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He was drunk. Again. The closing staff knew it, Krishna from across the road likely knew it, and Gwendolyn Caspian knew it too. It was a closing shift for her and her boss had already left, and the young part-timer (full time Senshi) had been sitting on the curb, waiting for both her ride, as well as the police should Mr. Moreau's drunk antics go a little too far. She didn't need her handheld or cellphone to pass the time- watching the Casanova across the street was all the entertainment she needed.

Sugar Shanty remained opened a whole thirty minutes longer Padma's Bouquet, which meant that it would be well beyond dark before Richard Moreau headed out, and given that he had taken to the bourbon far too early in the evening, one of the employees of his store had wisely taken his keys and hid them. This gave Gwen the entertainment she needed, watching as he stormed around the back of the counter and the back of his store to find them, before eventually giving up and stumbling out of the store. This meant that Richard would be walking home, and for Gwen, this was hardly a problem for her to worry about.

After all, Richard was a full grown man! Surely he could take care of himself, and if someone did find him, maybe they'd be the nicer person and escort him either to his home or to the nearest police station (if they knew what was best for him). Unfortunately, this was also Destiny City, a city filled with youma, Negaverse officers and Dark Mirror Senshi, and a drunk, stupid man like Richard would be a prime target. And given her full time position as Eternal Sailor Tsui, Senshi of Tigers, it was her duty to keep an eye on him and make sure he made it home, without any problems from the chaos that seemed to run amok in this city. Even if the pervert deserved it.

So, Gwen gave a resigned sigh and texted Maddy, letting her know not to bother and that she'd get a taxi, and no sooner did Richard start grumbling and turning about to get his bearings, she called to the man, fighting down every instinct within her to keep away from him and hoping he was too drunk to notice the disdain in his voice. "Mr. Moreau, you look a little lost! Do I need to walk you home?"

Richard scoffed. He was most certainly NOT lost! He knew exactly where he was, even though it wasn't where he wanted to be. He was already in a pretty foul mood as a business deal elsewhere had gone a little sour, and while Richard didn't mind sour tarts from time to time, he was quick to wash away the taste of (rare) failure with the better taste of Bourbon. And he was doing good in cheering himself up when, lo and behold, his keys went missing, and now, that stupid little twit from across the street was yelling at him.

No, this was definitely not his night, and he allowed for some of that bitterness to show, his normally charming, sultry voice nothing more than an annoyed, slurring mess, and the way he gestulated his hands was a clear indication that sometimes he could be an angry drunk. "Lost? -I- am not lost. My keys, on the other hand... have decided to take a holiday, so... no vroom-vroom in my Lexus this evenin'."

He knew he shouldn't have taken it out on Gwen- if she wasn't a blatant lesbian and an annoying twit, he would have rather liked her. Be as it may, he did not wish to make the journey alone, and despite his harsh words, he motioned for the teen to come over. "Well, you can't walk me home all the way over there, now can you? Come here... you look cold, an' I got plenty of warmth in this coat."

It was the closest a girl like her would ever get to a guy like him, and surely she must have seen this as a privilege as she was right at his side, and he used his coat to drape over her shoulders, making it appear as though he were being a gentleman when he was merely using her as a crutch. Because, as much as he hated to admit it, he was way too drunk for his own good... And hopefully the sight of an innocent young teenager would keep the baddies away... it was Richard's hope, in the very least.

Had Gwen powered up, she would have easily been able to lift the taller man onto her back and carried him home (or even threw him home, given how much power her attack had become if it was enough to propel a lieutenant into the river). She would have also been able to sense the approaching danger that came in the form a Negaverse general. But unfortunately, Gwen was nothing more than regular old, boring Gwendolyn Caspian, a five foot nothing young girl who specialized in gymnastics and mouthing off. Hardly someone one would want to lean on, especially one of Richard's stature. Gwen was tempted to ask the drunk man how tall he was, but the sound of someone familiar calling to them, as well as the general that appeared before them, chased the question completely from his mind.

Of all the Negaverse officers that Gwen did not wish to see again, Painite was pretty high up there on the list. Even above Zinkenite- as powerful as Zinkenite was, he had at least shown her mercy. Painite? She could almost feel her side itching, and it was no use holding back the feeling of dread that swelled within her gut. It was Painite, and she wasn't powered up yet! "S...s**t..."

And that would prove to be the least of her concerns. Richard wasn't having that grand of a time using the small but rather muscular girl as a crutch, as it required him to bend down at an angle he wasn't comfortable with. Unlike Gwen, though, he was content on doing his whining loudly and proudly, until someone rather particular appeared out of thin air before them.

As drunk as Richard was, there was nothing to stop his careful observation of the woman that stood in front of him, and he only noticed her outward beauty, nothing of the slight crazed look in her eyes, nor the dark intentions that shone in them. And this woman was someone that Richard would have rather have taken home this evening and not this little pipsqueak!

"Good evening, indeed... much better now that you're here..." Richard said, trying to pitch his tone in a sultry, creamy caramel manner though with the alcohol running through him, there were a few nuts here and there to roughen it up. He immediately let up on his hold, looking ready to stumble towards the new woman instead but stopped when Gwen grabbed onto his arm and pulled him back. He looked back at her, more annoyed than confused, and there was no filter to stop his thoughts from tumbling into his mouth now. "Now, now, Gwennie, don't be jealous... with proper training and cosmetic surgery, you might be as pretty as her some day!"

Gwen gave an angered spat, trying to keep some distance intact and perhaps put a little more in between themselves and Painite. She shouted, loudly, in hopes that maybe another Senshi, a Knight, hell, even a police officer could hear them. "No, you're drunk, and you need to go home. You don't even know her!"

"Yeah, Gwennie... real rude!" Richard parroted Painite's word, his back turned and not seeing the spear that the general had summoned. He wasn't chiseled but he had a few good muscles, and yet, how could he not shrug off a small girl like herself? He didn't see the fear in Gwen's eyes, nor her rising anger, and when her pulls were becoming more insistant, his smooth demeanor was beginning to give way to a more stern one, and drunk or not, he wasn't going to allow a little git such as herself get in the way of his fun. "Now, if you would be so kind as to let me go... this is grown up talk!"

Gwen knew things were going south, but still, she tried to talk some sense into him. When Painite produced her spear, part of her wanted to release the man and let nature run its course. He was too drunk and too driven by that damn erection in his pants to be worth saving, but she couldn't allow it. As perverted and dickish of a man Richard may have been, no one deserved death at Painite's hand. No one.

"Are you insane? SHE HAS A SPEAR!" Gwen shouted, hearing Painite's warning and giving one last pull, glancing around for a place where she could attempt to transform, but Richard was being too difficult. Suddenly, he gave a growl, pulled her close to him, and without warning, he grabbed her wrist and ripped himself free from her grip, a split second before pushing her to the ground. Gwen was no weakling, far from it, but she couldn't ignore his strength, nor had she ever seen him so violent before. And yet, when she looked up at him, he was brushing himself off and rubbing a hand through his hair, as though cleaning his hands of the situation and making himself presentable, as though he hadn't just thrown a teenager to the street. What the hell was wrong with this man?

Now that he was freed from her grip, Richard turned his attention to Painite, looking at her face first and then to that spear she held. And as drunk as he was, he couldn't help but ponder why anyone would be carrying around such a weapon in this day and age... or where the hell the thing came from, for that matter? He looked back to Gwen to see if she had anymore objections, but the girl had simply got up and ran away.

And Richard didn't care. He gave a snort and turned back around to Painite, staring death in the face but completely clueless, and too drunk to care. "Now, where were we, spear lady?"

Ignorance was bliss, a phrase that not only fit Richard perfectly right now, but was so perfect that it looped back around to being rather redundant. Almost as if one was stating the obvious. Still, it was a statement that needed to be stressed, but unfortunately for Richard, he was too drunk and too aroused to contemplate on his actions and the consequences would be.

The only thing that mattered to Richard right now was if he remembered to restock on his condoms or not, and all it would have taken was a quick motion, patting his rear pocket and feeling the thickness of his wallet. Yet, he was simply too intoxicated to have done that, and not to mention the lovely lady that draped over him was just being so damn distracting. That didn't stop Richard from continuing his little game- it would simply delay the fourth quarter for a short while. "Oh, yes, this. This is nice, isn't it? I think I know something that'd be a little nicer..."

For a man who claimed to be able to read a woman like a book, he was completely clueless on what Painite was doing, but Gwen wasn't. She had run into the nearby alley and wasted no time in transforming, withdrawing her henshin pen and whispering harshly. "Tsui Star Power, Make Up!"

The transformation was swift, and natural, and the moment all of the tiger pelt and belts were fastened, Tsui shot off into the road like a bat out of hell. There was little time in saving Richard, and while he deserved some retribution for his actions against herself and generally being an a*****e, he didn't deserve death at Painite's hands. She was certain that Painite would sense her coming, so her shout was more or less for Richard's ears, and she did the first thing she thought she could do, charging at Painite and the unsuspecting civilian and summoning her magic.

"Tiger Fist Strike!*" Tsui shouted, knowing that she was using her weakest attack but not wanting to harm Richard (too badly) in the process. It would put her within striking distance of Painite, and it wouldn't stun the general, but it would hopefully separate the two.

Richard was just about to question Painite about the positioning of her hand on his chest when he heard a shout, and he glanced to his right, just in time to see a blur of white, blacks and greys run at them, followed by a loud 'THUNK' and the tall, sturdy despite being drunk casanova went flying back. Whatever happened to Painite and the 'truck' that hit him were gone from his mind, as the moment he hit the ground, he was out.

-------

Sailor Scout Attack: Tiger Fist Strike.
Sailor Tsui focuses her energy onto her fists and envelopes them into the form of white energy that look like a pair of tiger claws, charging forward and striking at her enemy in close range in an X-like slash, moving her arms outward to inward to cross at the end of the blow. If the blow hits, it is not powerful but quick and is meant to knock the enemy back, not knocking them to the ground but throwing them into the path for another Senshi to attack if there is one nearby. Because it requires her to be within arm’s reach of her enemy (and she doesn’t have very long arms), this leaves an opening for the opponent or another to strike her.

*Can strike two times in a battle.
*Knocks back the enemy by 4 feet (no stun effect)

Tsui didn't frighten easy. She was simply too stubborn and brash to have the sense to be frightened, but Painite was one of the few figures that could easily cut through her bold defenses and force the emotion into the Tiger Senshi. She tried not to let it show, even as she stood her ground as best as she could given who the enemy was. Even when she had gained her Eternal rank, Tsui knew that taking on someone as unhinged as Painite would be a challenge, and while part of her wanted to rise to the challenge, the other part of her wanted to just... grab Richard and run the other way.

As cowardly as that idea was, it was probably the best course of action, and she was going to concentrate on that... after she made sure to dodge that incoming spear. Tsui knew it was coming but still, Painite's speed and skill were not easily estimated, and Tsui had hoped that the power and speed that came with her new rank would have made dodging the weapon a little bit easier.

Of course, she was wrong. The spear left its mark, slicing through part of the fur pelt at her waist but thankfully hitting the leather bit and failing to penetrate through to the flesh to mark her thigh. There was no blood but it was a solid enough blow to force the Tiger senshi to stumble backwards, and in her panic she almost lost her balance but barely caught herself in time. Even with her new rank, Painite was still too powerful, and had Tsui not been trying to focus on survival, she would have been livid. That would come later, AFTER she got out of this situation alive...

"I'd rather not dance, really. No good with that." Tsui admitted, hoping to hide some of her fear behind a forced bravado, though having a feeling that she failed. She took her eyes off of Painite for a second, to check on Richard, but the only part of him that was moving was his chest moving up and down. He was alive, and that was enough for Tsui to try to make her move. She ran forward, going for a punch and trying to break past her to get to the unconscious man. "Going to take that guy over there and go, now... go find someone else to dance with!"

Not once did Painite surprise her with a teleport, but twice, and Tsui could not hold back her pained shout as Painite's blow hit its mark. The fist struck Tsui's jaw and despite her own strength and speed, she went flying back from the blow, slamming her back against the ground and hitting her head against the pavement on the way down. Fortunately it wasn't a strong enough to render her unconscious, but unfortunately for her, it was enough to leave her dazed and exposed.

And that was a position that no one wanted to find themselves in when there was a Negaverse general around, much less Painite. She tried to will away the pain, especially now with the threat of her starseed hanging above her head, but it was no use. Painite was too strong, even for an eternal, and now the thought of sticking around to protect Richard was completely gone from her mind, as she was barely able to prop herself up with her elbows.

Still, as much as she wanted to run, she knew she couldn't, not until she was certain that Richard or any other civilians that was unfortunate enough to come wondering in. Maybe she couldn't run anymore, but she could definitely distract her, and fight. So, she gave a spat, trying to lure her close enough to get a blow on her, assuming she ever got feeling in her legs again. "I'd like to see you try, you crazy b***h! This tiger still have some bite... care to test that?!"

It was a risky move, but if it kept Painite close enough to use one of her attacks, it'd stun her long enough to make her move to grabbing Richard. It was a risky gamble, but she'd refuse to run from her anymore... the tiger was a hunter, not meant to be hunted!

And all the while, Richard was beginning to regain his senses, one sense at a time. The first scent that hit him was his sense of smell, and of course, what best smell to wake up to besides the scent of blood? Whose blood was it? His? That was more then enough to send him back into a stupor... and continue to play dead. Whatever was happening, it could wait...

'Well, it's now or never...' Tsui thought, seeing Painite closing in, much more quickly than she could have ever anticipated though it really shouldn't have surprised her by now. She still haven't fully recovered from the blow, but she was priming her attack, nevetheless. Once she was on top of her, she'd use her attack, and no matter how strong and experienced Painite was, she was certain that at this range, the attack would certainly leave her stunned. Painite's laugh was a reminder of just how foolish this encounter was, but Tsui knew it was too late to retreat now. Only one way out of this and it was forward!

Painite's laughter and the scent of blood was overwhelming his common sense to play dead, and unable to quell his curiosity, Richard finally fought back the lingering affects of unconsciousness to access the situation. While Tsui's attack sent him flailing about, it did little to chase away the amount of alcohol running through his system, and a finger to his nose at least relieved the initial fear that whoever the truck was, she didn't break his nose. No, just his lip, it seemed, but if he walked out of one of his drunk shenanigans with only a bloodied lip and a bruised ego, he considered it a good day!

Still, the little b***h hit him pretty damn hard, and he was going to give her a piece of his mind, until he looked on at the scene. One woman on top of the other, fighting, and Richard had been in enough situations in the past to know that he had front row seats to a good cat fight, and the proper place for any respectable man was as far, far away from this situation as possible.

Even in his drunk state, he could tell that the one on top was likely crazy, and while he did date crazy before, perhaps one who carried a spear with her was a little too crazy for him. So, he pulled himself up to his feet and simply walked away, hoping that the little black and white one wouldn't cry to him for help, or the pink haired one didn't stop her cackling long enough to notice his departure. 'Better her than me... at least I think that's a her...'

Tsui had seen Richard get up and she was about ready to shout at him to run, when he took one look at them and just left. Though she knew he was doing the right thing, she couldn't help but feel indignant, and her growl did nothing to stop his retreat, nor stop Painite's approach. "Ungrateful a*****e!"

The hand to her throat was crushing enough, but the hand that plunged into her chest was far, far worse, and Tsui was not a screamish type and would try to fight the pain or in the very least hide it. Now? It was something she had witnessed but never experienced before, and she could only wonder why the page hasn't screamed louder when the youma had reached in and ripped out his starseed, because she knew that if Painite's throat wasn't clamped tightly around her throat, her screams would have likely waked the entire city.

She was expecting there to be a lot of blood involved, but in truth, she hardly noticed, and the feel of Painite's cold fingers wrap around her starseed was more than perfect distraction from everything else. Suddenly, she didn't care about Richard abandoning her, her cursing her noble side of protecting him or offering him a walk home, or anything. Her job, her family, friends, girlfriend, all gone from her mind, as her only thought running through her mind was how someone else touching such a small, greyish-silver thing could cause so much pain, and now, how much more the general was threatening with.

What was she talking about? Pulsing chaos through her? That poisonous thing? Was Painite going to try and corrupt her? Tsui couldn't fathom it. The very notion of a forced corruption struck something primal within the Tiger Senshi, and despite the pain she felt, and the knowledge of just how much worse it was going to get, drove her fighting spirit into desperation. She gripped the wrist of the hand that was crushing her throat and the other went for the hand in her chest, thankful not to have been given gloves and allowing her finger nails to dig in as she tried to position her legs to kick Painite off of her.

Like hell she would corrupt! Not like this! She had to fight with everything she had, and though she couldn't get a word in besides taut, pained, breathless gasps, she'd kick and claw her way out. Even as tears began to stream down her reddening face, Tsui was going to fight, or die... but she would never, ever allow that poison to seep in. Better death than corruption, right?

Right?