Atop one of the several street lamps that lined the top of Aurora's highest hill, Sidouer exhaled a warm breath on to frigid fingers. Her perch as of late did well to keep her legs rather warm and the light was actually a mostly convenient way to keep her hidden to those who might try to look upon her; nobody really seems cares for burning blue dots into their iris's. It was almost like a watch tower of sorts in the way it allowed her to see further than her sense allowed save for what might reside below the concrete; something she will never chase after again.

The cold did very little to keep the senshi of doves from her nightly walks. It was a time she used more as a break to clear her head than to so call 'patrol' for the enemy. After what she had been flung around the world and back again for, Phact almost didn't give a single care for what her responsibilities were to. Tonight she powered up because it allowed her a freedom to travel higher than a human was able to on their own. Phact had to accept she had come to enjoy the wind in her hair and around her as she jumped from roof top to roof top. The cold air cleared her head but she had made sure to bring her own winter coat with her tonight to keep the rest of her warm. This outfit was horrible for warmth.

Stopping on the edge of a roof, Phact's red eyes scanned the ground below and caught sight of movement on a light post. Had she been on the ground, she of course would have missed it until the aura caused the hair on the back of her neck to rise. A senshi.

Phact had to stop herself from groaning. Even her short time on the wonder had been enough to form a seed of dislike for the faction she was part of. In a few more days though, she hoped to begin exploring the one place that might have answers.

There were few things in life more unnerving than that distinct feeling of being watched and though she could feel no auras near by, Sidouer knew she wasn’t alone this evening. It was like being in the school cafeteria surrounded by hundreds of other students and just knowing someone had their eyes fixated on you, a tingling awareness that can at times be rather unnerving.

For several moments the Senshi of Static remained still hoping that whomever had spotted her, be it a civilian walking home or a negaverse agent, would just leave her be and go away. Though as the feeling lingered far longer than she liked the creme haired girl hazarded a glance over her shoulder and looked around out past her aura sensing range. It was there atop one of the buildings she saw a soft white clad colored figure standing on the edge. Too far to tell who he or she was Sidouer breathed a sigh of relief and rose to her feet and stretched her arms above her head before leaping from her perch to the ground below to seek out her, what she hoped to be, comrade.

Red eyes watched the figure go still and then glance back. Phact was smiling in a sly way as it was interesting to watch the human flight or fight kick in before they knew what was going on. But it only took a moment before the figure dropped to the ground for what Phact could only assume to be an offering of ‘here I am, show yourself.’

Taking the invitation, Phact stepped off the room and dropped to the ground. It was a tad farther than a light post so when she hit, the senshi of doves had to drop to her knees to take the impact. Slowly though, she looked up and towards the figure near the light. As her eyes settled, Phact smiled kindly now.

“Sidouer. Cold evening to be out without a coat. What has you out?”

“Couldn’t sleep so I figured some fresh air would do me some good. What about you?” The two of them out at night were the cosmic joke of the Sol Universe. Scantily dressed, though not indecently so, neither of their attires were suited for this kind of weather. “Don’t you have an AM class tomorrow?”

“Needed a break and nothing is more refreshing to me.” Phact admitted with a shrug as she straightened up and bent over to brush off her knee. Sidouer and her went back ages and had kept up with each other especially after realizing they walked nearly the same world. “Class was cancelled.” Phact finally admitted with a stretch of her back, twisting it to the side before finally crossing her arms under her chest and leaning on her left leg. “Final reviews for studio are going on all through the days so it is hard to do keep classes going when half your students are skipping to finish designs.”

One thing Sidouer did not envy was Phact’s school schedule. Sure actual classes were canceled but studios and clubs still went on for those who stuck around for the holidays and had projects to wrap up. “Are these pieces going to be a part of the fashion show at the end of next semester?”

“It depends.” Phact admitted as let out a large sigh. “The seniors will have all of theirs as you know they spend most of their year working on a collection. Juniors can have one or two pieces and those of us who are young, we work the show. A select few of us get asked every now and then but I won’t be one of them. My piece isn’t what they are looking for. This double life does not allow me the time others can put into it….” Phact trailed off. It down right sucked. Her dream was right there for the taking if she pushed through all of this. Not to mention, she knew what she had to do to get there! But she was also a senshi. She had another responsibility as well and as of late, it looked like it would take her even if she didn’t want to go.

Phact paused for a moment and then glanced at Sidouer in a way that avoided too many common greetings. “Question for you. A few nights ago, did you get dragged away to another place and find yourself powered up?”

“Unless you mean while I was sleeping no. The only place I’ve been dragged to was the mall to go Christmas shopping with my mother. I haven’t even been to my homeworld in over a month.” To be honest she was kind of scared of that place, to at least the sea of glass; being struck by lightning or sprayed with fulgurite shards was never pleasant. “Why? Did something happen?”

“Yep.” Phact said shortly, biting her bottom lip and she found herself growing highly annoyed that the draw seemed to have been picky too!

“Would you mind walking? I’ll fill you in on some things but I want to be moving. Standing here is getting a bit too much for my feathers.”

Sidouer smiled then gestured with her arm as if she were a hostess inviting a guest into her home. “Pick a direction and I’ll follow.” Whatever it was on Phacts mind must have been something big since the woman was known for keeping her cool and hard to frazzle. The nights had been quiet thus far thanks to the weather changing and so she had little fear of being ambushed randomly especially with so many people hunkered down for the holidays with family and friends.

Phact motioned down the street in the direction away from the university and towards an area that might have been overly decorated for Christmas. She needed something cheerful right now.

The first few moments, Phact remained silent. It was just about the time someone would have to ask again when she started talking. “A few nights ago, I was sitting in my apartment working and in a blink of an eye, I found myself sitting on a pile of rocks no longer in pajamas but now wearing this.” She motioned towards her senshi attire. “And I know my pen was in my bag across the room.” Phact stopped speaking for a moment trying to form her words. “I was in an abandoned village in a mist covered forest that I had never seen before in my life. And I wasn’t alone.” Phact cast a glance over at the girl next to her. “There were other senshi there….and knights. Of all ranks.”

Though it was dark out save for the street lights that lined sidewalk and motion sensors outside various homes, it would be hard to miss the look of concern that engraved itself in her features by the way her eyebrows furrowed and lips pressed into a thin line. “I wonder if it was all order individuals within a certain proximity that were summoned.” Though without knowing the civilian identities of the others involved, or at the very least their location prior to this mass teleportation, it would be a hard theory to prove.

“Except it wasn’t just ordered.” Phact stated as she felt her shoulders tighten. “Within minutes of us being there, youma came out of the forest. Later we even found agents but I will get to that.” Phact stopped as she glared forward. “Sidouer, I’m so angry about all this. About what I saw! I mean now it makes complete sense to me why we keep losing!”

One eyebrow quirked as she looked over at the raven haired woman. “What do you mean?” It was a simple yet loaded question but one that needed to be asked none the less.

“What part? Sidouer, it was a huge disaster!” Phact threw her hands up in the air. “The entire group was either a high school clique and if you didn’t know them, they didn’t answer your questions. It took way too long before someone, the one person who really knew what was going on, get stand up and tell us where we were. We were at a Wonder! A knight’s wonder had teleported lord knows how many senshi, knights, and dark moon senshi there. And the countless number of nega related items….” Phact let out a groan of frustration. “I can’t Sidouer...I can’t even regsister what happened there because it was so stupid! Does no one in our ranks have a brain or the ability to lead? Because all I got was if you don’t know what is going on, get out of the way. Don’t ask questions. Oh, and we won’t put ourselves in danger if it isn’t to protect someone close to us…”

Phact physically stopped and looked directly at Sidouer. “How do we fight an organized, military style group when we are all so damn selfish?”

“If dreams are something to be believed, we can’t.” The nightmares that plagued her dreams for countless nights seemed endless and repetitive as order blood stained the streets of Destiny City a crimson hue. “So long as we remain divided and unwilling to group together, we’ll fail. However there is a reason I’m not a part of a so-called team.”

Phact bit her tongue for a moment. She could tell something was about to come that did not need her snapping, no matter how hard it was.

Sidouer fell silent for this was something only her brother knew of. “About a year ago one of my friends tried to put a group together. Lets just say things didn’t pan out like they should have.” Try as she might to provide details, the words stuck to her throat in a choking manner. One would think that after a year she would be over it by now; unfortunately that wasn’t the case. “We were ambushed and in the end … our leader… my friend willingly joined the other side.” Betrayal of that nature would not soon be forgotten.

“Oh Sidouer….” Phact sighed out as her shoulders visibly dropped. “I didn’t know…” Phact remained silent once more as her feet began to walk the road again. “This cannot be what we were awaken for. These people who are more experienced and talented than us, how can they just either leave us or ignore us?” Looking towards the ground, she continued “People seem to have two paths: fight without question and kill all or ignore everything and do what they want. Am I wrong when I say it is not black and white?” Picking her head up, Phact cleared her throat. “A long time ago I was told people all fight for a different reason. That they have something that drives them forward. And you know, I get that. But I think the truth has been forgotten…”

“I think that’s one reason I stick to keeping the streets free of youma and leave the agents to those more experienced or have a better grasp of the bigger picture.” Times like this she missed Kallichore, the one person she could count on and go to when questions like this came up. The Eternal was a treasure trove of knowledge given how long she had been a part of this war. Unfortunately Sidouer didn’t know the questions to ask when she last had the chance to speak with her. “Honestly I don’t know who to talk to anymore about the truth behind all this or where to go to find answers.” With a rueful smile the Senshi of Static shrugged her shoulders then turned to keep walking before the cold damp air made it to her bones and they both turned into senshi-pops.

“I don’t think any of them have an idea of the bigger picture. I think they are all fools going around just trying to get either more powers or fancier clothes. Not a one has made a true move to stop this war.” Phact stated bluntly as she watched the road ahead of her. “I talked to Tsui once and she gave me some back story but…” Phact signed again. “It’s why I have spent the last few months trying to track down a moon pearl. Before the nightmare that was the wonder, I finally got my hands on on…”

Phact summoned her senshi phone to her hand from whatever subspace pocket it was in. Looking at the little orb there, she then glanced up at the night sky. “Starting next month, I am going to the source for us. Earth has proven not to hold the answers we need and lord knows our own planets won’t answer much in way of the battle we fight here….”

“You’re going to visit the moon.” It was more of a statement than anything. Kallichore had once spoke to her of that place; they had plans to visit it at some point but ultimately it never ended up happening.

Sidouer crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head back to gaze up at the near full moon in the otherwise blackest of nights. “Sometimes I feel like it’s mocking us. Like it finds humor in our struggle. I’ll be honest, I have a few choice words saved up for if I ever get the chance to meet those responsible for this mess they left behind.”

“So tell me, what do you hope to find?”

“No, I’m going to examine the moon.” Phact stated strongly as her eyes followed up to the glowing white light. “I don’t think it’s the moon’s fault or the fault of whatever Romeo and Juliet fell in love. I think there is more. Something long before any of us. And as I said, Earth isn’t giving us the answers we need because it appears only the agents can connect to it now…”

Phact trailed off. “I want to find answers. Something to even show that we are doing what we are supposed to be. Heck, I once followed this path blindly and now I have seen where it will lead if we keep going. Sidouer, I can’t stand still and do nothing…”

There was no dissuading the Senshi of Doves from her mission, not that she had intended to stop her anyway since answers was something she desired as well. “Have you spoken to Acrucis about this endeavor?” A valid question since the two were typically joined at the hip yet here Phact was without her sister in tow.

The question caught Phact off guard. Her body stiffened and she slowly shook her head. “No...she wasn’t there and we have not had a chance to really talk. At least not since…” Her head dropped slowly and seemed sadden. “Not since the dreams.”Phact had been plagued now for awhile with dark dreams. Of death, loneliness, and destruction. Of a feeling that something was going to happen to her...to her sister. But she had nothing to back it up. At least nothing short of waking up again feeling like her stomach had been sliced open. The issue was that she remembered very little of those dreams. Just feelings.

Sidouer fell silent, unblinking jade-pink eyes watched the Senshi of Doves in an attempt to read her body language. “You’ve had them as well? Dreams of a dystopian future where chaos overcomes us all and those of us who resist either fall on bent knees or die fighting…?” It was unsettling in a way, to finally say that to someone without feeling like a complete whack job.

“Of a what?” Phact turned her red eyes on the woman and blinked quickly. “What are you talking about? Dystopian future?” Phact started to question as she began to feel something, a small throb forming in the back of her mind. Something she wasn’t remembering.

“Perhaps our dreams are different after all. When I fall asleep I have frequent nightmares of Destiny City overrun by chaos, dreams I tend to not be able to wake up from. Some dreams are repeats and I try to glean from them what I can. I just don’t know if this is something like a premonition or just me being paranoid after being powered up and fighting monsters for the better part of the past year. ” Sidouer tapped the tip of her toe on the concrete “The main things I remember are members of order scattered throughout Destiny City while others fled to camps scattered among the woods.” She would be lying if she said that she hadn’t spent time trying to locate these tent cities for any clue of what was to come. Perhaps it was an alternate universe overlapping with their own like those sci-fy books; who knows.

The throb was growing. moving from the back of her mind towards the front. As it did, Phact put a hand to left temple and winced. The pain was growing. Was her body trying to stop her from remembering something? Phact honestly didn’t know but the throb was becoming a stab to the back of her eye. “I need to sit down.” Phact finally said as she felt her vision fading in and out. It took only a moment more and Phact dropped to the cold ground on her knees. The pain was nearly unbearable.

Startled, Sidouer made a move to catch Phact before she fell forward and hit the ground. and with one arm wrapped around the Senshi of Dove’s shoulders, she did what she could to keep her upright “Phact?” Concern etched itself in both her voice and features. One moment she seemed fine as they chatted away, the next… “What’s wrong? Do we need to get you to a hospital?”

Phact’s face was contorted in pain as she braised both hands on either side of her head. It was pulsing and as it grew, so was the fog in her vision. “No….” She moaned before reaching up and clinging onto Sidouer’s arm. “Home...” She winced again trying to use the senshi beside her to stabilize herself. “Home…” She whispered again trying not to pass out. Something was pulling her mind and she couldn’t let it go now.

Lips pursed into a thin line, Sidouer nodded her head though she didn’t like the prospect of taking her friend some place where it would take too much time to receive aid should this headache of her worsen. “Times like this I wish Shen were here so I could call him for a ride.” Her brother, one of three people who knew of this double life she lived and the only one who wasn’t directly involved… yet. “Power down and get on.” Her voice was firm and left little room for debate. Phact wasn’t in any sort of condition to be traveling by foot which left it up to Sidouer to carry her wherever she needed to be.

Phact’s right hand slipped from her head and down to the red bird over her chest. A second passed before her body started to glow and Delilah White was in front of the senshi. Struggling as she would, Delilah clung onto Sidouer’s back and dropped her arms over the woman’s shoulders. The pain was taking her in and out of the waking world. Something was trying to claim her this moment but she had to fight it. Had to stay awake, at least until she got home. ”Keys are in my back pocket…” Delilah managed to say as she dropped her head down to meet Sidouer’s shoulder.

“Just hang in there I’ll get you home.” With her arms looped around Delilah’s knees she jumped slightly to get her situated then took off down the street till she got to a point where she could run up a makeshift ramp to one of the backyard sheds.

The run was anything but smooth between jumping over spaces between homes and the landing on her neighbors lawn but they made it to her home in good time. The blessedness of not having to abide by street lights and the ability to take more direct routes between point A and point B.

Sidouer crouched down and carefully set Delilah’s feet on more stable ground. “We’re here, Delilah?” In one motion she rose to her feet and shed her uniform to more sensible winter clothes she had been wearing before powering up. Still she did not let the raven haired girl go; holding on to her wrist that hung over her shoulder till she was more stabilized and ceased her swaying. “I really think I should have taken you to the hospital instead.” Concern was evident in both her voice and facial features as jade-pink eyes tried to assess the situation; it definitely didn’t seem like a cold or flu which left her feeling more worried than not.

“No.” Delilah motioned as she felt her eyes fix on the familiar building in front of her. Delilah attempted to cast Mei a look of ‘really’ but it fell flat as she urged the girl to at least just help her to the front door.

They wouldn’t have to wait long. Movement in the front yard had caught the White’s attention inside. The front door flew open and Richard White came running outside in lounge wear. “Oh lord. What happened?” He started before reaching out to take his daughter from the woman he recognized. A school mate prior to college….what was her name again?

Elizabeth was in the door frame, her hands to her face. “Delilah! Oh Richard, hurry, get her inside and upstairs before she gets cold. Delilah, what is it? Your head?”

Delilah said nothing but cast a look over her father’s shoulder at Mei before mouthing ‘Thank you’. Her red eyes closed and she slipped into the darkness.

Outside Mei stood watching for several moments after the three disappeared into their white colored home. “Please get better,” she whispered while making a mental note to call in the morning and check up on her. After drawing in a deep breath she let out a sigh in a white puff of hot air that lingered before her; it seemed to reason that the time for patrolling was over and it was time to head home as well. No use being out when her mind was this distracted.