Welcome to Gaia! ::

Serpentine listened to the impassioned speech from his chair and, as was often the case, he kept his silence. The first thing he had done after being given a ride to the Rift for this celebration was to take a seat. His sprained ankle had moved beyond merely being painful. It swelled within his spatted boot, which he was currently elevating (as discretely as possible) beneath the table using his other foot.

The second thing he had done was to grab a six pack of the most acceptable beer at the table and popped one open to drink. He was currently nursing his second and not bothering to hide the scowl on his face. The lieutenant was not opposed to celebrating--far from it. The group of officers had done well and deserved to be commended. That a General was taking the time to praise their efforts was in itself wonderful.

But.

It was a very significant 'but.' But he had wounded himself and would have to work less as a result, which he could not afford. But he had had to limp his way out of the final confrontation, when the rest of the officers had banded together. But he had not claimed a single starseed, which glimmered at their end of the table as though to taunt him.

He cracked open his third beer.

"General Painite," he greeted with a nod of his head. He rarely attached a rank along with a name, but she deserved the proper respect tonight. She had led them well, as evidenced by the spoils that gleamed across the table. He made no objection to her taking the beer--why would he? She had, afterall, procured it.

"Smile? Not with this slop." He took another swig of his beer with a haughty sniff. He should have checked harder to see if there had been any Guinness but he had needed to sit to rest. This brand was too light for his taste... but any beer was better than none.

He considered her initial question and shrugged. "The mission went well. All of them deserve your praise. Next time... I will do better." Even saying the words aloud made him frown, however. Was that not what he always told himself? That next time he would improve, do better, get the praise he so yearned for? And every time... did he not fail?

"I feel ready to advance... but seem unable to demonstrate my worth." These words came more slowly, not in a whining fashion but in one frustrated from a lack of expected growth.

Golden eyes maintained a steady gaze on the shorter woman as she spoke. There was much wisdom to be found in her words, and he soaked up the praise inherent in Painite's speech. Yes, he had come and fought to the best of his ability, even after his injury. Yes, he had answered her summons--how could he do anything less? Her pride fueld his own, and although the movements were subtle, he relaxed. His tense muscles relaxed, his posture slacked. His hands gripped the beer just a little looser.

Then, with a small smile of his own, he added, "A pity your taste in beer is not as refined as your speech or strategies." Yet, he still took a large drink, almost a toast to them both. "Your faith is well-placed. I will not fail."

The trip back to the Negaverse was a little bumpier than he would have liked, but never had Buddingtonite been happier to find himself tumbling down the crystal corridors with the clawing hands and appendages on the other side. In fact, he hardly noticed them. Maybe they weren't there? Maybe all of them were used during the Carnival? In truth, Buddingtonite didn't care. He was relieved to be in safe grounds once more, and yet, he didn't feel safe.

He had looked around for Captain Mica, but she was no where to be seen. And while that should have relieved him, it only caused his anxieties to grow. If she wasn't at the party and celebrating with her officers, maybe she was at Howlite's office making the report right now? The thought of it made him sick to his stomach, and though his palette often desired much stronger and more classier liquor, he was quick to dive into the beer that was provided.

"Well, my career in the Negaverse may be over..." Buddingtonite said, taking a spot near the drinks and managing to grab his drink but having problems getting it open thanks to his wounded arm. How panicked was he to get back to the Rift that he almost forgot the injury he received? That seemed so little a concern when Mica was likely reporting his blunder, but still, it was starting to hurt again, and he was quick in trying to open the beer can and down the drink. Even if it was to be his last, he'd try to enjoy this crass horse piss. However, he did not wish to enjoy it alone, and he looked for a familiar face, perhaps someone that could save him from his impending demise? "Here's to oblivion!"

Ordinarily, Amethyst would be wary with regards to what another Negaverse officer might think or say about his meagre contribution to the pile of energy orbs that were already on the table by the time he reached the Rift for the debrief. After all, the varying sizes of the spheres he had gathered were plain for all to see. That didn't seem to matter anymore at this point however, now that he had another reason to be here as he paused to scan the entire room for Buddingtonite's location before making his way over directly to take the empty seat next to the Captain.

He left the redhead to his own thoughts initially, thinking it best that he had some time to himself after going through the entire evening of events. Which he eventually realized probably wasn't the best thing to do with the dark mood Buddingtonite was in judging by his abnormal demeanour and the way he had proposed a toast to oblivion just a few seconds ago.

"You alright?" He cleared his throat as he peered at the Captain in question, worry and concern over the gravity of the situation that might have brought this on lightly lacing his facial features. The guy was obviously bothered, maybe even depressed by something. "I saw what happened with that girl... someone you know?" A brief pause and then a simple word that was added almost as if it was an afterthought. "Girlfriend..?"

Amethyst had his reasons for choosing to forgo the alcohol although it would take a few glasses before his mental faculties started to be affected by it. It was definitely tempting to kick back and go easy on himself after such an intense evening at the carnival but looking at Buddingtonite now, he decided that that could wait since he definitely wanted to keep his wits about him for what he needed to do for the Captain later on.

"Carted away? Now why will anyone do that unless it's for the purpose of making sure that you're fine by confirming for themselves that most of the blood on your uniform isn't yours?" There was a quizzical look on his face from a lack of understanding of the situation that the redhead probably would have to be held accountable for, the Lieutenant making no mention of the civilian in question as he nodded a few times then helped to bring Buddingtonite's arm closer for a cursory examination.

He prodded gently at each of the cuts in turn, trying to gauge for himself if they were as bad as they looked. A trip down to the hospital was unavoidable for sure. "Most of them will likely need nothing more than proper wound care. This particularly deep one however will need a couple of stitches. Might want to go easy on the booze or I'll have to refrain from giving you the really good painkillers. When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?" The moment they got themselves there, he could easily handle things from there.

"S-s-stitches?" Buddingtonite didn't want to even fathom the word being spoken, but he could not deny what the young man had said. He looked down at his and gave a sigh, figuring that there was no way of getting around it. Amethyst was a doctor and he trusted his opinion on the matter, and in regards to his shots, he spat. "I'm not a dog, you know. 'Sides, I don't think you get tetanus from Senshi finger nails... unless you do, then... erm... three years ago?"

He couldn't remember, honestly. He didn't like needles, but he knew better than to avoid his vaccinations. Better a second of discomfort than death by tetanus... he didn't want to THINK about it! "Alright, well... best cart me away to do that, then... maybe they'll show pity on me when they see my stitches and brand me a war hero instead?"

He set the beer down without a second thought and stood, refusing to use Amethyst as a crutch until they were outside of Painite's line of sight. He did not wish to appear weak before her, and no doubt leaning against a lieutenant would have came off that way. He gave her a respectful bow of the head, before grabbing the starseeds and energy he collected that night and setting it down on the table. "In courtesy of Lieutenant Amethyst and myself, my lady. Please, do invite me for the next shindig..."