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Kallichore had actually been looking for the Senshi of Wasps for quite some time, worried that perhaps she had chased him away when she didn't mean to. Being kind or warm or even compassionate were very difficult things for her to do and the eternal senshi had been kicking herself internally for this.

She wanted to know if was safe, and to make an offer to him.

She had heard Pasiphae and Valhalla in her mind after their initial meeting, how offering peace rather than pain would be so much more beneficial to someone, especially in Vespa's delicate position. And so she'd been searching every corrupted super signature she could find with no luck. Little did she know she was no longer looking for a super, but an eternal. Not wanting to give away her mission, any corrupted senshi she met were not questioned as to his whereabouts. If Kallichore roused suspicion, it would be all the worse for both of them.

Finally, she stopped for a rest in tall oak tree. She felt a corrupted eternal signature and was about to leave when she cast a glance in that direction, peering through the canopy of budding leaves to see a familiar burst of long blonde hair and compound visor. Not wanting to startle the young man, Kallichore dropped from a tree some thirty yards away and didn't bother to approach quietly. She knew her signature would give her away long before any noise she made would. The madness senshi called ahead, just in case.

"...Vespa? Is that you?"

The White Moon senshi before him looked nothing but concerned, a bit pained. Kallichore wasn't interested in a fight.

"No. I'm not here to fight you, Vespa." In a gesture of peace, Kallichore lifted her hands as if showing she was unarmed. She knew it didn't make a bit of difference when it came to senshi magic but thought the gesture would be kind nonetheless. She stood in place, not moving an inch from the spot where Vespa had laid eyes on her. She noted the bat wings and the increased signature and, assuming he was still upset the way he was last time they met, chose not to mention it. "...I came to make a pledge to you, if you'd hear me out."

Kallichore watched and waited, trying to gauge how he would react based on this small bit of information.

Kallichore figured it would be best to cut to the chase, so to speak, without confusing the situation any further.

She walked toward him very slowly. "...are you serious about wanting to leave the Negaverse?" came the first question, the rest in rapid succession. "I want you to be honest with me - I don't want to end up backstabbed and betrayed at the last moment and end up wasting time entirely. I'm really not in the mood to waste my time."

When that was all well and established, Kallichore crossed her arms. "I'm not... very good at this, so I'm not going to fluff this up too much. But... if you really are willing to leave the Negaverse, I'd like to help you. I haven't met anyone who has left the Negaverse or even expressed the desire to. I know it can be done, and I know who can do it, but I can only assume how difficult it would be for you and your family. You said once that the higher-ups could threaten your friends and family if they wanted to." The last thing Kallichore wanted was for Vespa to purify and then immediately regret it because his family would then be in extreme danger. "I don't know everything that needs to be done, but I want to help where I can. If the Negaverse threatens you, I'll protect you. My Court may even be able to provide more protection..."

What did he think of all this?

This isn’t who I am. This doesn't feel right.

Kallichore closed her eyes and solemnly nodded. She thought there was a great deal of wisdom even in that short statement. Being self-aware enough to know when something isn't right, when the marching orders you're given don't match the look you see in your commanding officer's eyes. Being that the Negaverse operates like a military from what she could see, the lower ranks may not even have a choice in the matter. They may have their family and friends threatened if they don't carry out orders - exactly what Vespa was afraid of. And that bloodlust in the eyes of someone you knew... her own experience with Ares and the Blood Moon Court made her very familiar with it.

"Vespa, I think you are good at something." came a quiet response. Kallichore turned to her left and faced the endless rows of trees, as if asking what they saw in him too. "You're the first Negaverse agent, senshi or otherwise, I've ever met who questioned why things were. Everyone else just shrugs and keeps killing, or doesn't care, or doesn't want to think about it at all. The worst are the officers who gleefully spill blood and sever families and leave children orphans. The ability to look at oneself objectively..."

She turned back to him then. "...that is a real talent."

Folding her hands, the eternal looked off somewhere to Vespa's left, eyes somewhat unfocused as she thought aloud. "Admittedly, I don't know all of the mechanics behind purification. I know more about corruption - corruption seems easier, almost. Your memories become addled at best, erased completely at worse, and you go on as if nothing happened. I have no idea if this happens when one purifies. But I can find out." Brown eyes focused on him again, searching. "I have a Primer. I wrote it several years ago to try and guide new senshi, but it's in need of updating. I had planned to speak to the royals I know and get some questions answered for the Primer. But for you?" She made a fist with one hand and punched her open palm. "Two birds, one stone."

His next question was intelligent, important. "Can I protect you? Yes, I believe in my abilities. I stood up to Ares and came out alive. It's been three years since I awakened and I'm still powering up. That had to account for something. And besides..." Kallichore let her hands drop and opened them to look at her palms. "...you've never been hit with my attack. Believe me, I haven't met a Chaos officer who enjoyed it. I think I gave Benitoite nightmares. I am the Senshi of Madness, you know."

"If there's ever a time to be a successful failure, I'd say this is it." she replied with a shrug. "They only want mindless serial killers as far as I can tell - be they someone who takes orders or gives the order to kill."

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Kallichore started to create a mental to-do list, filling it with people she needed to talk to and what answers she'd seek, what favors she may have to call in. "Vespa... what is their goal? Did they tell you? Why do they keep pulling starseeds and bringing youma to the city? The youma don't seem to react to Chaos agents... do they react to you? Why do they drain energy? I..." She stopped herself, tapping her fingers against her mouth. "...I'm sorry. I went into Primer mode. I just think... if you do end up losing some of your memories, it might be best to tell us what you know beforehand. I don't know what might happen. You may not forget anything at all. I simply don't know. I'm sorry."

She wished she could give more information than that, but she had precious little experience with it. "What matters now is that you know what's going on is wrong. I don't know what story they told you to get you to join, or if you even joined willingly. But... you wouldn't be a sacrifice. You'd be a guide - a teacher. An example. If there are others like you, questioning their place, perhaps they're too frightened to come forward. Perhaps they don't have your bravery to even talk about it, let alone talk about it with one of your 'enemies'." Kallichore turned away for a moment, taking small, slow, deliberate steps in no particular direction. "I'm sure they told you we're evil, or we want to enslave the world under a dead queen or some such nonsense. Or have they moved on from that?"

... it's better to be useless than a mindless monster, right? Which would you prefer?

"I'd prefer you didn't speak about yourself like that, Vespa." came the curt reply. Kallichore looked over her shoulder at him, brows furrowed in concern. "No White Moon Senshi is useless. We may not all have the same powers but... we all have our talents."

"I've pushed you too much and for that, I apologize."

It was Kallichore's turn to wring her hands, chewing on her lower lip as she realized she probably overstepped some boundaries and asked too much of Vespa too soon. He was in a very precarious and dangerous position and pushing too much in either direction could lead to very dire consequences. "Regardless of what happens or what you think of yourself, what you're doing is very brave, and no one can take that away from you. But what they can take away...." Kallichore gently pointed to Vespa's chest, the great and cavernous hole that the Negaverse had punched through his body to corrupt his soul. "...are those. I know most of the royalty on our side. I'm not best friends with them by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm aware of what they're capable of. They can heal your wounds, Vespa, and deliver you from darkness."

She stayed silent for a while, thinking. The wind blew gently, caressing their hair and she looked up. "I'll be sure to make something happen for you, one way or another." Kallichore nodded firmly, both to herself and to him. "But first thing's first - I'll speak to my Court. I have other things I need to bring up as well. I'll petition them if I have to, to offer you some protection. While we can't travel into the Negaverse with you, we can keep you safe out here. And from there..." She trailed off, tapping her chin absently as she began to pace, planning.

"We'll keep this as secret as possible. I don't want the Negaverse finding out about this at the last moment and..." Kallichore didn't finished. She trusted Vespa would know exactly what she meant. "...but you're not an abomination. You can't blame yourself for doing what you thought was right. If it makes you feel any better, I would have done the same thing were I in your position."

Kallichore shook her head. "Don't worry about it - whatever information you can provide is extremely helpful."

I'm not pure... not like you, or her...

The eternal senshi could understand his line of thinking - that obeying an order despite one's own reservations made one an evil thing. But that wasn't how Kallichore saw it. "You were doing what you were told to do, Vespa. We're told that we're soldier. White Moon Senshi just don't have anyone to report to. I don't think anyone could blame you for following orders. I mean, how often are we presented one, with magical powers and two, some terrifying commanding officer? Who wouldn't follow orders if they were in your shoes? And what's more, there's a reason you're afraid of the Negaverse - we all are. What matters most is that you recognize their evil and you're doing what you can to get out."

She walked slowly to him, feeling the soft ground give way beneath her feet. "Vespa, for what it's worth, we've all made our mistakes. None of us are entirely pure or righteous or just or fair. But we do the best we can." Her voice was slow, even. She imagined she was speaking to her younger brother, trying to help him hold his head high all while offering a shoulder to lean on. Kallichore didn't know how well she could do in that department, but she gave it her best shot. "The best I can do is offer you protection for now, and I'll speak to my Court on your behalf. Until you're ready to be rid of the Negaverse and we can arrange for a royal to see you, keep your head down. Follow orders, try not to let on that anything is amiss, okay?"

She backed up then, crossing her arms across her chest and breathing out a heavy sigh. "...we'll get you through this. That's my goal."