but in his infinite experience (well, more like a year’s worth), Babylon could tell that its strength was flagging. With another swing of his lantern, he swept it sideways into the base of a streetlight. The spider stiffened for an instant, limbs going rigid and straight, and then it crumbled into dust as Youma were wont to do.
Babylon could hear police sirens approaching. He grabbed hold of the girl’s wrist and broke into a run, dragging her towards the far end of the street. “We’re going to jump in five steps, that roof there,” he said, jerking his chin towards a fast food chicken joint. “Rule number one, ******** da police.”
Which sounded pretty awful coming from a petite white kid. Yanking the girl behind him, Babylon leapt for the roofline. He landed nimbly, cape fanning out around him like he was ten times cooler than he actually was. The knight rank came with a fabulous costume dynamic, that was all he was going to say about that. Babylon peered over the low wall lining the roof, spotted police cars rounding the corner, and crouched again, pulling the girl down beside him.
“I think we’ll need to stay here for a bit, at least until they leave,” he said, making himself comfortable with his back to an air conditioning unit. “The name’s Babylon Knight of Mercury,” he said. Quirking an eyebrow, he added, “And you are?”
The youma rose to its feet, but in his infinite experience (well, more like a year’s worth), Babylon could tell that its strength was flagging. With another swing of his lantern, he swept it sideways into the base of a streetlight. The spider stiffened for an instant, limbs going rigid and straight, and then it crumbled into dust as Youma were wont to do.
Babylon could hear police sirens approaching. He grabbed hold of the girl’s wrist and broke into a run, dragging her towards the far end of the street. “We’re going to jump in five steps, that roof there,” he said, jerking his chin towards a fast food chicken joint. “Rule number one, ******** da police.”
Which sounded pretty awful coming from a petite white kid. Yanking the girl behind him, Babylon leapt for the roofline. He landed nimbly, cape fanning out around him like he was ten times cooler than he actually was. The knight rank came with a fabulous costume dynamic, that was all he was going to say about that. Babylon peered over the low wall lining the roof, spotted police cars rounding the corner, and crouched again, pulling the girl down beside him.
“I think we’ll need to stay here for a bit, at least until they leave,” he said, making himself comfortable with his back to an air conditioning unit. “The name’s Babylon Knight of Mercury,” he said. Quirking an eyebrow, he added, “And you are?”
Lucifer Force
That was one of the coolest things (aside from Camelot’s OMGWTFBBQlaser he had in his shield) she’d ever seen. Before the youma really started to crumble, Sutai went about a victory dance, clapping and cheering for the new knight she’d met. The sirens stopped her dead cold though and she felt thoroughly terrible, no better than a common criminal. “But-but we didn’t do anything---AIEEE!”
Sutai’s words were cut short as she was scooped up by her savior, leaping up into the air like a big, furry gazelle. Weren’t the police the good guys? Weren’t they good guys? The page was thoroughly confused, but as soon as they landed, she did as she was told. “But we can’t ******** da police! They’re our friends and we didn’t mean to mess up the store!” she pleaded, trying to keep her voice down as much as possible. Who knows, maybe the police could use their speed radars and find powered people in the city? She never had to think about that before and she swallowed a lump building in her throat.
Darker hands snatched up parts of Babylon’s cape and she draped it around herself like a childhood blanket. “We’re not bad people are we, Babylon?” Golden eyes grew crystalline with tears. She didn’t want to be a bad guy! She sniffed, pulling the cape tighter around herself. Nevermind that it was currently attached to someone else!
Sutai sniffed again and made sure not to snot all over Babylon’s nice cape. “I’m Sutai of Polaris.” she wheezed, sounding completely defeated. This was the first incidence of property damage she’d ever taken part in and she didn’t have an allowance to try and fix it!
Sutai’s words were cut short as she was scooped up by her savior, leaping up into the air like a big, furry gazelle. Weren’t the police the good guys? Weren’t they good guys? The page was thoroughly confused, but as soon as they landed, she did as she was told. “But we can’t ******** da police! They’re our friends and we didn’t mean to mess up the store!” she pleaded, trying to keep her voice down as much as possible. Who knows, maybe the police could use their speed radars and find powered people in the city? She never had to think about that before and she swallowed a lump building in her throat.
Darker hands snatched up parts of Babylon’s cape and she draped it around herself like a childhood blanket. “We’re not bad people are we, Babylon?” Golden eyes grew crystalline with tears. She didn’t want to be a bad guy! She sniffed, pulling the cape tighter around herself. Nevermind that it was currently attached to someone else!
Sutai sniffed again and made sure not to snot all over Babylon’s nice cape. “I’m Sutai of Polaris.” she wheezed, sounding completely defeated. This was the first incidence of property damage she’d ever taken part in and she didn’t have an allowance to try and fix it!
Silverah
“I’m not saying the police are bad,” clarified Babylon, setting his lantern between them and dimming it slightly. “I’m just saying we shouldn’t get involved with them. They don’t understand what we’re doing, and it’s easier to just stay out of their way.” The burglar alarm stopped abruptly, the night becoming suddenly quiet. Babylon shrugged at Sutai. “We’re good guys and we fight for order and destroying that youma was the right thing to do, but to those guys down there it looks like someone just broke into Jared.”
Of all the jewelry stores in all the world, though, Babylon couldn’t much understand why anyone would break into a chain known for cheap engagement rings. If he were ever to become a jewelry thief, he would set his sights much higher. He’d be a burglar with taste.
Babylon blinked at the weepy girl beside him. They’d just barely met and she’d already made a nest for herself in his cape, which seemed awfully fast to him. Being completely immune to her womanly wiles (and too distracted by the fact that this girl was basically his sister’s age), that was really all he thought of it. Still, he didn’t understand why she was crying - they were safe! They were alive! They hadn’t even taken any damage! “Are you okay?” the knight asked her, leaning in and giving her a gentle shake. “Did it hurt you?”
He didn’t see any blood, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t been injured in the fight - who knew what had happened to her before he’d shown up. “Come on. Don’t cry. Sutai? Sutai, that’s a pretty name, come on, you’re okay, right?”
Crying girls. He had no idea what to do with crying girls.
Of all the jewelry stores in all the world, though, Babylon couldn’t much understand why anyone would break into a chain known for cheap engagement rings. If he were ever to become a jewelry thief, he would set his sights much higher. He’d be a burglar with taste.
Babylon blinked at the weepy girl beside him. They’d just barely met and she’d already made a nest for herself in his cape, which seemed awfully fast to him. Being completely immune to her womanly wiles (and too distracted by the fact that this girl was basically his sister’s age), that was really all he thought of it. Still, he didn’t understand why she was crying - they were safe! They were alive! They hadn’t even taken any damage! “Are you okay?” the knight asked her, leaning in and giving her a gentle shake. “Did it hurt you?”
He didn’t see any blood, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t been injured in the fight - who knew what had happened to her before he’d shown up. “Come on. Don’t cry. Sutai? Sutai, that’s a pretty name, come on, you’re okay, right?”
Crying girls. He had no idea what to do with crying girls.
Lucifer Force
The rather fluff-and-stuffy page took one last long, hard sniff and vigorously nodded. The major guilt trip subsided a little since the jewelry store alarm stopped blaring its reminder to her. YOU BROKE ME, WAY TO GO THERE, GENIUS it seemed to say, which made her all the more upset. She was still wrapped up in his cape and she sighed. “No, I’m not hurt but... b-b-but I’ve never like, broken anything before.” She touched a hand to her face when sudden and frightening realizations hit her. “OH NO I DINGED THAT GUY’S CAR!”
Sutai then attached herself to Babylon’s chest and wept anew. “It looked like an expensive car too oh no what am I gonna do?” Oh, at least his uniform was soft. That was comforting. “Should I leave a note?”
Gold eyes warbled and her lower lip quivered. She sniffed again. “This page stuff is hard, Mr. Babylon. I try so hard to save people and grannies from being eaten by monsters but I don’t have a laser like Mr. Camelot, and no armor either so things hurt when they get me and... and...” Balling her hands into fists, she rubbed at her eyes. “I just now found out that I have a princess I hafta go find but I don’t know what she looks like or where she is... what if she got eaten by a monster too?”
No, Pomona said they were strong, right? Super strong, otherwise they couldn’t be princesses. “I hafta go find her, Mr. Babylon. Did you find your princess? Is that why you’re so strong?”
Sutai then attached herself to Babylon’s chest and wept anew. “It looked like an expensive car too oh no what am I gonna do?” Oh, at least his uniform was soft. That was comforting. “Should I leave a note?”
Gold eyes warbled and her lower lip quivered. She sniffed again. “This page stuff is hard, Mr. Babylon. I try so hard to save people and grannies from being eaten by monsters but I don’t have a laser like Mr. Camelot, and no armor either so things hurt when they get me and... and...” Balling her hands into fists, she rubbed at her eyes. “I just now found out that I have a princess I hafta go find but I don’t know what she looks like or where she is... what if she got eaten by a monster too?”
No, Pomona said they were strong, right? Super strong, otherwise they couldn’t be princesses. “I hafta go find her, Mr. Babylon. Did you find your princess? Is that why you’re so strong?”
Silverah
“Nah, don’t worry about the car,” said Babylon, shaking his head. It wasn’t as if they could go back there now anyways. The police would have the whole area closed off until morning, and the owner of the car would likely just chalk it up to collateral damage from the break in, which in turn would be blamed on ordinary thugs and not superheroes going spider bowling. “These things happen. And, you know, it’s why people have insurance. To protect them from mayhem like us.”
Hopefully she would get the Allstate reference. Otherwise it would likely come off as slightly callous. Awkwardly, he gave her a reassuring pat on the back. “Um. You don’t have to call me Mister Babylon. Babylon is fine. Or Babs, really. But you can’t tell other people to call me that. It’s just because the whole thing is kind of a mouthful.” Because some people couldn’t be bothered to work their mouths around three whole syllables. Actually, it was pathetic.
He shook his head. “No, I don’t have my princess.” He figured that Lina would have mentioned if Princess Mercury were out and about. Seeing as she hadn’t, he supposed he could assume that their princess was missing in action. “I’m strong because I worked hard and learned how to be good at this. You’ll be strong, too, if you work hard!” That was the reward - if you kept at it, eventually you had to get better. Perseverance could get you further as a knight than any kind of natural ability.
“I don’t think my Princess exists, at least not any more.” He had a vague notion that there must have been a Princess Mercury once and that the old knight of Babylon had served her, mostly because Menachem had occasionally referred to the light of Babylon being a gift from her - although even that was uncertain. It was also said that the lights of Babylon glowed with the energy of the universe itself, so...
The knight shrugged. “I guess the closest thing I have is Lina, but she’s another knight of mercury like me.” Actually, they were the same rank now. Which was a weird concept if there ever was one. Babylon would likely think of Lina as outranking him for as long as they lived, even if their powers were theoretically evenly matched now.
Hopefully she would get the Allstate reference. Otherwise it would likely come off as slightly callous. Awkwardly, he gave her a reassuring pat on the back. “Um. You don’t have to call me Mister Babylon. Babylon is fine. Or Babs, really. But you can’t tell other people to call me that. It’s just because the whole thing is kind of a mouthful.” Because some people couldn’t be bothered to work their mouths around three whole syllables. Actually, it was pathetic.
He shook his head. “No, I don’t have my princess.” He figured that Lina would have mentioned if Princess Mercury were out and about. Seeing as she hadn’t, he supposed he could assume that their princess was missing in action. “I’m strong because I worked hard and learned how to be good at this. You’ll be strong, too, if you work hard!” That was the reward - if you kept at it, eventually you had to get better. Perseverance could get you further as a knight than any kind of natural ability.
“I don’t think my Princess exists, at least not any more.” He had a vague notion that there must have been a Princess Mercury once and that the old knight of Babylon had served her, mostly because Menachem had occasionally referred to the light of Babylon being a gift from her - although even that was uncertain. It was also said that the lights of Babylon glowed with the energy of the universe itself, so...
The knight shrugged. “I guess the closest thing I have is Lina, but she’s another knight of mercury like me.” Actually, they were the same rank now. Which was a weird concept if there ever was one. Babylon would likely think of Lina as outranking him for as long as they lived, even if their powers were theoretically evenly matched now.
Lucifer Force
“I’ll be strong if I work hard, Mr. Babylon? I mean Babs I mean... yes!”
Sutai decided not to think on it too much. She’d likely just lapse back into calling him Mr. Babylon for a long time to come. He outranked her by quite a bit, he was knowledgeable and, well, he did save her life. Quite a lot of that has been happening lately. The page resolved to try and suck less, if at all possible. Babylon did say perseverance made a bit of difference when it came to this page stuff. Making up her mind she clapped her hands together triumphantly. “Then that’s settled. I’ll try my very best! I’ll make everybody proud! Especially you, Mr. Babylon!”
Ah, there she went again, and it completely sailed over her head.
The notion that one’s princess no longer existed seemed very odd to her. How can you serve someone that doesn’t exist? The planets were still there as far as she knew, but then how can they serve royalty that... now her head hurt. Sutai frowned and bunched up parts of the Mercury knight’s cape in thought, kneading it with her hands. “But if there’s no Princess Mercury then... how do you know what to do? What about the other princesses? Is there no princess of Earth or Venus or Jupiter either?”
The page blinked a few times and furrowed her brow. This was all incredibly confusing and she sighed after mulling it over for a bit. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter all that much, so long as we can stop people from hurting grannies and kittens and all that. Mr. Camelot mentioned something called a Negaverse but unless these monsters are a Negaverse, I’m not sure what I’m looking for? Do you know what a Negaverse is, Mr. Babylon?”
Sutai decided not to think on it too much. She’d likely just lapse back into calling him Mr. Babylon for a long time to come. He outranked her by quite a bit, he was knowledgeable and, well, he did save her life. Quite a lot of that has been happening lately. The page resolved to try and suck less, if at all possible. Babylon did say perseverance made a bit of difference when it came to this page stuff. Making up her mind she clapped her hands together triumphantly. “Then that’s settled. I’ll try my very best! I’ll make everybody proud! Especially you, Mr. Babylon!”
Ah, there she went again, and it completely sailed over her head.
The notion that one’s princess no longer existed seemed very odd to her. How can you serve someone that doesn’t exist? The planets were still there as far as she knew, but then how can they serve royalty that... now her head hurt. Sutai frowned and bunched up parts of the Mercury knight’s cape in thought, kneading it with her hands. “But if there’s no Princess Mercury then... how do you know what to do? What about the other princesses? Is there no princess of Earth or Venus or Jupiter either?”
The page blinked a few times and furrowed her brow. This was all incredibly confusing and she sighed after mulling it over for a bit. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter all that much, so long as we can stop people from hurting grannies and kittens and all that. Mr. Camelot mentioned something called a Negaverse but unless these monsters are a Negaverse, I’m not sure what I’m looking for? Do you know what a Negaverse is, Mr. Babylon?”
Quote:
Silverah
“The monsters are called youma,” Babylon corrected gently. “As far as I understand, we’re caught in a war between Order and Chaos. Think of it like Star Wars. There’s a Light Side and a Dark Side. So knights and white moon senshi serve Order, which is like the Light Side of the Force. We protect truth and justice and the American Way.” He was being only slightly facetious, but hopefully Sutai would understand. “On the other side is Chaos. The Dark Side of the Force. The Negaverse and Dark Mirror Senshi and Corrupt Senshi all serve Chaos, and youma are manifestations of Chaos.”
You didn’t survive a year without learning how to give a crash course in this stuff on demand, after all. “Now, here’s the epiphany I had a while back,” he continued, talking animatedly with his hands. “The negaverse and the dark senshi are inherently wrong. You don’t just wake up one day transformed into a Negaverser. They have to be recruited, from what I’ve heard. Same with the senshi who fight for Chaos. It’s not natural for living things to be aligned with Chaos.”
He paused, hoping to allow Sutai a moment to wrap her head around it. “I don’t know if there are other princesses or not. I mean, my ancestor served the royal house of Mercury but I haven’t heard anything about it nowadays and I figure if it existed someone would have said something by now! I don’t think the Jovians have their princess, either. I mean, I do a lot of work with the senshi and knights from Jupiter-” best not to try and explain how he was a knight of Mercury and a member of the Jovian court, it would only confuse the fledgling page- “And I figure if they had their princess someone would have said something about it by now. I think there was a Prince Castor for a while, but he’s AWOL.”
Babylon was pretty sure that if he ever met Prince Castor, he would punch him in the face for breaking Lina’s heart. It seemed only fair.
“The senshi have these talking cats who tell them what to do, but other than that - it’s intuitive, I guess. Order pushes back Chaos because it’s what they’ve always done. Like magnets.” Wait. He might have had that backwards, because magnets repelled like - “Actually, you know what? Forget the magnets thing. It’s not like magnets at all. If you really want instruction, I bet you could go to your Wonder on Polaris and find someone to tell you stuff. Visions or an Ancestor. I think either one would probably be able to tell you more stuff specific to you than I can.”
You didn’t survive a year without learning how to give a crash course in this stuff on demand, after all. “Now, here’s the epiphany I had a while back,” he continued, talking animatedly with his hands. “The negaverse and the dark senshi are inherently wrong. You don’t just wake up one day transformed into a Negaverser. They have to be recruited, from what I’ve heard. Same with the senshi who fight for Chaos. It’s not natural for living things to be aligned with Chaos.”
He paused, hoping to allow Sutai a moment to wrap her head around it. “I don’t know if there are other princesses or not. I mean, my ancestor served the royal house of Mercury but I haven’t heard anything about it nowadays and I figure if it existed someone would have said something by now! I don’t think the Jovians have their princess, either. I mean, I do a lot of work with the senshi and knights from Jupiter-” best not to try and explain how he was a knight of Mercury and a member of the Jovian court, it would only confuse the fledgling page- “And I figure if they had their princess someone would have said something about it by now. I think there was a Prince Castor for a while, but he’s AWOL.”
Babylon was pretty sure that if he ever met Prince Castor, he would punch him in the face for breaking Lina’s heart. It seemed only fair.
“The senshi have these talking cats who tell them what to do, but other than that - it’s intuitive, I guess. Order pushes back Chaos because it’s what they’ve always done. Like magnets.” Wait. He might have had that backwards, because magnets repelled like - “Actually, you know what? Forget the magnets thing. It’s not like magnets at all. If you really want instruction, I bet you could go to your Wonder on Polaris and find someone to tell you stuff. Visions or an Ancestor. I think either one would probably be able to tell you more stuff specific to you than I can.”
Lucifer Force
Sutai thought her head was going to explode. She gingerly touched her hand to her face and thought a moment. Okay so the princesses of the planets aren’t here either because they’re not awake like we are or they just aren’t here, but there are still people fighting for them in their name. Okay. So then there’s Order, which is us, and Chaos, which is the bad guys, and the monsters are Chaos. People are recruited into Chaos... oh dear.
Blinking, she tried to repeat what the knight of Mercury explained so prove she understood. “So people are recruited into the Negaverse, which is Chaos and bad people. But why would they even join up with bad people? They must look for criminals and murderers...” Sutai shook her head, sending her crystal accessories clinking against one another. She didn’t like that thought one bit. “But if it’s not natural for living things to be aligned with Chaos then... then they’re zombies?!”
Wait, that didn’t make any sense. Scratch that. “So then... they have to lie! Maybe the Negaverse recruiters are liars! I mean, who in their right mind would say, hey this sounds like a great idea! I’ll just go shank grannies and break into people’s home and key their cars and kill people!” The fledgling page frowned. It had to be some kind of propaganda or they simply target bad people. Bad people were born all the time, weren’t they? That’s why prisons were filling up and all these news reports and... ugh!
The Jupiter stuff went over her head in the blink of an eye. It was difficult to take in, but the Wonder part? “My Wonder? You mean like Wonder Woman? What’s a Wonder?"
Blinking, she tried to repeat what the knight of Mercury explained so prove she understood. “So people are recruited into the Negaverse, which is Chaos and bad people. But why would they even join up with bad people? They must look for criminals and murderers...” Sutai shook her head, sending her crystal accessories clinking against one another. She didn’t like that thought one bit. “But if it’s not natural for living things to be aligned with Chaos then... then they’re zombies?!”
Wait, that didn’t make any sense. Scratch that. “So then... they have to lie! Maybe the Negaverse recruiters are liars! I mean, who in their right mind would say, hey this sounds like a great idea! I’ll just go shank grannies and break into people’s home and key their cars and kill people!” The fledgling page frowned. It had to be some kind of propaganda or they simply target bad people. Bad people were born all the time, weren’t they? That’s why prisons were filling up and all these news reports and... ugh!
The Jupiter stuff went over her head in the blink of an eye. It was difficult to take in, but the Wonder part? “My Wonder? You mean like Wonder Woman? What’s a Wonder?"
Silverah
Babylon shrugged, imagining that it was probably pretty difficult for anyone who’d never actually been aligned with Chaos to understand it. Maybe he’d have to ask Lina sometime, seeing as she’d been there and done that and gotten that t-shirt and he had tremendous respect for her. “It’s a mystery,” he said, giving Sutai a blank look. Babylon sincerely suspected that there was brainwashing involved.
“Your Wonder,” he nodded, wishing that there was some kind of official intro guide that popped into existence alongside your first weapon. “The place you’re named after. Babylon for me. Sutai for you. Babylon is a city on Mercury. I don’t know what Sutai is - it’ll be a place on Polaris, where your ancestor used to serve. Or you. It’s a bit complicated. Reincarnation is a thing, but I personally haven’t got any experience with it? So if that’s the case, you might want to talk to Lina of Mercury.”
He shrugged again, apologetic that he couldn’t be of more help, but there wasn’t a whole lot he could do if she didn’t know which category she fell into yet. “If you go to your wonder,” he explained, “You’ll figure it out.”
Pre-empting what he had no doubts would be her next question, the knight added, “You get there by saying the oath, which...” How did he describe the oath? He was pretty sure that Sutai’s oath would be different from his, considering it was pretty personalized. “Basically if you concentrate on going there, you’ll find the words. Does that make sense?”
He was pretty sure it probably didn’t.
“When you go, be sure to look for your signet ring,” Babylon added, almost as an afterthought. He pointed to a thick band of blue metal that encircled his right ring finger. “Once you find yours, I’ll show you how to use it to send letters.”
“Your Wonder,” he nodded, wishing that there was some kind of official intro guide that popped into existence alongside your first weapon. “The place you’re named after. Babylon for me. Sutai for you. Babylon is a city on Mercury. I don’t know what Sutai is - it’ll be a place on Polaris, where your ancestor used to serve. Or you. It’s a bit complicated. Reincarnation is a thing, but I personally haven’t got any experience with it? So if that’s the case, you might want to talk to Lina of Mercury.”
He shrugged again, apologetic that he couldn’t be of more help, but there wasn’t a whole lot he could do if she didn’t know which category she fell into yet. “If you go to your wonder,” he explained, “You’ll figure it out.”
Pre-empting what he had no doubts would be her next question, the knight added, “You get there by saying the oath, which...” How did he describe the oath? He was pretty sure that Sutai’s oath would be different from his, considering it was pretty personalized. “Basically if you concentrate on going there, you’ll find the words. Does that make sense?”
He was pretty sure it probably didn’t.
“When you go, be sure to look for your signet ring,” Babylon added, almost as an afterthought. He pointed to a thick band of blue metal that encircled his right ring finger. “Once you find yours, I’ll show you how to use it to send letters.”
Lucifer Force
Sutai stared at Babylon’s pretty ring like a child would a piece of candy. Gingerly she took up his hand and looked it over, not realizing that the gesture was probably much too personal for the very new relationship they had. “Oh wow! It’s so pretty! And you find this on your Wonder? And there’re words and... oh wow!” She smiled brightly and thought that being a superhero wasn’t so bad, what with all the neat perks one gets in return for service. “You can send letters with these rings too? That’s so neat! I can send letters to you and Mr. Camelot and Miss Pomona and Miss Caelian, they were so nice to me, just like you! Everyone’s been so nice. I’m so glad I can... well, try to help. I do try! I really do!”
Surely her efforts must mean something, property damage aside. She vowed to herself to work up the bravery to actually visit her Wonder. The whole process sounded really scary. Wait. Did Babylon say his Wonder was... was on Mercury?
MERCURY WAS IN SPACE.
The page sputtered with fright for a moment. “But! Mr. Babylon, we can’t go into space! We can’t breathe up there! Mr. Babylon, in space, no one can hear you scream.” The ending came with much seriousness. Surely there was magic to keep them safe or something, and if one couldn’t go into space, well, Babylon was a terrible liar. Somehow Sutai believed him, she just couldn’t wrap her mind around going into space when humans have been doing it for several decades and needed expensive equipment and lots of training. And even then!
“Mr. Babylon, can I visit your city sometime? Is it really pretty? How come nobody’s seen it? I mean, wouldn’t people say, oh em gee guys we found a city on Mercury? A whole city! That just seems so crazy! I wonder what my Wonder is? I have no idea.”
The thought sounded both exhilarating and utterly terrifying.
Surely her efforts must mean something, property damage aside. She vowed to herself to work up the bravery to actually visit her Wonder. The whole process sounded really scary. Wait. Did Babylon say his Wonder was... was on Mercury?
MERCURY WAS IN SPACE.
The page sputtered with fright for a moment. “But! Mr. Babylon, we can’t go into space! We can’t breathe up there! Mr. Babylon, in space, no one can hear you scream.” The ending came with much seriousness. Surely there was magic to keep them safe or something, and if one couldn’t go into space, well, Babylon was a terrible liar. Somehow Sutai believed him, she just couldn’t wrap her mind around going into space when humans have been doing it for several decades and needed expensive equipment and lots of training. And even then!
“Mr. Babylon, can I visit your city sometime? Is it really pretty? How come nobody’s seen it? I mean, wouldn’t people say, oh em gee guys we found a city on Mercury? A whole city! That just seems so crazy! I wonder what my Wonder is? I have no idea.”
The thought sounded both exhilarating and utterly terrifying.
Silverah
Babylon chuckled and, before he could stop himself, gave the over-enthusiastic page a pat on the head. “Magic,” he assured her, having never truly considered how one went about breathing on Mercury, just that one could. “Sure, I’d take you.” Menachem didn’t actually seem to mind so long as he could justify the trip somehow. Not to mention that Babylon was a knight now and on those grounds was starting to feel more and more like he actually belonged in the city.
“It’s really pretty,” he continued, holding up his lantern. “See this?” he asked. “This is the light of Babylon. It never goes out. My ancestor’s told me a lot of stories about it and about what it might be. A drop of a blue star or a tear from a god or a piece of Mercury’s core or a gift from Cosmos - truth is, it’s shrouded in myth. Babylon is carved into the side of a mountain at the base of a range a thousand kilometers long.” Which was pretty long-a** and he’d tried to hike it in a blizzard so on and so forth.
“There are street-lamps in Babylon that it’s my duty to light before my ancestor will recognize me as really being the Knight of Babylon.” Needless to say, he hadn’t done it yet - but he was seriously considering it. “I have to light all the lamps, because Babylon lights the way for everyone who is lost. Shows the ghosts their way home.” He laughed sheepishly. Yes, Finn Derouen had drank the kool-aid.
“You should go there and find out,” he encouraged. “And then let me know what you find.”
“It’s really pretty,” he continued, holding up his lantern. “See this?” he asked. “This is the light of Babylon. It never goes out. My ancestor’s told me a lot of stories about it and about what it might be. A drop of a blue star or a tear from a god or a piece of Mercury’s core or a gift from Cosmos - truth is, it’s shrouded in myth. Babylon is carved into the side of a mountain at the base of a range a thousand kilometers long.” Which was pretty long-a** and he’d tried to hike it in a blizzard so on and so forth.
“There are street-lamps in Babylon that it’s my duty to light before my ancestor will recognize me as really being the Knight of Babylon.” Needless to say, he hadn’t done it yet - but he was seriously considering it. “I have to light all the lamps, because Babylon lights the way for everyone who is lost. Shows the ghosts their way home.” He laughed sheepishly. Yes, Finn Derouen had drank the kool-aid.
“You should go there and find out,” he encouraged. “And then let me know what you find.”
Lucifer Force
The fluffy page cupped her chin in her hands and rested her elbows on her knees, listening to the story of the city of Babylon. How wonderful it must be to actually visit such a place, so big and old and full of history! Now her head was spinning as to what Sutai was, where it was, what it meant to her and to the people that used to live... wherever it was. What would it be like when she went to visit? But first she had to gather up the courage to actually make the trip, and make a checklist of things to do when she went there - pack a lunch, bring a first aid kit, find a ring... so much to do!
Sutai didn’t think she could do it all in one trip, but if you could go bunches of times, then there was room for improvement! Her eyes were fixated on the lantern Babylon was showing. “So it... guides people home...” she parroted, reaching out to gently stroke the metal casing. Something about guiding people really struck home with her. Out came the telescope and she leaned back on her legs to get a good look at it. It didn’t look more than any other telescope she’d ever seen, but for some reason, no matter how many youma she bonked with it, it never broke. “I wonder... does this do anything? I mean, your lantern, it’s part of the city. Part of its culture. I wonder if my telescope has any significance...”
The dark skinned girl frowned and shook her head. “It’s so much to take in but... Thank you, Mr. Babylon. You’ve taught me so much and... and I’m not sure how to thank you!” She sighed loudly then, scratching her head until an idea popped into her mind. “Ah! Do you like Indian food? I’m really good at cooking it! I could cook you a nice dinner as a thank you present. How’s that sound?”
Ah, the way to a man’s heart... well actually no, she didn’t feel that way about Babylon, but it was a great way to thank people. Who didn’t like good food?
Sutai didn’t think she could do it all in one trip, but if you could go bunches of times, then there was room for improvement! Her eyes were fixated on the lantern Babylon was showing. “So it... guides people home...” she parroted, reaching out to gently stroke the metal casing. Something about guiding people really struck home with her. Out came the telescope and she leaned back on her legs to get a good look at it. It didn’t look more than any other telescope she’d ever seen, but for some reason, no matter how many youma she bonked with it, it never broke. “I wonder... does this do anything? I mean, your lantern, it’s part of the city. Part of its culture. I wonder if my telescope has any significance...”
The dark skinned girl frowned and shook her head. “It’s so much to take in but... Thank you, Mr. Babylon. You’ve taught me so much and... and I’m not sure how to thank you!” She sighed loudly then, scratching her head until an idea popped into her mind. “Ah! Do you like Indian food? I’m really good at cooking it! I could cook you a nice dinner as a thank you present. How’s that sound?”
Ah, the way to a man’s heart... well actually no, she didn’t feel that way about Babylon, but it was a great way to thank people. Who didn’t like good food?
Silverah
“It probably does,” considered Babylon, cradling his lantern in his hands. “I mean, you won’t know until you go, but I’d be willing to bet...” He hadn’t really convened with any other knights on the matter of their weapons being relevant to their Wonders - all he knew was that his certainly was.
“Really,” he said sheepishly, blushing beneath his freckles. “You don’t need to call me Mister. I’m not that old.” Well, actually, he was twenty, which was a bizarre and terrifying prospect in and of itself. “And, um, I love Indian food! Vegetarian, though, okay?” It was easier to just pretend to not eat meat at all than to try and explain how keeping kosher worked. He’d never been paid in food before - but he wasn’t about to object to it!
“Really,” he said sheepishly, blushing beneath his freckles. “You don’t need to call me Mister. I’m not that old.” Well, actually, he was twenty, which was a bizarre and terrifying prospect in and of itself. “And, um, I love Indian food! Vegetarian, though, okay?” It was easier to just pretend to not eat meat at all than to try and explain how keeping kosher worked. He’d never been paid in food before - but he wasn’t about to object to it!
Lucifer Force
Sutai was very pleased with herself now. Now she had a mission - feed Babylon as a token of thanks and then... a lot of other things. But first she had to make up some kind of reasoning for bringing a boy home. Since Babylon looked older than she was... hmm... she’d have to think about it. In the meantime, a meeting place must be decided. She balled up her hands and tossed them in the air.
“Okay! So how’s about I meet you here next Saturday? I’ll tell my mom you... um... are a teacher’s aide and you’re helping me with a project and you’re a really nice guy and to thank you, I’m making lots of yummy vegetarian food for you. How’s that sound?” The page smiled broadly, her eyes twinkling with delight. She was already trying to decide on what to make.
That all decided, she jumped up to her feet, crystalline accessories making a tiny symphony. “Okay! I can do this! I’ll see you here around 7PM, okay Mr. Babylon? And thank you again, so very much!” She leaned over, planted a sweet kiss on his cheek and turned heel to trot away. She stopped suddenly, got her bearings, giggled and then jumped off the building and into the night.
“Okay! So how’s about I meet you here next Saturday? I’ll tell my mom you... um... are a teacher’s aide and you’re helping me with a project and you’re a really nice guy and to thank you, I’m making lots of yummy vegetarian food for you. How’s that sound?” The page smiled broadly, her eyes twinkling with delight. She was already trying to decide on what to make.
That all decided, she jumped up to her feet, crystalline accessories making a tiny symphony. “Okay! I can do this! I’ll see you here around 7PM, okay Mr. Babylon? And thank you again, so very much!” She leaned over, planted a sweet kiss on his cheek and turned heel to trot away. She stopped suddenly, got her bearings, giggled and then jumped off the building and into the night.
Silverah
Babylon waved to her as she left, a goofy smile crossing his face. It was refreshing to meet a girl his sister’s age who was more keen on being nice to him than cussing him out, and the whole interaction had been refreshingly innocent. The knight got to his feet and took up his lantern. He cast a glance towards the crime scene below, and then hurried off in the opposite direction. Tomorrow’s paper would bring news of a break-in, but the events already seemed far away in his mind.
