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 Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 8:37 pm
Camelot walked carefully through the forest, well away from the city, and away from their hidden little base of operations. It was a very isolated area, and sometimes he had a very difficult time finding it when the lighting was slightly different and he came at the wrong time of the day. But he did not have too much trouble finding it today.
A mirror, covered in leaves and bush remnants to hide it, was propped up against a tree. He uncovered it and stepped back, glancing up at the sky to try and guess what time it was. It was funny what living out in the woods could do, even though he did have simple amenities like the ability to look at a clock. Still, he had also learned how to read the sky.
Well, kind of.
He was supposed to meet a Dark Mirror Senshi here, and they traveled through mirrors. That had to be convenient, really, and much nicer than having to run away on foot like the White Moon had to. Even the Negaverse could teleport. But Camelot tried not to be jealous about things like that. He only saw the Negaverse as a danger now, and as enemies. The Dark Mirror Court, though Chaos driven and dangerous in its own right, also offered a few allies, and that was something the White Moon needed. So he would do what he could to cultivate the relationship between them, and broker trust for trust.
He just hoped his faith in them would not be proven wrong.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 9:10 pm
The Destiny City Hospital, meanwhile, ran on clocks. Nurses milled about, checking on patients and test results as close to regular intervals as they could manage. Traffic in all the hospitals had increased over the last five years, and Marcella, loathe to abandon her duties, had stayed. Before, she had done what she could to try to move injured senshi to safer hospitals. Now ... well, she was doing her level best to continue. But she had changed, too.
Today, as the clock reached the end of her shift, the brown-haired nurse made her way to the locker room to clock out. Marcella swapped out her work attire for her regular clothes, but left her purse and keys behind. She still had other things to do before she headed back to her apartment.
She had taken advantage of the corruption that was made possible by the chaos the Negaverse had brought, and dropped a few bribes in the right places in order to ensure a constant refill on doses of prescription pain medication. Said right places thought her an addict, though Marcella had taken no more than necessary for her own injuries since the White Moon senshi were forced underground. All of the rest she had supplied to the Resistance.
Today, she was set to meet one of the Order representatives to reaffirm her offer of assistance, and Marcella figured the backup supply of pills would make a decent peace offering. She stowed them in a thoroughly worn small white backpack alongside other first aid supplies, and, after checking to be sure the changing room was empty, henshined up.
The uniform Asclepius wore now was black, with the eye emblem of the Dark Mirror Court at her breast. She had been working this way for several months now, but had yet to make formal contact with the Order Resistance. Part of her feared what they would think. Whatever this representative would think. Asclepius probably knew him, or her, as there were only so many senshi left in the area. But the Senshi of Medicine had had her reasons. This was for the best.
After brushing her fingertips over the black feathered wings at her hips, Asclepius stepped through the changing room mirror, through mirror space, and into the forest - a stark change from the linoleum floors and clean tile walls of the hospital.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 9:57 pm
Camelot looked up when he saw movement in the mirror, and watched as the dark mirror senshi emerged. It always caught him by surprise to see them, the way they could move like that, but once again he told himself not to be jealous. Anyway, the last time he had been dragged through a mirror it had not been a very pleasant experience, and he remembered being rather sickened by the whole ordeal.
He looked surprised when the Senshi appeared, though, not recognizing her right away. He knew that there were a few senshi that came here and offered their help, and he had not known which one he would be meeting up with, but he still felt there was something... off... about this one.
Had he seen her before? Was that it?
"Hello," he said, with a nod of his head. "Are you the Senshi that was offering us some help?" It was kind of a dumb question considering she would not know where to go if she had not been told through a trusted source to meet him here, but he could not help but offer some awkward little introduction.
"Ah, my name is Camelot," he said, with a careful nod. He was willing to trust them, despite the Chaos he felt from her, and he hoped that she would not prove to be an enemy. He did not really want to hurt anyone today, and was not looking to get hurt, either.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 10:11 pm
"Camelot," she breathed even as he introduced himself - she still recognized him, in spite of the change she herself had undergone. He was at once both the best and the worst contact the Resistance could have sent. Of course he was still inclined to trust first instead of just attacking her, but ... Asclepius remembered him fondly for his leadership before she had crossed the Mirror, as well, and her heart ached now at seeing him again after what felt like an eternity.
"I am," she replied then, trying to keep her features smooth and her voice steady. "I'm Asclepius of Medicine, still." The Dark Mirror senshi shrugged off her little backpack then, pills rattling within as she did so; the mundane object, not part of her seifuku, had only changed as much as the months had worn it, so perhaps the Royal Knight would recognize that, at least.
Her throat tightened. She was here for business. "I've brought more painkillers." Asclepius focused on her backpack as she unzipped it to retrieve the meds.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 10:35 pm
Camelot's eyes widened as he remembered who she was, seeing the Senshi she had been when she told him who she was. The glamour was lifted and she was revealed to be someone he knew. Someone who had corrupted. That was a sensitive topic, though at least she was not on the Nega side of things.
Still, he had lost his son to corruption, as well as many other friends. Good people, who were no longer good. And though the DMC was just trying to endure, they were still Chaos driven.
Opening ones starseed and heart to Chaos was always a danger, and Camelot felt a pang of worry and care for her, knowing that she was under its influence now. It could not be too corrupting, though, if she still wanted to help them, but that did not mean she would always feel that way.
"You... you've corrupted too, I see," he said carefully, though he nodded his head and uttered a thank you as she brought out the pills that they always seemed to need around the Headquarters. "But you're still helping us... which I appreciate. How are... how are you doing?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 2:47 pm
]"Changed," she corrected gently, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I've moved over." Of course he could not understand, not completely. Maybe somewhere on this side of the mirror, there was an asteroid Asclepius where all the doors worked, the golden ships flew, and and all the dead slept comfortably in their graves instead of lying in hallways. She had hope here, and the Senshi of Medicine could not, so far as she knew, actaully be corrupted now.
Of course Camelot's reaction would not be anger, though. That put Asclepius slightly more at ease.
"I'm alright." The senshi shrugged as she handed the pills over. "Still at the hospital in town, doing what I can for people. I have a new apartment, though," Asclepius added, zipping her backpack closed again. "New roommates, too." A different sort of family than she had had among Order, but family nonetheless. Perhaps sometime she could introduce them to Camelot.
She then inquired, "How about you? I'm pleased to see you're still here." Camelot's powerful aura no longer filled her with an instinctive assurance of safety; the brown-haired senshi shifted slightly where she stood, crossing her arms.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 4:07 pm
"Things have been better," he said with a rueful look, though he was mostly just teasing. Everyone was well aware of how difficult it was for most of the outcast senshi and knights. If he did sleep, he did so in Camelot, or alone in a corner of the Headquarters so he might have peace. He rarely took the time to rest properly, though, instead opting for cat naps and energy boosts.
"I'm glad to hear you're still helping people, though. It's very good to know that there are honest senshi out there, who will help others, whether they're Order or Chaos."
And he believed that. He had to, because it was the only hope they had. He wanted her to be a little more at ease. No, he was not happy to learn that she had corrupted, but it was better than what happened to some others. She, at least, was on a team that was not in all out war with them, and she was offering her aid to them because of it. And she was aware of herself, her choices, and what she could do for the future.
"I... I have something to tell you. I'm not sure if you know already, or if you remember him... I know some memories can get a little jumbled. But... Chaonis mentioned you were close. He... he was corrupted into the Negaverse. A couple months ago. He's theirs now, and he's gone." He did his best to hold his gaze, and keep up the air of a man in charge of himself, a man built to offer comfort and aid to others.
Inside, his heart was shattered, and he could not yet begin to pick up all the pieces.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2014 5:58 pm
Asclepius winced briefly, nodding. Being in the hospital, she was used to the uncomfortable custom of asking how someone was doing purely out of a need to be polite. And with Camelot, she was legitimately concerned, too, but she was still also acutely aware that the situation was far from okay.
... Quite far from it, apparently, as he broke the news about Chaonis. Whatever tears had threatened before now came welling up with impunity, as hot tears of anger. Asclepius was not one for shows of emotion, perhaps anger least of all, but she twisted around, swinging a fist into the nearest tree.
"Damn it," she snarled as her knuckles hit the bark, then grimaced as she shook out her smarting fingers. It helped, in a fashion, but solved nothing. "I wanted to find him and save him, bring him with me over here, so that couldn't happen." The Senshi of Medicine huffed in frustration, scrubbing at her eyes with the heel of her hand, then took a deep breath and a moment to collect herself again.
When she spoke again, her voice was calm but her hands still shook. "If we find him, can you purify him?" she asked Camelot.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2014 8:42 pm
Camelot watched as she got upset, and he knew that she remembered Chaonis, and they must have been closer than Camelot knew. He was not too familiar with how his son conducted himself, or how close he got to others. He had seen and heard good things, but Chaonis mostly kept his personal affairs to himself.
Camelot wished he knew more. He regretted a lot of things, and not being able to connect to the people Chaonis knew, because he did not know what their relationships were, was difficult. Most of the time, he just assumed that no one knew his son all that well. But that was becoming increasingly untrue.
"I wanted to protect him too. I wanted to keep him from corruption, and I honestly thought we could handle it. We worked together a lot in recent years... but I let him fight something I shouldn't have. I should have done more to protect him. I'm sorry..."
He took full responsibility for it, though there was little he could have done. Battles just fell away from them, and control was quickly lost when decisions were being made instant to instant.
He wasn't sure he liked her plan to protect Chaonis, but it seemed it would have done them much more good than what had happened. Even if he was a Dark Mirror Senshi, there was a chance he would still know who he was. He would still be Camelot's son. As it was, he was only Painite's dog.
"I can't," Camelot said, shaking his head. "But a Princess could. I don't know if it would help him... his memories... but he would at least be free from Chaos. If we could convince him... but I haven't been able to get close to him. I'm sorry. Is your hand okay?" He moved a bit closer, concerned. He'd punched his fair share of solid objects before.
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