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 Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2014 6:59 am
The summer days were long, they were hot, and the only reprieve that Eternal Sailor Vespa had that tonight was surprisingly colder than most days. Not that he had been outside in his sailor uniform recently, and he thanked his lucky stars that he was sleeveless. It was a small way of staying cool and really it didn't offer that much, but he was told to try and maintain a positive attitude. And he was trying, even when he knew he was well within throwing distance of a certain Negaverse general, one that he had come to loathe in his time in the Negaverse and fear.
General Mica had noticed his decline in activity and requested he'd accompany her on a patrol, and there was no use in denying her orders, not when the lives of his family hung in the balance. Of all his encounters with Kallichore and others of the White Moon that had managed to wormtongue the desire to swap sides, he most recent one with Kallichore left him consumed with a strange sense of lust, and he had almost refused the request, though not directly. He had important matters to discuss with his parents and had a big dinner planned, but rehearsing his refusal was far easier than actually practicing it, he found, as the moment she cast her cold, turquoise eyes at him, he found himself muttering an apology and leaving a note for his family and a twenty dollar bill clipped to it. How does one say no to a Negaverse general?
One day, Vespa would know how. One day, he told himself he'd be free of this. His family would be safe, Penelope would be safe, and he would be fighting to take down the Negaverse to stop their reign of terror once and for all. One day, the Wasp would rise up and do good for Destiny City, show that they were not creatures to be feared but were just as vital and helpful to the cause as any other could be. One day... but not today.
Today, he stood in a quiet parking lot, the grocery store that once stood there had long since gone out of business and weeds were beginning to take over through the cracks in the cement, reminding him just how bad this Chaos infestation was. Mica had gone off to handle a small medical crisis and had left him there to scan for potential targets, and while Vespa kept his gaze set out, he had yet to stop a single pedestrian that walked by. Once he felt the icy punch of Chaos aura hit his senses, then he'd act out. For now? The wasp was content to waste the night away by silently seething in an abandoned parking lot. Someday, he'd rise above this...
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Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2014 8:53 am
(Note: I edited a certain cat into the title >3> )
There had actually been no intention of patrolling tonight. However, when Ellie had mentioned going grocery shopping, ********* had decided she needed to come along. The manx cat knew it was hard, almost impossible, to convince the tomboy to buy her something to eat, but that didn't mean she couldn't try anyways.
However, when they nearly passed a typically abandoned parking lot and noticed a dark colored fuku, it caused the blonde to backpedal a bit.
"...not even one f*ckin' evenin' off..." she muttered before plucking the chubby cat from her shoulder. With that, she pushed the cat forward, hissing out "...Distract him!"
With a shake of her head, the manx cat dashed out, allowing her collar to do a lot of the work. It jingled in a cheery manner as she attempted to bring the attention to herself by dashing closer to the scene. She didn't say anything yet, though she did seem to be heading straight for the corrupted senshi.
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Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2014 11:11 pm
With any luck, tonight would have been uneventful and Vespa would have only had his time wasted. Time was a valuable and rare commodity these days, especially for one dealing with an impending and world-changing life decision to make, but Vespa would rather his time be wasted than a life. Thus far it had been quiet, but all of that changed when he heard a soft jingling noise, followed by sudden movement to his left. "Bells?"
If they were going for a stealthy attack, they were half right. Vespa hadn't felt anyone approaching, but he certainly heard them, and for someone that had come to rely on such senses to protect himself from danger, it made the Corrupted senshi extremely nervous! He rose his hands in self defense and looked towards the origin of the jingling bells, and he was surprised to see that his supposed bringer of death was...
"Oh, just a cat..." From this distance, that's all it looked like to him and the visor didn't help. It wasn't until the feline had gotten closer that he noticed the star on her forehead as well as the missing tail, and he couldn't help but tilt his head in confusion. "Oh, a Guardian cat? Figures one of you would come to find me now that it's too late!"
What rotten luck he had... he was too into his lament to have noticed he was being watched.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 3:05 pm
The cat's ears were perked up as she approached, obviously hearing some comment from the stray corrupt senshi.
With a mock frown, the chubby manx stated in a cheery tone "I am wounded, sir. You wound me!"
As if to mimic his own actions, the manx also tilted her head in the same direction as him. "...and how am I too late?"
It seemed as if the fat cat had done her job sufficiently to say the least. With a firm nod to herself, the blonde went to find herself a place to henshin up in safety before approaching the vicinity the guardian was attending.
Powered up, it was easier to tell she'd be dealing with someone of a similar power level to herself. He would probably be able to tell the same about her now that she had an aura too. In no particular rush, Sailor Iris sauntered forward, only gradually approaching her partner in crime for the evening.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 7:35 pm
The cat spoke, only confirming that he was, in fact, addressing a Guardian cat, and while it might have been clear to her and others that she was only pulling his leg, Vespa was never one to understand the concept of joking, especially when he felt it may have been targeted at him. While others would have known the cat to be joking, he cringed and took a step back, casting his gaze downward and apologizing immediately. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... look, I know I'm corrupted, but I'm different from the others. At least I think I am... maybe I'm not and I'm just the only one that's trying to escape? But I promise, I won't hurt you!"
Seeing the cat tilt her head, though, and not immediately run away or strike out at him, was comforting, and fearing that he might have appeared too frightening at this angle, he knelt down on the ground, speaking softly even though there was no one else but the two of them (or so he thought.) "I'm sorry, I made it sound like it was your fault, but I'm sure it's not. I'm just... really bitter that I was found by the Negaverse first. It's not your fault... if it's anyone's fault, it's mine, I guess."
He stretched out his hand, but there was no malice or anger in the gesture. Only the desire to pet the cat before him. "Um, can I pet you? What's your name? I'm Vespa, senshi of Wasps."
Seconds later, his green eyes caught sight of movement, and he could not stop himself from gasping at the sight of another Eternal senshi walking towards them. How did he not sense her?! He panicked and lost balance, falling onto his butt with a shout. "AH, I'm sorry! I wasn't going to hurt her, I swear!"
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 7:51 pm
Memories of the days when ********* had interacted with Nickeline easily flowed back to her mind as this corrupted senshi knelt down before her. Back when Psyche had still been with the Negaverse, she remembered the girl was ever so willing to share snacks, and on one occasion had saved her life. Nickeline had been commanded to attack the guardian cat at one point and had struggled profusely with such a command.
The differences between this Vespa and Nickeline were night and day, but his timid actions reminded her of the way that Nickeline also did not fit into the Negaverse's structure. Before she could reply that she was perfectly okay with petting, another voice interjected.
"...She goes by *********..." The voice was stern, lacking the obvious warmth that the feline had used thus far. With a hand, the tall blonde senshi gestured to the ever so graceful corrupted senshi on his a**.
"....what.... what is this, dude?" Her hands made short loops into an oblong shape as she stared at the corrupt senshi critically.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 9:50 pm
At least he was not immediately attacked, which given their current standings in the war, it was something to be grateful for, and Vespa wasn't sure which of the two upset him more. The fact that she didn't immediately attack him which lead to the assumption that she didn't feel he was a threat, or her obvious disappointment in what she was seeing sitting on the ground before her. He did not want to fight and the fact that he could not feel any Chaos energy nearby was enough for him to avoid a forced confrontation, but that didn't mean he wanted to be scratched off as a joke. What would Kallichore think?
His attention was on the other senshi now, noticing her stern voice and on a regular day her gesticulations might have offered some well needed reprieve from the constant state of apprehension he found himself in, but there was something concerning about her mannerisms, and he found himself casting his gaze downward. Ashamed that he had once again made a fool of himself...
"This is... just me being me, I guess," Vespa said, pushing himself back to his feet but keeping his gaze down and maintaining the distance between them. Mica could have arrived any second now and he didn't want her getting the wrong... or, in this case, right idea about what was going on. "I'm Vespa, senshi of Wasps. You startled me, and I guess I don't really respond well to being startled. Look, I don't want to fight! Really! I'd never hurt a cat, Guardian or otherwise."
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2014 7:25 pm
The yellow suited senshi's body shifted a bit until her arms were crossed as she looked this corrupted senshi over. In the same critical tone as before, she eventually stated "...First off, Vespa.... man th'f*ck up! Look a person in th'eyes if yer gonna try and convince them yer an honest f*ck!"
"....do you think you said the F-word enough times?" the cat asked.
Rolling her eyes at the cat's commentary before snidely replying "Nope! F*ck, f*ck, f*ckity f*ck!" Getting the cursing out of her system (briefly), she then proceeded to continue chastising the opposing eternal senshi.
"Secondly... got th'intro th'first time! Who th'hell actually introduces them so much?!"
The manx still on the ground level soon enough stood hersel up to all four paws and rounded her way until she was bumping into Iris' boot.
"...Might I have a word with you?" she asked as she bumped her head against the white boot.
The blonde shook her head, but not to disagree. She less than kindly looped her hand under the Mauvian's round belly and lifted her until she was plopped on her shoulder. Before ********* could really start speaking, the blonde asked "So what are ya doin' if yer not out here for a particular reason?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2014 10:31 am
It was strange for Vespa to encounter Iris, as most of the senshi of the White Moon were usually more polite, even if they were quick to turn their attacks onto him. Not that he ever held any anger against them for it; after all, this was war and many of them felt as though they were defending themselves and protecting the general public, and they were. But Iris? She was definitely something new, and she was not helping with his social anxiety and overall fear of girls at this point.
********* efforts to try and calm the situation down did not work quite as well as she had hoped, but Vespa found himself muttering, halfway through his sentence before catching himself. "N-no, it's okay, *********. She can say whatever she... wow... I do sound pathetic."
He did, he really did. Iris kept on him, his nervousness turning into indignation, and from there on, to annoyance. She was ridiculing him on introducing himself twice and he found himself snapping in his own self defense. "I didn't know if you heard me the first time, okay? It's not like you introduced yourself either! You're the one that interrupted ********* of Vespa wanted to bolt the minute the two started talking in private, but he was too mad to. Yes, he knew he needed to man up, but there was no need for her to be so rude. Maybe she had run into the same song and dance before, a meek officer that was only wanting to lure her into a fight, but Vespa wasn't like that. And luckily for him, Iris wasn't ready to step away just yet, and he answered, an edge to his voice that wasn't there previously. "I'm out here because General Mica wants me to do my patrols and harvest energy, like a good little drone! I don't want to be out here- I'm only here because she's waving a spear over my family's head!"
Which then reminded him that Mica would be coming, maybe soon, and his anger gave way to fear, as he felt himself shrinking. "And we're suppose to meet here. She's running late, but... it's not safe here, you two should leave!"
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2014 6:48 pm
Now with a cat on her shoulder, Iris took in the name of the General.
"Mica... Mica?... hmmm... name doesn't sound familiar... but ya'll don't exactly wear name tags..."
Scratching her chin, she shrugged the name off as if it was of little importance.
From her new spot, the cat commented "Her manners are quite lacking!" With a subtle giggle, she then nudged at Iris' ear.
In a whisper only the Senshi of Rainbows could hear, the Mauvian mentioned a thought or two. "Iris... take it easy on him... I am under the impression that he is not very invested in the Negaverse."
Iris' eyes were firmly stuck upon the corrupted senshi, almost seeming to flicker like the flames of a wildfire as she inspected him. There was something pathetic about this boy, but at the same time, something absolutely desperate.
The girl sauntered closer, standing tall to her full height as she looked at this young man. "Sounds like yer in a tight jam... my question to ya is... do ya wanna be a drone fer the rest of yer life, or do ya wanna make yer life yer own again?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 11, 2014 3:09 pm
Despite his tonal shift, Vespa offered Iris a small, if not pitiful smile, though he still stayed on alert, waiting for the spike of dark, Chaos energy to hit his senses that could occur at any moment. "Well, considering she carries around a heavy spear and has no qualms in impaling senshi of any age on it, you'd know her if you saw her. You might be able to take her on, but... if she comes, and she orders me to attack, I won't have much of a choice, you know?"
That wasn't entirely true, he told himself. He had a choice, just that the option would leave his family in a very vulnerable spot, and as eager as he was to leave the Negaverse, he wasn't ready. He wanted at least one final goodbye, should the worst happen.
********* was whispering something in the other Senshi's ears, but Vespa lacked the keen sense of hearing to pick up on what was being said. He only knew that it was likely about him, and he tried to fight back the nervous feeling in his gut, telling himself that it was just the usual jitters and not the Negaverse general that he feared. He forced himself to hold his ground when Iris drew closer, remembering her harsh words and trying to siphon some courage from it. Man up, she said. He was going to try his best. Her question felt like a no-brainer, and for a brief moment, he brightened up, bobbing his head up and down with the enthusiasm of a child standing in front of his Christmas presents. "Absolutely... on the last part, not the drone part! I don't mind following orders, from time to time... I'm a horrible leader and I'd rather let someone else do the leading, but I don't want to follow someone who murders people with little remorse or care, even if they think it's for the greater good. I've watched my superiors do... terrible things. I've done some, too, because I was ordered to... and I don't want to do that anymore. I don't want to hurt anyone... but I don't want my family hurt, and if I continue to fail, she'll..."
That's when he felt it. A cold fist to his starseed, warning him that his time was up. He looked around for her, whispering sharply to the other Senshi, hoping that she wouldn't be close enough to overhear them...
That had taken much longer than she expected, but there'd be no complaint from the Negaverse general. She had offered her services to taking care of their wounded and she had done just that. Not that she would have to explain her tardiness to her little Wasp- he understood her other duties and she figured he'd enjoy the time to himself. She was cold, but not completely oblivious to other's emotions, and when it came to Vespa, it was clear to read his turmoil. Whereas others were read like books, Vespa was like a pop-up book, his emotions and demeanor vibrate and clear for even those with the most rudimentary observation skills to see. So, instead of just teleporting back, she decided to take the long way, just to give him some alone time. She figured he deserved it.
Thus far, none has thought to question her methods with the Wasp senshi, and if they had, she didn't really care. This was her way of keeping him in line. Keeping him motivated. If a threat to one's family didn't keep them motivated, then she'd simply have to find another method, but thankfully, it seemed to do the trick. She didn't even need to lift a finger! A simple stare would push the senshi into action, and her only regret that she had to even do that much.
When one had to resort to threats of violence against their family... was that really the kind of officer the Negaverse needed?
She had arrived at the rendezvous point, but Vespa wasn't alone. And Mica recognized the other senshi and the cat on her shoulders. "You've got to be joking..."
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Posted: Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:38 pm
The new presence wasn't hard to notice. Iris noticeably stiffened for a moment as she felt the General's aura, but then in a low tone told him what to do.
"Grab th'f*ckin' cat and make it seem like yer capturin' her or something, dipsh*t..."
If failure was going to be the reason for eliminating his family, then for a bit Iris could attempt to make it seem like there was a legitimate struggle.
The cat blinked for a moment, initially shocked by the sudden plan, but then nodded her head very subtly so that even her collar didn't jingle. Perhaps within Vespa's arms she might be able to mention some things that the boy would need to consider.
With the plan out in the air for hopefully only Vespa to hear, the eternal Senshi of Rainbows turned to pay the approaching aura attention.
"...So... ya invited a friend, jackass?" The words were snarled almost like a vicious attack dog.
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Posted: Mon Aug 11, 2014 11:07 pm
How unlucky was he! Why couldn't she have just stayed gone, at least for a little while longer? He was finally starting to find some good standing ground with this senshi, and of course, she'd show up, as though a beacon was shot into the air. He was close, so close, though he had absolutely no idea just how close. In his panicked state, he almost missed Iris' whisper, catching onto the tone of it more than the actual words. He reached for *********, whispering to her and hoping he didn't squeeze her too tight in his frantic state. "Sorry if I hurt you... I swear, I don't mean to..."
He grabbed the cat and put some distance between them, hoping that Mica was far enough away not to have heard the exchange. Maybe it was foolish to be so quick to trust her, but there was something about her that he found himself admiring. She looked at Mica and not a single ounce of fear was in her form... maybe she could defeat Mica here and now? One could hope... For now, he had to play along, and he called back to the approaching general, trying so hard to sound gruff and menacing though having a feeling he'd fail. "Sorry, general! I was trying to keep her distracted while you arrived..."
"I can see that," Mica said, calling back to him and summoning her spear, holding its blade low but allowing the dim streetlamp to glisten off of its blade, letting those present remain aware of his deadliness despite its rested position. While it did not look as though Vespa had been fighting off Iris, she gave the officer the benefit of the doubt for now, if only because their opponent was an experienced a powerful one. Any foul play that she might have expected could have waited until either their enemy was dead, or they had managed a tactical retreat. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't call my officers such things... nice to see that little's changed about you since the last we faced one another."
That was a lie. Iris had gotten stronger, but so had Mica. For the moment, they were on equal footing, but she knew better than to fall into a false sense of security around this one. Iris was tough, very tough, and Mica stood ready for a fight, motioning for Vespa to remain as he were for now, with his little hostage in his arms. He didn't want her little Wasp getting too close to this one...
"Should we finish this, or am I to assume that one of your little friends will interrupt our match again? Or maybe..." She cast a glance to Vespa, then back to Iris. "I should be more concerned with what filth you're feeding my officer?"
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 9:01 am
"I'll call his a** whatever th'f*ck I want, b*tchface!"
Iris was always rather classy when dealing with threats. Now that she had the Negaverse General there to see for herself, a vague sense of recognition seemed hit her.
Mica, eh? So that's what she goes by? The memories for their previous fight were still tucked away in the back of the blonde's mind. It was not exactly her finest moment, but she had survived.
Bringing a fist to her side, she called out "IRIS RAINBOW SLICER!" It was not exactly the most subtle or refined introduction, but in a sense it was an introduction to what she went by. Her fist began to glow and rather suddenly seemed to sprout a vividly colored rainbow that draped to the ground almost like a whip.
It was a rough ride to get grabbed away from Iris, but now the manx didn't seem to have much issue with it. For reassurance, she commented "It's okay," in a hushed whisper.
However, if one expected a talking cat to not really talk, they had another thing coming. Only as attention seemed to shift to the eternal senshi about to face off with the general, the Mauvian continued to offer the boy whispers.
"Is there any way that you can get your family out of the city without drawing attention from the Negaverse? If you truly want our help... these are things you need to consider ahead of time rather than after the fact." There was a good chance that after the fact, he wouldn't remember his family at all, if he was anything like Psyche.
Iris' body didn't even shift from the seemingly non-offensive stance, but rather suddenly the rainbow she was gripping onto seemed to move on its own, striking towards Mica. It took a good amount of concentration to get the rainbow to move according to her will, but Iris only hoped she could gain a slight advantage from the unexpected strike.
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Posted: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:16 am
It was hard not to want to smile at the colorful language that the senshi slung at her and it was always something to be admired to see such vibrant senshi on the other side. However, it was equally disgusting that they weren't a part of the Negaverse, and that was more then enough to wipe any inkling of a smile on her face. "Bitchface? I'll have to remember that for later..."
One advantage that a senshi always had over her was magic, and the shout that hit the air was the only warning she'd receive before she braced herself. This time, she was without the Rainbow Crystal, but that only meant that she'd have to try a different defensive tactic. She was expecting Iris to lash out, though seeing the rainbow whip move on its own was definitely something she wasn't prepared for, and she just barely brought her spear to the front, preferring to see what it would do to the hilt before allowing it to touch her flesh again.
Vespa felt much safer, now that Mica was distracted, and while he would have preferred to sit back and watch Iris in action, the fuzzy cat in his arms served as a reminder that he didn't have much time. It was good to know that the Guardian cat understood his motivations, at least, and if there wasn't a fight going on behind him, he would have given her such an affectionate and grateful hug. "Thank you, thank you..." He whispered, holding her close and hoping it looked like he was struggling to keep her still from where Mica was standing.
"I'm... trying. I've been working with Kallichore and others... Camelot said he'd protect them, should I forget them. If I can just make sure they're safe, from Mica and the rest of the Negaverse, then I can finally be free from them." He wasn't sure how much time he had or how much details he'd have to tell her, or get from her, so he spoke quickly and quietly. "I was going to tell them today... you know, make up a story that I was going to study overseas or out of town, but she called me, and I can't just disobey."
He knew nothing of *********, or Iris, and their hand in helping others like himself. If he had, he wouldn't have sounded so desperate. "Please, anything you can do to help, I appreciate it. I don't want to be their monster anymore..."
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