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 Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2015 11:24 am
For Persephone, the idea of approaching someone else powered was something of a frightening prospect. Her life had been quiet and avoidant ever since she fled the Negaverse. She had spent a week recovering in Quinn's apartment and coping with the aches and pains of a starseed battered around through far too much stress and magic. Then, a second week spending an hour or so every night powered up and stretching her legs, but assiduously avoiding other power signatures.
She could feel a tickle at the edge of her senses, a power signature she recognized as Negaverse, Lieutenant, presumably on her level but likely not burdened with the messier aspects of her particular brand of having been tossed about from side to side.
And, well, damn it she was curious. She knew that she had fled the Negaverse, vaguely thought that perhaps she had done so in some sort of disgrace? Not that she knew much of anything about what her life had been like. And that, ultimately, was what made her dart to the energy signature, because hey - maybe it was someone who could give her some answers.
When she spotted the Lieutenant, she stopped, but bounced on her feet almost unthinkingly. "Hi!" She called, voice surprisingly perky. "Do I know you?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2015 8:16 am
Umber turned at the sound of the perky voice, snd his markedly not-perky gaze fell on one of the dark mirror. The girl wore greek attire, her hair wrapped in laurels and body dressed in toga. The brilliant red sash looked clasped together by a single, fat pomegranate pin. Offsetting the attire, she sported vivid green hair tied up in buns and bright purple eyes with an inquisitive gaze. And considering the way she held herself, Umber wondered just how young this senshi was - 14, 15 at most?
"You don't," he replied matter-of-factly. "And I don't know you." What an odd question. Why ask someone else to confirm if you know them when it's obvious enough by your lack of recognition. But as he mulled over such a bright presentation, he was reminded of a girl he knew friendship with in his hometown. She consistently maintained an element of brightness that often felt oppressive, but simultaneously refreshing. And despite Shale's terseness, she kept interacting with him and became a fairly important interpersonal relationship. Idly he wondered if she went looking for him.
Or if anyone was looking for this one, who appeared far too innocent to know much of the 'war'.
He paused and closed his eyes a moment to remember her face. "Lieutenant Umber," he offered on the side. Afterward he returned his gaze to her and crossed his arms. "Were you looking for someone?" Looking for someone you don't actually know, maybe. Or someone that you did know at one point. No reason to keep speculating when I already asked.
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2015 9:46 pm
Persephone sighed heavily, and reached up to push her bangs briefly away from her tiara. (It felt odd to have bangs to push again, she was used to hair so long it trailed on the ground. And that was an odd thing to be used to, when she could still barely remember being a corrupted Eternal.)
"Damn it," she said, softly. "I, um, my memory's a bit...scrambled?" She offered, as if that would explain everything. "I've been through a bit of a magical mess recently and it, uh. Well. The mildest effect is that I basically don't remember s**t?" She shrugged helplessly. That was the best way to explain her condition, really,and why she would ask a total stranger if they happened to know who she was.
"Sailor Persephone. Of, um, the Mirror, obviously, though before that I was Negaverse and before that I was Order." Her personal history was a complicated tangle of allegiances that she abandoned, and sometimes she wondered if Leto was right to trust her after everything she had done and been. "I wasn't looking for anyone specifically, no, I mean, I wouldn't even know where to start looking." Maybe being tiny and cute and amnesiac would win her points. She would take whatever she could get, at this point.
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2015 7:37 pm
"A magical mess. And you've gone through three different allegiances." So I face a traitor now. The Negaverse should know about this. So what would lead you through the White Moon, the Negaverse, and now to the Dark Mirror. What are you chasing, Persephone. "I suspect they're related."
And why is she introducing herself to Negaverse officers when she most recently left the Negaverse? How long ago was this that she left our ranks?
Umber looked over the small girl and breathed a sigh through his nose. Pinching the bridge, he considered his options for dealing with the fiasco she presented - on one hand, he could bring her into the Negaverse's care and allow them to deal with her as they wished. However, as a basic senshi who remembered little to nothing anymore, it's not like she left with any Negaverse secrets. What she divulged while still within their ranks was not his responsibility, nor was he culpable for such.
"I should bring you in for your admitted treachery," he started slowly. "And I think it's unwise to tell Negaverse officers that you effectively defected from their ranks. Negaverse and Mirror relations are strained, from what I gather. If you truly remember nothing, it's best to act that way if you want to stay out of the scope for Negaverse punishment." Umber made no legitimate approach toward the girl to imply his reluctance to detain her - especially since she would learn nothing of the event.
"Do you know why you chose the Mirror?"
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Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:03 pm
“Well, of course, I’d say a purification and then a recorruption into the Dark Mirror in the space of about two days qualifies as a magical mess.” Persephone still seemed wholly unconcerned with explaining her story. Even when he threatened to bring her in – she felt wholly confident that she had little to fear from the Negaverse. She had protection, and the protection of her own incompetence. She was a soldier who had no value, no worth, a heart too soft and gentle and a tongue too sharp.
She had not made the Negaverse happy. Whoever had corrupted her probably felt she had been a waste of time and resources. The Negaverse, certainly, was not so free of obligations that they could spend the time to hunt down a tiny, shattered Basic Senshi who provided absolutely no value to them and very little value to their enemies. She had bene more of a risk as a disoloyal Eternal who actually knew things.
“Oh, they won’t want me back, I was a terrible failure of an officer. I can’t remember anything that would hurt them, and even if they did drag me in, there’s nowhere Leto won’t be able to find me.” She coughed. Perhaps he didn’t know – likely he didn’t know. “The Princess of the Dark Mirror. I’m under her protection.” She was, at least, smart enough not to go any further into detail of their relationship. He didn’t need to know that, and if they knew, the Negaverse might try to drag her back not because they gave a s**t about her, but because they wanted to hurt Leto, or lure her into a trap. But so far this Umber didn’t feel like a threat – if he wanted to, he could have easily overpowered her, and that would be that.
“I chose the Mirror because everyone I care about is there. I have friends, and…and more.” She crossed her arms and stared at her feet. “In the Negaverse, I was all alone and a terrible, stupid failure. But now I don’t have to be alone anymore.”
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Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2015 8:40 am
I wonder if any further tampering would just break her starseed in half. Reporting this may tempt someone to find out, or tempt someone else to make an example of her. All of it is beyond my control once I've served my duties. Her fate is not mine to worry about. Umber loosed a perplexed sigh through his nose. Here, before him, stood an emboldened traitor who likely had enough of her senses blown out that she didn't know better than to let the story fly. Worse yet, her body language and tone indicated flippancy about the entire 'magical mess', if her phrasing hadn't given it away.
Umber covered his mouth with his hand for a moment while he considered his options. Reporting this information seemed a necessity - and if a little database research revealed that her story was false, it may offer a measure of relief. If he simply left and entered an update into the system, someone may ask why he didn't bring her in himself, but she answered that question quickly enough (while adding more information for the system). Ultimately he decided she may offer more use unhindered than in Negaverse custody. If she were willing to be loose with her Dark Mirror secrets, then he would listen well.
Finally the hand dropped away and searched for a pocket while he spoke. "So you left the Negaverse to rejoin your friends." You realize this isn't high school, right? You're too young to be in a war. "Now you have a princess to protect you and people to interact with. I can see why that would be appealing." The Negaverse, for all its lack of social venues and encouraged officer interactions, seemed more a military devoted to adults - to people who already established their lives. Had she not bothered to make friends all her life before joining the Negaverse? Or did she think that coming into such power might somehow change her for the better? The lieutenant couldn't hazard a guess. It left him all the more exasperated as he realized he was between a rock and a hard place with this one.
She doesn't have to be alone, but you do. Would you abandon your solitary life?
"They may not want you back, but they may want to make an example of you to all other potential traitors. I hope that your princess can protect you well." The words were spoken sincerely, without biting sarcasm.
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Posted: Thu Apr 23, 2015 9:50 pm
Persephone frowned, and crossed her arms. "Well, no, it's not that simple," she said, "at least, I hope not? I don't...remember everything about why I wanted to leave. I remember there was something really, really terrible, though. Around New Year's." She rolled forward briefly onto her toes, and then rocked back onto her heels, a slightly antsy nervous movement.
"She can protect me, I'm sure of - ow!" Her hand moved up to press at her chest, the source of a sudden, shooting pain. This wasn't the worst she'd experienced - it had brought her to her knees before - but it was like having something sharp driven into her sternum. "Ow, ow, ********," she grit her teeth and took, unthinkingly, a step back.
"That, um, happens. Sometimes," she said, and she was half glad it had happened and half wished it hadn't. It was a weakness he could take back to the Nergaverse, something he could report about a way to take her down - just wait for her own starseed to start turning on her. But it was also another good reason not to bother with her. She was so broken that she was practically an example without needing to be made into one. At least, she hoped that would fly.
It probably wouldn't. The Negaverse, in her vague, faint recollection, wasn't much for mercy, not even for its most vulnerable. And she wasn't even one of them anymore.
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Posted: Sat Apr 25, 2015 9:39 am
"The New Year's Ball." Umber remembered the fiasco as explained by Hvergelmir, however trustworthy her words were. Did Persephone partake in the torturous acts? Asking her sounded moot; if she lacked the ability to remember more than vague feelings, then what point was there in requesting details? And hadn't Babylon explained that memories tied to starseed and body? It proved that she was nothing more than an interesting science experiment for those of such a mind.
The sudden pang of discomfort drew his attention, and Umber approached with arms crossed. He stopped at a distance outside personal space, but his gaze lingered on her chest where her starseed lay for some time. It seemed the likely culprit for her her hand pressed to her sternum so quickly Pulling it to inspect it sounded viable, but intrusive. She would surely resist and call this Leto if she had a means to do so.
If.
Still, he found no reason to jeopardize potentially consistent contact just to garner a look at her starseed. "Painful, is it?" I suspect this is also a result of your 'magical mess'. If leaving the Negaverse came at such a great cost, then why do it? Who else had left, or followed you? Likely you were a basic officer, but one can easily make friends with a bright enough personality. "Perhaps you'd want to stick with your princess more closely. That seems like a vulnerability you wouldn't want to expose to the wrong people." And considering that she admitted it happens on occasion, this wasn't a one-off instance. Leaving the Negaverse meant she trashed her body thoroughly, and she ran no further potential to strike back at her former organization.
I should at least ensure she has no plans to retaliate against the Negaverse. "So what do you do with your days now, Persephone? You have no mandated quota from the Negaverse. Do you often walk around until you find someone you might know? Do you catch yourself thinking about ways to further the rift between Negaverse and Dark Mirror Court?"
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2015 11:27 pm
New Year's Ball, yes, that sounded right. Not that it mattered much, her memory was still a fragmented mess, but she had, for the briefest moment, a flash, of dark rooms and a blonde general in green and a slow, crawling terror up her spine.
That was someone she hoped she never ran into again.
The pain passed, and she took slow, deep breaths, trying to push the last of it away. "Yes," she admitted. "It, um, varies, that wasn't so bad really." That was probably admitting too much, but she didn't really care anymore. "I can't take Leto everywhere every time I want to go for a walk, but...yeah, I probably shouldn't go anywhere without a handler for a while." She could admit that, not that she would take her own advice because she was very, very good at making unwise decisions.
She looked a little surprised that he asked about her days. "Um, I'm at home, mostly. I can't stay out very long. But why would I try to make things worse between the Negaverse and the Court?" She wrinkled her nose, genuinely confused. "That'd be stupid. I just want to be left alone, mostly. I try not to cause too much trouble." She would not bring down the wrath of the Negaverse on the entire Court, not if she could help it.
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Posted: Sun May 17, 2015 4:49 pm
When Umber looked upon her, his countenance was not without a solemn tint. He bore her no judgment - she seemed entirely unaware of the consequences behind her actions - but a trained suspicion remained that he suppressed with ample practice. "Your existence - as you are now - worsens relations between the Negaverse and your new Court. You fled the Negaverse into the arms of the Dark Mirror. The facts alone beg for expansions to the Court stealing you away, or that the Negaverse is so horrible that the Dark Mirror must rescue all senshi from their clutches as they did you. Put plainly, if anyone recognizes you as a former Negaverse officer, then your 'going on a walk' exacerbates our already tenuous relations." Did you not think of this before you elected to abandon our side? Doubtful.
"If you wanted to be left alone, then you wouldn't seek out members of the side you just abandoned." He stepped toward her, past her, before he froze to watch the waning light as the moon dipped behind darkened clouds. "But I think you approached me because you wanted something out of the encounter - something that outweighed the potential damage that introducing yourself might do. I wonder if it satisfied that I didn't know you. Or were you looking for an officer that might've been under your supervision? It would be a blow to them, I'd expect. Their superior officer, now on their level but of a differing faction. Were you captured and forcibly converted? No one could know without asking."
You are a traitor, foremost. A traitor, but not yet cunning enough to be a deceiver. Would you become the velvet tongue of your Court? Would you lay it out upon the ground for your princess to come forth? Your Leto? Would she save you if you mired yourself in complicated relations with the Negaverse? Only your value will decide that. If you continue to survive, if you have stories to tell of ambushes and attacks, then that would illustrate your value to her. You would, effectively, become her kingpin.
I will wait and see.
"It was interesting to meet you, Persephone, despite all the travesties you leave in your wake."
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Posted: Tue May 26, 2015 9:09 pm
Persephone stared down at her feet, wringing her hands in front of her. He was right, her very existence was a mistake. But she couldn't stay. Staying would have been the worst thing possible. She didn't belong with the Negaverse or with Order, she knew that somewhere deep down in her core. She was where she needed to be.
"I was...I really was hoping you knew something about me. Anything at all - because I don't?" She shrugged her shoulders. "It was definitely dumb." Like everything she did, probably. "But I need to know. Leto can't tell me if I had any Lieutenants I was responsible for, or what kind of superior officer I was," she said. "I might have been decent, or I might have been total s**t - probably the latter, I'd feel bad for anybody assigned to me."
Were there people she had been responsible for? Had she abandoned them? Again? Oh God, she was a walking disaster area.
"I, um, it was interesting meeting you too, Umber," she said. "Actually, I'm kinda glad it was someone who didn't know me, at least you didn't try to punch me in the face on sight or anything."
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2015 2:57 pm
Umber began to leave, but hesitated at her admission. He watched her, expression absent, while he mulled over potential proceedings. Feeding her information about her Negaverse career offered very few repercussions - unless she was a part of a classified operation, all the information would have been known to her in a more natural occasion. On a generalized level, there lay some concerns over such an exchange, but the benefits outweighed the risks significantly.
If he managed any information about Persephone's life as an officer, then providing it to her offered the basis for a relationship. That information could be released over time, necessitating multiple visits - and by extension, more time to solidify this relationship. What might he do with that? What information on the Dark Mirror might be gained for his own interests? And beyond Negaverse interests, there were great benefits in having personal allies. Persephone herself may not be powerful, but if this Princess Leto saw fit to protect the friends of her charges? She would become an impressive ally indeed.
And if the Negaverse found need to punish the court... Then there stood a very convenient kingpin before him.
"I can look into it. If there's record of your serving, it won't be hard to find. Is there a place where I can find you again? Somewhere preferably private?" Exchanging information among tenuous allies might look benign to the discerning eye, but there was no guarantee that a less tolerable officer wouldn't happen upon the act.
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