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Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 6:11 pm
Everything was back to normal. Supposedly. Everything was supposed to be back to normal and if it wasn't back to normal, then Babylon was probably going to panic and freak out and throw a hissy fit at the world, because things were supposed to be back to normal, sweet new uniform aside. That he couldn't stop staring at every time he caught sight of his reflection. It was a problem. Probably. "Is there anything weird about my aura?" he asked Mistral, for the nth time that evening. "Like, what does it feel like? I'm pretty sure I ******** some s**t up and I have no idea how much." Like, for example, he had glowing blue circuit marks everywhere. (He'd checked. Literally everywhere.) His eyes still glowed blue. He'd never heard of that happening and was slightly worried about some kind of delayed reaction that was going to blow him to bits. But if Cosmos said he was okay... "You doing okay, buddy?" he asked Mistral's dog, reaching down to pat Mendel between his floppy, fuzzy ears. He'd been unsure about bringing a dog with them on patrol, but so long as he had Mistral with him it was a good estimate for how much physical activity was too much - anything the dog couldn't do, she couldn't do, either. Anyway, they turned the corner, and were greeted by the unmistakable sound of someone blowing chunks. Which wasn't so weird in and of itself, since there were plenty of bars in this neighborhood, but the mid-level negaverse signature in the same general area was sort of... worrying. "Stay back a bit," he instructed Mistral as they approached. "Okay?" The captain came into view, and Babylon was surprised to see Titan puking his guts out under a streetlamp. "Hey, Titan, buddy," he said, approaching slowly. He waved Mistral forward. "You okay?" Vomiting was a symptom of not being okay, usually. "You look pretty roughed up. What's up?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2014 12:26 am
Mistral was glad to be out on patrol. She was not glad to be practically babysitting Babylon. Only a year separated their ages, but sometimes she felt like she was twenty-three going on three thousand and he was exactly twelve. It was… an interesting sensation. "Yes, Babylon," she said, again. "It feels cleaner than it did before your uniform changed." Not that the glowing marks were a negligible change, though. They were a little unnerving. She wanted to ask if that was a normal part of being a Mercury knight, but that would be stupid. He'd met the senshi of the cosmos. That would leave a mark, and it would be a mark unlike one she could collect simply from exploring and mapping her wonder. "It doesn't seem dangerous. If you start getting sick, I am sure Mendel will over-react--" and, as if on cue, Mendel barked, ears flattening back. "Yeah, okay," she said, when Babylon told her to hang back; she took a careful grip on Mendel's collar and stayed, trying not to feel too queasy herself. Just beyond Babylon, there was an absolute mountain of a Negaverse agent, stronger than any she'd encountered before--well, any that she hadn't promptly hidden from. She'd never seen the General who had been looking for a way to take a message to Babylon. "Babylon," she hissed, a little surprised to see him actually approaching a Negaverser. The man was wearing a skull on his shoulder. His shoulders wouldn't fit through the door to her apartment. Her apprehension was noticeable, and she hung back a few paces behind Babylon with her grip tight on Mendel's collar. Obviously, if it came to a fight, she would send her dog running. "You're friends with one of them? Aren't they, like, evil?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2014 3:01 am
If he'd had the wherewithal for it, Titan would have spooked and panicked further to feel yet another Knight aura approach. Worse, a Knight aura with an accompanying smaller not-quite-so-knightly knight. He felt them, vaguely, but his focus was more on his hand and arm that gripped the lamp so that he didn't end up hands and knees in bile. Or his braid. The voice drew his attention shakily upwards, familiar despite the blur in and out of a uniform pattern that wasn't. Or glowy eyes. Gods, not another one. I don't have it in me to teleport again. I don't think I can even summon my hammer, that far. The captain threw more effort to trying to bring his frame to heel, lifting other hand up to mouth to make use of the glove before biting the edge of it to pull it off and cast it away. His vision focused slowly. "Babylon?" It looked mostly like Babylon. It sounded absolutely like Babylon. That cannot be so bad, can it? To be found by Babylon. But there is another one with him...it wasn't certain if we could be friends if someone else was around. There were dog sounds, too- Do knights have war dogs? I'm so ********>
"Are you going to kill me? I cannot fight like this. Too far."
"Teleported too far."
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2014 10:47 am
Mistral was about to blow up his spot, and Titan was ready for death, and neither of these were things that Babylon particularly wanted to come to pass. "Yes, it's a long story," he said to Mistral lowly. He thus far had been trying to keep his friendship with Titan on the down low, for both their safety and the sake of his his attempts to purify him. "What?" he asked incredulously, approaching the captain. "No, I'm not going to kill you. Why would I go and do a stupid thing like that? We're friends, remember?" He reached out, giving the big captain a friendly pat on the shoulder (the one that wasn't covered in a giant skull). "Mistral?" he called, "This is Captain Titanlåvenite." He'd been practicing the name in his spare time. "Titan, for short. Titan, this is Mistral Page of Mercury. And, uh, her dog." The dog did not have a glamour, so he was not sure it was wise to share his name in case it became too much of a giveaway of her identity. "So, um, what's up?" he asked. "You been fighting?" Hopefully he hadn't been fighting with one of Babylon's friends. This was morally tricky - he'd download Mistral on the whole situation later. "Come on, let's, uh, there's a bench about ten paces to your left. Can you make it?" He hoped so, because much longer and the smell of vomit would make him puke as well.
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Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2014 1:14 pm
They could ******** teleport? Mistral lurched back a step, alarmed, and Mendel barked again, a warning bark that said step off. "Shh, no," she said, scratching him behind the ears gently. "He's hurt, sweetie. He's not going to do anything to us." She spoke partly to reassure her dog, and partly to reassure herself--Babylon wouldn't expose her to danger like that. He knew her limits, and she trusted him to respect them, even for a Negaverser he was friends with. Mistral ventured a little closer, wrinkling up her nose at the smell and trying not to gag. "It's good to meet you, Titan," she ventured. Holy s**t, he was huge. If she hadn't met the dark Lieutenant, just seeing this guy… she'd wonder if all of them were so extremely… massive. "Although I guess it could've been in better circumstances." Was she supposed to be trying to kill people? Because, haha… not going to happen.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 2:20 am
Can I make it...? This is a good question. I wish the sidewalk wouldn't move so much. "You've practiced your Norsk...." Titan gave a weak smile and squinted both eyes appreciatively. "Godt upplag gjerer godt nedlag.*" "And you, Mistral of Mercury. I am sorry I am not presentable." Really sorry. It was a terrible first impression to be shakey, out of sorts, vomiting and all over...just not. This was one of Babylon's own. And a lady. Well...kindof? The pigtails were very cute, but they made her look young. Ladies can be young too, ja? Just a young lady. But why did Babylon bring her over to meet him if she was? Lady's did not need to be seeing oaf's vomiting like meadhall rejects. He wished he had the excuse of alcohol. "There was a terrible knight...A great bull of gold and leather. Mostly I wanted him to go away, and nothing I did worked. Not motorcycles, not my hammer. " "Terrifying." Trying to make the bench, following the wishes of the resident lord and lady, involved leaving the safety of the third-point-contact he had with the lamp post and trying to walk. Trying was a good way to put it. Mostly he just made it a step and then went down on one knee. Thankfully the bile was roadside and not walky-space side. "It is like being too drunk- I don't think I can without a third point." Did that make sense? Well, if walking couldn't serve, and he already had shown himself poorly able to follow simple directions from a high lord like 'walk', there was no reason to bother with being upright. Titan set to just hands-and-kneesing it in slow, dizzied progression to that bench. He wanted to ask if Babylon ever GOT drunk, but it wasn't polite conversation to be had in front of a lady. Silverah equivalent idiom- A good beginning makes a good ending.*
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 8:51 am
Oh. So he was going to crawl over to the bench? Okay. Babylon followed Titan across to the bench, and leaned down to help the bigger man get settled. The knight he'd been fighting with sounded like Kairatos, and he debated whether he ought to mention knowing him. Giving Titan a name would likely only serve to make Kairatos a target, and even moreso depending on how much of his history the knight had divulged. "Alright, man, just take it easy," he said, stepping back from the bench. There was enough room for Mistral to sit, he thought - if she wanted to. Titan had luckily not puked all over himself. "I have not practiced my Norsk enough to know anything about what that means." Or at all, besides the name. Should he learn some Norsk if he wanted to convince Titan to purify? It seemed like a lot of work... Maybe he was worth it. He'd give it some more thought. "So you uh, you got away? You kill him?" he asked, coming back to the topic of Kairatos. Without revealing too much, he wanted to find out about his friend's condition. He doubted that Titan would be able to get the best of a knight, but that hammer had started looking mighty mean since his promotion. "Anyway, just take some deep breaths," he said, resting a hand on Titan's titanic bicep and crouching in front of him. "See if your head starts to settle down. Mistral, you okay? You want to sit down?"
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 9:19 am
"You're fine," said Mistral. It came out dismissive, though she hadn't meant it that way, and she winced. "I mean, I get it. You're not feeling well. It happens." s**t! She was digging a hole with her mouth that her face was not going to fill. Although… he didn't seem very angry. Or very frightening at all, beyond his size, and also the great skull on his shoulder. She found herself trying to measure orbitals and tell what kind of skull it was--maybe some kind of-- She watched Titan lurch forward, and had to physically stop herself from lunging forward to help. He did seem drunk… but more coherent. Less drunk, then, more like… a panic attack? What could she do to help? If she didn't start fights, maybe she wouldn't have to find someone else to finish them for her, was the thought. "I'm sorry he wouldn't leave you be," said Mistral, hanging back and feeling obscurely guilty for reasons she couldn't really explain. No part of her wanted to hear that another knight had died. She settled herself primly next to Titan, Mendel padding alongside her and putting his big furry head in her lap. "Babylon, do you have a light? He might be concussed." If Babylon acted like Titan was a friend, Mistral was damn well going to do the same. Part of being friends with someone was not letting them stay injured grievously without doing something to help them--and a concussion was a dangerous injury. To Titan, she said, "How did this happen? What do you remember? Can you tell me?"
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 1:33 pm
"I only got away by teleporting. If I were still a lieutenant, I might be dead. No, I don't think I could have killed him. Nothing slowed him down. He was growling through his words, I think he was very angry." Seated was very good. Babylon had good ideas. Mistral's apparent abrasiveness didn't even seem to register to Titan. Nobles could be contrary if they liked, they had a lot more going on in their lives than he did. When Babylon asked if she would sit, Titan quirked while looking at her, trying to discern if the poor thing was wounded. Babylon wouldn't take a wounded soldier out into danger, would he? "Oh, no, I don't think I have any concussion. Nothing hit my head. Nothing vital in there. " "I was at Michigan Jack's out by the highways. It's easier to just be there, not much trouble since they all wear leather, too. The knight came. We fought. He had a lot of motocycles to get over, so he didn't get near me until the end. He had a net. " "You know, " sitting and breathing, talking it through meant it had a chance to clear through a bit, "I think he said he name was Realgar. Do you know him?" And to find him? Why would I do that? Why would I go looking for an invincible opponent? " Something about choosing- It isn't very clear. I was so panicked at the time. I left as soon as I could focus on a place, whatever the first place was. " But being a captain all of a month hadn't meant a lot of practice in using the skill, let alone to go so far. Not very impressive for a Captain. But then, Babylon is a friend. He's got some idea of me already, to have agreed to that.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 2:41 pm
"Do I have a light," Babylon snorted incredulously. He called his lantern to hand - unchanged, despite his new uniform - and handed it off to Mistral. "Does that work?" he asked, realizing she meant to check Titan's pupils. "I don't have anything more like a flashlight, unfortunately," he said, reaching over to give Mendel a scratch behind the ears. The dog was being mercifully well-behaved given the circumstances, but he was well-behaved in general. Therapy canine training was impressive. "Realgar," repeated Babylon, clicking his tongue. The name didn't tell him anything he hadn't deduced already from the knight's appearance. "Yeah. That was his Negaverse name," he said, figuring it would do Kairatos no damage to confirm that much. "He used to be an officer. Like you. He has some grudges to settle and it's nothing personal." Most of the war wasn't. He didn't think that it was a good idea to try to sell Titan further on purification tonight, however. Babylon was increasingly sure that he'd done as much as he could and needed to give the captain some time to think, and not push his luck further until Titan raised more questions to him. "I'd still like it if you'd let her check," he said, biting his lip. "Nausea can be a symptom- although, you think that's the teleporting, yeah? Mistral's got some first aid training. We both do." He moved out of the way to let Mistral do her thing, and then tried to assess what other damage Titan may have taken. "So, let me get this straight," said Babylon. "You guys were hurling motorcycles at each other?" Call that multiple thousands of dollars of property damage. No wonder people thought they were terrorists! "You take any hits? How are your ribs - any trouble breathing?" Babylon hadn't planned on ending tonight by trying valiantly to carry a guy twice his size to the emergency room, but he would.
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2014 7:57 pm
Nothing vital? Nothing vital excuse her there was so much vital in his head, what was he, an idiot?--the disconnect between her thoughts was not obvious to her--"Humor me, please," she said, patiently, accepting Babylon's lantern with a little wince. The great big star wouldn't exactly do what she needed, but it would do enough. She got off the bench, hefted the lantern up, and watched the size of Titan's pupils carefully. "He's not concussed," she told Babylon, handing the lantern back and sitting with a hand pressed against her side. Her recent trips about the galaxy had not been kind to her insides, and she wished she had been a little more circumspect about them. "I can send M-my dog to get help if it's needed," said Mistral. "He's trained to do that." Mendel's whining sound was a little heart-rending; he didn't like being around people who were physically overtaxed, but what was she supposed to do? Tell this Negaverser to henshin down and take a nap? "Teleportation takes energy, probably," she said, thinking of Babylon's new tricks. "Nausea and difficulty walking… he might just be exhausted." Or it was the aftermath of a panic attack. Or both? She glanced between Titan('s massive shoulder) and Babylon. "Is it normal for people like us to be able to throw motorcycles," she asked, skeptically. She'd never seen anyone she knew do that. But… no one she knew was as large as Titan. And she'd only ever seen Babylon fight anything once. Not a representative sampling, that.
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Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2014 2:14 am
That was a Negaverse name?? It doesn't even have that 'ite' at the end...oh, I guess Obsidian doesn't either. He was from the negaverse?? Wait..There was the sneaky, dawning realization that he HAD seen a bunch of letters that probably were pronounced that way once. R-E-A-L-G-A-R...and it was when I was trying to study and memorize the roster of my division a long ways back. It was a superior officer. So....much for memory.Not too mention a little more of what the man had been going on about, 'standing' in the metaphorical sense, finally dawned. Titan nodded slowly, looking a little like he'd had the epiphany that he had had. "So...you're saying he's a knight now...like a agent that purified and was a knight actually. A knight-knight, not a squire-knight." Whether the power level had anything to do with the involved processes being lost somewhat on Titan. But that meant there was more than just the example of Lina, right? The captain didn't lift a hand or give Mistral any hassle, pleasantly trying to follow her finger or the light or whatever she wanted to do as far as first aid. By a lady's pleasure was always the better way to go, rather than facing their wrath. "Is the lady training to be a doctor? Oh, no, he didn't throw any motorcycles. He was just trying to get over the other parked ones. He probably could though, like you. Knight's and Generals and Eternal's are all so strong. " "I didn't take any from him, other than his net tangling my wrists, " Titan lifted a hand to look at it experimentally, not really aware or bothered by any small bruising and cuts that came of the rete. "A few scuffles with some bikers, but their fists aren't so bad as a captain. Nothing broken, just bruising. " He would have lifted his shirt to actually show Babylon, but again...lady present. And dog. He didn't try to touch it or get its attention- if it was a war dog, that would just be a terrible idea. He didn't want to have to get stitches in his arm.
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Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2014 9:41 am
"A knight-knight, yeah," nodded Babylon, taking his lantern back from Mistral. He was not sure what difference the distinction of rank made to Titan, but he'd answer the question for whatever it was worth, Vanishing the lantern, he added, "He stands equal in rank to me," and looked over at Mistral. He didn't think of his lantern as being heavy, but he'd had a lot of time to get used to its heft - and she was in poorer condition than usual. He reached over, pressing a gentle hand to her shoulder, and considered Titan's story about the fight as he focused on giving her a boost. "Not a doctor, no," he said. "Just... field medicine. Things you would need if you were out in the wilderness and you or a companion were to be injured." Babylon slipped his hand away from Mistral's back, blinked a few times to clear his head, and said, "I'm not so sure I could throw a motorcycle." Not, of course, that he'd ever tried. Would he be able to pass energy to Titan, he wondered. He didn't see why not, but Chaos and Order magic interacted in strange ways. Best to evaluate the situation a bit more, decide if it was really necessary. "Okay," he said. "I'll take your word for nothing broken. You start coughing up blood later, you go to the hospital, okay?" Babylon Knight: professional mother hen. He turned his attention to the gash. Balling up some of his cape in his fist, he said, "I'm just going to wipe away some of the blood and get a better look at this, okay?" He did as he said. The cut didn't look terribly deep - if it had been worse, it had already started to heal. "Thank the Cauldron for magical healing," he muttered, the oath coming naturally to his lips. He'd never said that before - who said that? Menachem had said that sometimes. "Go home, clean this up, put some bandages on it, and you should be okay." Not that Titan was in any position to be going anywhere. "Let's just sit for a bit, though," suggested Babylon, easing up onto the bench's concrete arm. "And then when you feel well enough to travel, you let us know." He waved a shaky OK hand gesture at Mistral - you alright?
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Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:13 am
Mistral winced, a little. Being a doctor would be useful, but there was no way she could swing that much stress on her body. Stand for eight hours at a time? Oh, no. That would just not… ever… happen. "My name's Mistral," she sighed, "and I was going to be a park rescuer." She didn't comment about Babylon's unilateral decision that she looked wilty. His new… energy-giving… thing was about as refreshing as a cool shower after a hot day's hike, but with less muscle aches and pains. Also, more energy. She didn't feel nearly as awful as she had before he had put palm to her shoulder. "It makes sense," she said. "If a knight can become corrupted, then surely an agent can purify." Maybe she hadn't told Babylon, but Mistral had met Avalon. She knew just how wrong those transfers could go. A little shiver of apprehension coursed down her spine at the thought--Titan seemed very sweet, but every Negaverser she'd ever met before this one tended to attack on sight. Or, uh, chase on sight. "I am never going to be able to lift a motorcycle," she sighed, as Mendel padded his way around to Titan's knee and looked up at him with big blue doe eyes. "Sweetheart," she groaned, as her dog set his head on the bench near one of Titan's hands. "Let's not, okay?… I'm fine, Babylon, really. I am not about to seize on you. Pinky swear."
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Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2014 8:28 pm
He gave what he hoped was a reassuring nod to Babylon on the state of visiting hospitals, watching the man looking over his hand. His hands are so small, for all the power in him. Fit. Keeps himself well. For all I know, I could see him all the time at the gym. Maybe I've talked to him. Or maybe he is a policeman. Or a Fireman. Or a park ranger. Or ...something. But so small. Both of them. Its so kind of them to both...just stay here, concerned. Mercury knights are very kind. I wish we could have alliances with knights. I would rather protect them than have to fight them. Like...that mars knight. "Oh, yes, that wasn't in question, " Titan assured her. "There was already at least one in Linarite. Babylon even mentioned her, and its known in the Negaverse that she did. It makes sense that if someone had real power, they could go either way...choosing what lord they chose power from. " If they have power. I had none. I was just a guy before all this. They choose the throne of the Negaverse or ....their.....Land. Like they were all Jarls in the before-before when high kings and queens and that large scale unity did not exist yet. But they are still just called....Knights. Or...Princes. What even makes a queen in this odd power struggle? Ares is a Queen. Metallia is a Queen. But they say the Sushi follow princesses. And Babylon said he was sworn to his land and not to a person and it just ....gives him more strength at random. It is all so strange.
I wonder if it would be better to just be a person. I wonder if my lord would just be a person, or a knight. Either must be better than what has come. It must be.
He couldn't even think the words of the outcome, even knowing them in his gut. The starseed addiction led one way, if it was not curbed. "Did you swear to a place too, Mistral? Not a person. " He looked down at the pitiful, doggy face and lifted a hand to hazard to pet the beast, hovering it between the ears for a moment in hesitation. Then carefully let it drop onto doggy head to pet.
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