Welcome to Gaia! ::

The pounding of her footsteps echoed the pounding of her heart as Leda sprinted through the alleyway. She navigated haphazardly through the sprawling corridors, sometimes even doubling back on herself as she attempted to shake her pursuer. She hadn't much time left before her legs succumbed to the fatigue that threatened to overtake her body, and leave her defenseless against the Negaverse agent that tailed her relentlessly. Her only chance of survival was escape, but prospects looked dim for that course of action.

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Armed with new knowledge and ample preparation, Leda embarked on her first patrol through Destiny City's vast expanses. She skimmed across the rooftops with practiced grace and followed a network of alleyways filled with trash, dumpsters, and vagrants. With each building she crossed, she built up her tentative confidence that she would be able to pull her weight in the ranks of her senshi brethren. If she could skip across buildings with her newfound power, she should be able to handle herself in a fight. She should be able to protect the denizens of Destiny City against the poisonous onslaught of the Negaverse. She should be able to stay her doubts in battle and prove herself worthy of the cause.

Yet... That lingering sense of remorse caused her to falter in her determination.

Why do I have to fight them? If I can just convince them of the truth, that we're trying to protect this planet, then wouldn't they stop fighting? Nobody has to die over a misunderstanding, right? With her doubtful thoughts, she slowed to a halt. She sighed. Maybe I shouldn't be out here patrolling. What if someone sees me and I cause a news scandal, or my being out here gets someone hurt? Perhaps she should've resigned herself to simply training more or strengthening her arguments for the side of good.

Leda shrieked as a searing pain shot up her left arm. With a quick glance at her fuku, she noticed blood dripping from a fresh cut that penetrated rather deeply in her skin. After pressing her hand against the wound, she whirled around to spot an agent not two buildings away from her. "Stop it!" She yelled as menacingly as she could, but her presentation obviously fell flat. The agent approached her quickly, wordlessly, and focused intently on taking her down.

She yelped loudly as the agent's weapon cut into her shoulder, and she managed to glimpse it before it ricocheted off the lip of the building and fell into the alleys below. It was some sort of a throwing star, and she wasn't about to examine it too carefully. Without a second thought, she leaped toward the building next to her and caught the gutter. She heard metal strike the brick near her ear, and didn't waste any time looking back. Hastily she scrambled atop the roof and sprinted around the building's roof exit, nearly knocking over a satellite dish as she went, and dropped down the side of the building into the alleyway below. With an explosive pop, the garbage bag she landed on spilled its contents all over the narrow alley space. She winced; the sound was sure to draw the agent's attention.

Only seconds after she took off down the corridor, her suspicions were confirmed as she heard the crunch of a styrofoam cup beneath someone's shoes. She only spared a moment to look back and focus her assault on her pursuer. With ample focus, she drew steam about herself, aiming carefully at her opponent. When she was sure she could connect the attack, she sent an arc of steam toward her foe. Unfortunately, the agent dodged it deftly.

Leda hadn't a moment to lose. She turned tail and sprinted through the alleys once more, hoping to find some manner of escape, or some way to trap her foe and break free from the chase. However, with every corner she turned, she was only met with more narrow passageways and obstacles to navigate in a futile attempt to lose the agent. Even as her breath became more ragged, and each step sent shocks of pain through her feet, she persisted in her search for some reprieve without combat.

Finally she sensed someone in her vicinity. She couldn't tell who or what the signature belonged to, but it felt powerful. With renewed hope, she made a dash for the signature in hopes of discovering a powerful ally to ward off her pursuer. Sure enough, as she felt herself approach the aura she had sensed, she came upon an older gentleman clad in a medieval suit of armor. That couldn't be right, could it? Regardless, she didn't have time to ask the man if he was indeed part of the fight. "Hey, help!" She rasped as she sprung from the alleyway. The agent was hot on her trail.

Leda dashed behind the older man and crouched, hoping to minimize her presence behind him. She had naught to look at but the back of his head, lest she be interested in taking a ninja star to the eye. She was highly surprised by his decision to avoid engaging the agent. Why wouldn't he simply fight? Isn't that what most senshi opted to do? Then again, the man most certainly wasn't a senshi. She'd never seen one so old before, and on top of that, he was heavily clad in metal and bore a shield. Last she knew, her brethren relied on magic, not weapons and armor. Wait... Was he a knight then?

An eerie red light expanded from in front of the man, drawing her attention to the situation once again. With another warning, he sent the agent scurrying away, and the red glow petered away into nothing. Surprisingly, he was more than willing to protect her, despite the fact that she was a complete stranger and practically brought danger to him. She couldn't fathom what would go through his mind and prompt such a noble action, but she owed her life to him nonetheless.

"Thank you!" She exclaimed, exhausted. Without a second thought, she wrapped her arms about the man in a quick embrace. The plates of armor snagged her sleeves and pinched her skin, causing her to pull away quickly. "Ouch! Your armor isn't very friendly..." She sighed and drew herself to her feet. "Oh, where are my manners? I should introduce myself. I'm Sailor Leda." She held out her hand, though the sudden sting of her injuries caused her to falter.

It seemed unreal. Here she was, face to face with someone who happened to be in the right place, at the right time.

Leda felt safe around her new comrade. He reacted calmly in the face of danger, and reacted as if he'd had a lot of practice dealing with the enemy. She could learn a lot from him, though she wondered how much of that would really apply to her experiences as a senshi. If her suspicions were right, and he was a knight, she could use the opportunity to learn a great deal about them.

How strange, she thought. He was so strong and intimidating, but now he's just like... A normal guy. She regarded him quizzically, as his sudden shift in demeanor was bizarre and unwarranted. Perhaps it had something to do with the battle? Maybe he inflated himself like a balloon to look strong and confident in the face of the enemy, but instantly returned to his normal self afterward? Was this some sort of special tactic taught to the knights of earth? Or, maybe it was an effect of being a knight of earth? A thousand questions buzzed in Leda's head with no end in sight.

Leda grinned upon hearing his name. "Camelot? That's so cute!" She recalled vaguely spun tales of King Arthur and his court in the legendary castle. It seemed so quaint, yet so fitting. "So does your name have anything to do with, like, the knights of the round table? Ooh, is that the name of your group of knights or something? Oh, oh!" She practically jumped with enthusiasm. "I know! Your real name is arthur and you live in this really big castle place and just called yourself Camelot because it... made sense..." Her tangent waned. "Um... Sorry." She turned her gaze toward the ground and caught a reflection of herself in his armored boots.

The throbbing pain in her arm soon demanded her attention, and her hand returned to the wound to cover it. It still burned. Her burst of energy didn't mute the pain for long, and the distraction of the man's name only served to postpone the attention her injuries deserved. Thankfully, his words grounded her in reality once again. "Oh, these?" After a quick glance at her shoulder, she looked up at the older man. "Yeah, um... Do you have any band-aids maybe?" She knew little of proper medical care, and considered treating the cuts with antibiotics and bandages.

Upon drawing her hand back, Leda spotted a blotchy line of blood on her hand, outlining the shape of her cut. She quickly covered it again. "Oh, and how did you manage to scare off that girl? She just... left, really fast. Does it have something to do with your shield?" Despite the bother of her injuries, she still intended to inquire about the knights and their abilities.

"Oop? That's a weird name." She laughed. Leda remembered that concealing her identity was of paramount importance, as explained by one of the guardian cats. However, it made more sense for her to simply share her identity with her allies, since it seemed a whole lot less complicated than trying to remain isolated from everyone. Then again, how weird would it be if she was hanging out with a powered-down senshi? She'd hate for a shopping spree to turn into a discussion about the negaverse, or how they should go train next Tuesday.

Still, she couldn't help wondering why Camelot didn't just tell her his identity. Maybe it was a trust thing.

It mattered little; she became distracted almost instantly when the knight wrapped a piece of his sash around her arm, concealing her wound. "Thank you!" She attempted to hug him again, and this time, she was wary of the armor. "I'll um... I'll give it back when I see you next time, okay?" Come to think of it, she had no idea if the fuku repaired itself or not. She hadn't been injured in a fight until today. "Oh, I'll make sure to wash it first." Perhaps she should leave out the fabric softener. Then again, a nice soft sash to complement the unforgiving armor might do well for his appearance. He could probably use some different textures to break up the intensity of the armor, too.

Oh, right... She was getting off track again.

She backpedaled to their earlier and more serious conversation. "So you must be super powerful, right? And what exactly does your shield do, other than... normal shield stuff?" She wasn't aware of how a knight worked, and this was the perfect opportunity to straighten that out. "I saw it make some kind of glow, or shimmer or something. Do you have magic too?" Idly she wondered if he could just bash his shield into someone and send them flying into buildings. The idea seemed almost comical, but deadly effective as well. She wouldn't mind seeing that agent get shield pummeled, but only if she survived. "And if you do have magic, why didn't you use it on that girl?"

Her gaze was drawn to the rooftops, searching for any sign of the girl. She didn't feel the agent, yet, but that didn't stop her from looking. Even with her new knight friend, the streets weren't safe. She wasn't guaranteed safety just because she remained in another's company. "I hope she doesn't come back," she found herself muttering. "I don't really want to see her get hurt, but I don't want to get hurt either." It was a war, but even wars held some degree of diplomacy. The agent didn't seem like the talking type, though.

What Camelot had to say both fascinated her and sparked her curiosity. "A magic crystal? So do all knights have little crystal things?" That may not be the proper terminology, but she hoped he understood the gist of what she was trying to say. "Wow, knights sound really awesome! I wish the senshi got cool shields and crystals and things. Maybe fighting would get a lot easier." Then again, she would prefer it if fighting was entirely avoidable.

Leda was relieved to hear the knight mention his hesitance for fighting. "Do you think there's a way? I mean, it'd be really nice if we could just... stop fighting and be done with this war." She sighed. "I'm no good at fighting, and you probably figured that out already. But, I mean, I don't really want to be good at it if it's avoidable." She kicked at the ground. "This whole thing looks like one giant stalemate. And I know we can't just stop fighting and let them have their way, but they're not going to stop either. It's just bad news, for all sides."

Looking skyward once again, Leda scanned the rooftops. Nothing appeared amiss. They were still safe, for now.

She turned toward Camelot once again. "If you find a way to purge the Chaos without killing them, th- eek!" She jumped as a shuriken collided with the concrete, precariously close to Leda's foot. Upon wheeling around to face the direction from whence it came, she spotted the agent once again. This time, a shadowy-looking hound stood at her side. The girl pointed at Leda, and the youma descended from its perch on the building.

Leda had little time to prepare. She adopted a ludicrous battle stance and mentally prepared herself for dealing with the dog. She wound up her attack, waiting until the youma was within her range, then unleashed an arc of steam upon it. She nearly jumped for joy when it landed, and was highly relieved to watch it stumble backward and yelp. However, the attack didn't deter it for long, and she soon had to ready herself for a youma assault.

She didn't have time to call out for Camelot when the youma was upon her. It bit and thrashed much like a real dog, and she tried desperately to push on its neck and deter it from ripping her throat out. Despite her struggles, the strength of the youma dog was greater than hers, and it slowly closed in on her skin. She instinctively brought her feet beneath the youma's body and kicked it off of her. Even as she stood up, the dog had recovered and began its charge toward her once again. Though exhausted, she knew she had to land one last attack on it if she wanted to avoid becoming dog food.

The youma charged with reckless abandon, and she focused the last of her energy into a final attack. She aimed as best she could before releasing her attack. Luckily for her, the youma lacked the cognizance to duck and weave in its charge, and its shadowy skull split apart when impacted by the steam. Leda stood in shock and fright as the dog-youma rolled across the alley, twitching and kicking with nothing but sheer hate in its eyes. Slowly it dissipated into the shadows and left naught in its wake. She could not bring herself to shift her gaze elsewhere, nor even look for the location of the captain. That fading glimmer of derision was hypnotizing.

She finally snapped out of her shellshocked state when a shuriken came uncomfortably close to her face. The weapon landed unceremoniously, clattering across the floor and rolling to a stop atop a crumpled newspaper. It shifted slightly in the breeze and bore the weapon toward the far wall of the alley, not far from where the youma dissipated. Leda watched it for a few long moments before turning her attention toward her new knight friend.

He appeared just as confused as she was. "Ooh, are you okay?" She asked, approaching him. She stopped in her tracks once she spotted the agent lying on the concrete. "... Is she okay?" Leda hesitated to approach her, in case it was an ambush, but her intuition hinted at something more tragic. She looked to Camelot for reassurance before approaching the motionless body.

The hood collapsed almost instantly under her touched. It exposed the girl's deep blue hair, and Leda brushed a few wispy strands away from the girl's face. The girl's stare was unnerving, as if focused on something a thousand yards away. She had the gaze of a shark. She laid without movement, without feeling, without life. As Leda pressed her fingers to the girl's neck, her suspicions were confirmed.

Tears welled up in her eyes, hot and turbulent. "Oh my god.." Leda stood up and backed away from the body. "She's dead!" She didn't want to believe it, but the facts stood before her, cold and unmoving as the agent's body. "I didn't think this would happen..." She pressed her hands against her face and sniffled. It was the first time she's ever seen someone so lifeless. Before, she hadn't really fathomed what it would look or feel like to have killed someone, or been a direct cause in their demise.

"What do we do now?" She asked the knight. Using the sleeve of her fuku, she wiped the tears from her eyes. It was necessary for her to mourn the loss of another human being, albeit an enemy, but this wasn't the time nor place for such things. She sniffled once again. "We can't just leave her here. And what about her family? I'm sure she has a family... I mean, how will they find out? Things didn't have to be this way, did they? I don't want to be a part of this war if I have to face things like this..." She let out a despondent sigh.

Killing the youma was one thing. She managed to distance herself from the death due to it being a personification of evil. She couldn't relate to it. It didn't look human. It didn't behave with any emotion aside from pure, unadulterated hatred. It attacked ferociously, with no hesitance to preserve its well being. But the agent... The agent didn't behave in the same manner. She was a living being, much like Leda, with hopes and dreams and aspirations. All of that dissipated with her death, and all that remained was a crumpled body in the entrance of the alleyway.

Leda nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. "You're right. We'll just draw more attention to ourselves if we stay here." Another ambush might occur, or a passerby might snap a picture of the scene and send it to the local news station... That could lead to a whole lot of bad publicity for both the senshi and the knights. And if the latter happened, then the Negaverse might receive a whole lot of good publicity for attacking the two of them. "If you're sure you're okay, um... taking care of this, I'll try to find someplace safe to power down."

Despite what happened, his honest reaction and perplexed countenance demonstrated to Leda that he was both unprepared for this to happen and uneasy around death. He appeared every bit as shaken up about it as she was.

"Hey," she started. "Try to cheer up a little. At least we're both alive... right?" The alternative was one or both of them would die horrible deaths, and she doubted the girl would've shown any sympathy. "And, um... Thank you for saving me. This whole thing was an accident, right? What happened to her? I don't think you would've done something like that on purpose. So... I guess what I'm saying is, don't be hard on yourself." She didn't know if he would blame himself for what happened, but it helped her just to articulate her feelings over the unfortunate turn of events. "Maybe next time we see each other, something better will happen." She forced a smile.

After one last look at the lifeless body, she reluctantly turned toward the road. She would walk for a ways, maybe find a portable restroom, and power down inside it. She'd lost her enthusiasm over her chance to make a difference in the war. This wasn't the difference she wanted to make. And from the looks of things, this wasn't the difference Camelot wanted to make either. He spoke of purifying the agents; she hoped someday that concept would come to fruition.

She turned around momentarily to wave her goodbyes. Despite the tragedy that followed their meeting, she did not regret befriending the knight. He had a good heart and he was interested in protecting others, not killing them. Perhaps, someday, they could meet again and share brighter stories of agents they've converted to the side of good... If that ever happens.

With a sigh, she began her long walk home. Alone.