Welcome to Gaia! ::

The Dark Kingdom was a trove of unexplored and forgotten buildings, so it shouldn’t have come as any surprise that tucked away in some distant corner was a cave Metallia had kept hidden for years. Some Negaverse Agent might have found it while wandering the crumbled city, but it was unlikely they knew what true power the cave held.

From the outside, it looked absolutely normal—just a hole in the ground, framed by rubble and dust and glistening shards of shattered crystals. It was well hidden and easily missed—if Metallia had not programmed a map into your communication crystal to ensure you wound up straight there.

She had instructed that everyone move as a group; stragglers would not be tolerated, and deserters would be punished, though she did not specify how. All she said was that it was important they have as many hands as possible.

There was a crystal, somewhere deep in the cave, and she absolutely needed it. Only, she did not have a description. She said only that they would know when they found it, and not to disappoint her.

Metallia had sent them on their way with only minor warnings—be cautious; the cave was old, and judging by the status of the gateway leading down to the underground passage, it had been decaying for quite some time. It looked moderately sturdy—at least, enough that it would be safe to travel down. If they were careful and didn't crowd the passage too much at a time, they'd probably all be safe.

While above ground, and peering down the rocky path, it was obvious that it was dark in the cave. The wiser of the agents will make use of the environment above ground before heading down; there are blue and purple crystals, all glowing, protruding out of the rocky ground nearby.

Once you are prepared, you may descend! Be careful, though; you don't know what might be down here, or what the conditions might be like.

General Aurostibite


He had not ever been to this part of Negaspace before, nor had he ever come across the cave in his travels. Aurostibite stood on the precipice of the entrance, looking into the darkness with a muted expression on his face, long hair rippling down his back.

Straightening, he turned to the others.

"Reinerite," said Aurostibite, directing his attention towards his newest lieutenant first, "If you would be so kind as to gather some of those crystals around the edge - they can be a light source of sorts, it looks rather black down there."

He nodded at Hydra, Bloodstone, and Kainite as well, though the latter was given the longest and most pointed look.

"You all should gather some crystals as well, if you can; we can use all the help we can get." A booted foot absently edged a rock out of the way as Aurostibite crouched down beside the entrance to the cave, running gloved fingers across the crumbling edge.

He stood again and brushed dust from his uniform.

"Would anyone prefer to go first?" Aurostibite asked quietly. "We should be entering cautiously."

Half Youma General Cinnabar - Being a Tank and heading into the cave

The map Metallia had given them led them true, bringing the group to the crumbling mouth of the Cave they needed to enter to retrieve the crystal she wanted. Cin was unimpressed by the look of it and the task itself, but there was a sweet thrill in the knowledge that these orders came from the mouth of their Queen herself. Cinnabar would have gladly dressed as a clown and performed at children's parties, if that had been what she commanded her to do... exploring a dark and musty cave was at least better than that.

Labradorite and Erythrite flanked her when they arrived, Jet and Aquamarine among the rest of the group, and the General let them follow as they pleased as she strode to the entrance and peered down. Her black-red eyes might have been an arguably better in the dark than a regular humans, but it wasn't by much. They were going to need a way to see down there, and the environment provided the perfect solution.

Hearing another General calling about gathering crystals, Cinnabar stooped to grab a couple of fist sized ones for herself and those who had come with her. One was tossed to each of the officers she was keeping tabs on before she gave the group that had come with them a once over in consideration. Considering the possible structural instability, it was good the group was smaller than the other groups had been. Perhaps they wouldn't tax it too much as they moved through.

No sense waiting around though. They were accomplishing nothing up here.

"Keep your eyes peeled and try not to crowd." General Cinnabar called before she took her first step into the cave after a lieutenant she didn't know, her tail flicking as the light of her crystal bounced off the rock walls to wash everything in a soft purple light. She followed close behind him, half her attention on him should he need help and the rest on their surroundings for trouble.

Corrupt Sailor Hydra

For the most part, the girl was quiet, letting her teal eyes sweep across their surroundings as they walked and she tried not to wobble on her heels. She would never not think that heels were a terrible costume idea for a super hero. At least in the beginning.

Trying to figure out heels had been a nightmare, but she was adjusting nicely. She hoped.

Or at least that's what she thought before they reached the lip of the cave and peered into rocky darkness.

Oh.

Oh, this so didn't bode well for her. She'd be lucky if she didn't like trip and break one of her heels. But it was okay, she just needed to be careful was all. She was busy trying to assess how she would get herself one of those wicked cool glowing rocks and head down when Aurostibite address that nice girl then looked pointedly at them. A turquoise brow arched but she pressed her lips firmly together, determined not to say anything before stomping over to the crystals.

Lucky for her, Bloodstone did the hard work for her and tossed a crystal rock at her. "Thank you!" She chirped, gloved hands darting up to catch it before she too began to descend careful to keep close to the older man and step where he stepped.

Lieutenant Domeykite

Everything about this made Domeykite uneasy. Even without Labyrinthite in his immediate vicinity, the General had made sure that Domey's anxiety over his position was not put to rest easily.

He had to go into a hole? Seriously?

Both of his pale hands shoved deep into the pockets of his pants and he lingered next to Aluminite as they walked, taking comfort in the fact that he at least knew the man and his ambitions.

Two bright, acid eyes flickered from the stronger officers around him. There was the youma woman who looked damn near more terrifying than the hole itself but at least she had been willing to jump head first in so that no one else had to. That was probably admirable or something as far as this was concerned. Then there was Obsidian - a face and name he knew from his early days, though he made him nearly as uneasy as Labyrinthite himself. There was also Auro, a man he, unfortunately, knew best of all. At least he was the less savage of the two officers that had dropped by unannounced some months ago - though he wondered if he felt justified for that visit now that Domeykite seemed to have been leashed.

Seemed to? ********, he was.

An irritable scowl pulled at his lips and one hand tussled his hair as he considered what Auro was saying to his group some feet away. Both bright eyes fell to the crystals and he grudgingly reached down to grab a blue one, pulling it free with a grunt and watching as it washed his pale skin in a soft glow.

Okay, so maybe this was on okay idea. It didn't mean he had to appreciate it though.

"Hey, did you get one of these?"

A casual elbow was thrust at Aluminite's side before he moved forward hesitantly, only descending once the officer before him was clear. One last glance of his nervous eyes was tossed back at the other man as if to say hurry the hell up. He definitely didn't want to be down there alone - or with any of these other people he didn't know.

General Obsidian

All in all, this promised to be a boring and uneventful trip. Obsidian was musing to himself as he slipped through the darkness, kicking up a blue crystal for himself before he nodded at Angelite to do the same, assuming she hadn't already. He didn't have many words for her right now, his attention caught on the red, swishing tail of one very intriguing half-youma ahead of him.

Cinnabar would soon feel gloved fingers snaking against the draconic appendage that lashed behind her even now, simply touching before he pulled his hand back. "Just admiring the view." He assured her with his eyes half-lidded and a damnable grin on his face, falling back so that he was closer to the senshi he'd flirted with before.

"You come here often?" He purred at Hydra, looking at her from the corner of his eye. "Figured a nice gal like you might not be so used to trucking around in caves. Or heels." He kept his voice at a low murmur, seeing no need to shout. After all, if there were bats in here, the quickest way to get s**t in your hair was to startle them.

Hm. Maybe if he found cover, first...

Lt. Labradorite

Labradorite had followed Cinnabar to the cave and looked at with a low impressed whistle. "Man I wonder how old this thing is." When Cin threw her the crystal she caught it with a squeak and looked at the blue glowing crystal. Right they needed light.

" . . . if only there were sticks down here. . . . we could make them like torches and light the path as we go." That would've been an idea right? She didn't even bring a backpack for a hike and well there was no way for her to go get one. She sighed watching others talk and followed Cin into the cave.

Her shoes weren't quite made for trekking either but if she had to she'd just take them off. There was a pause as she watched the spider man Coffinite move in the cave. He also called them daft, which caused the LT. to frown heavily.

She needed to explore more and the little bits of chatter, she tried to keep up with what seemed to be addressed to the group of them. Though she frowned a little when there was a General (Obsidian) who basically accosted Cin. There were better and more subtle ways to do what he did, but Laby thought better of it as she walked since he was a General.

"Sooo . . . do you guys think there'll be traps down here? Like Indiana Jones has to face?" She asked curiously looking around at the group as a whole, those in front of her and behind her. She wasn't loud but she was curious as to what they thought they might end up facing.

Half Youma General Cinnabar

"If there are traps, we'll deal with them." The half-youma replied to the lieutenant that had come with her, smiling over a shoulder at her. "You have a good selection of Generals... this should be straightforward enough, between teleportation and our physical abilities."

Most of the group had begun to descend behind her, most armed with glowing crystal to cast the area in a faint blue and purple light. None seemed to be hanging behind, which was all to the good with the warning their Queen had given them when they left.

Suddenly, unexpectedly and illogically, a hand came from behind and closed around the sleek form of her tail. Fingers slid down over the flexible, snake-like scales before the tail flicked out of the grip, exactly like an irritated cat's, and Cin jerked a look over her shoulder to catch the red-haired General withdrawing his hand.

Just admiring the view. Her eyebrows lifted in mingled annoyance and amusement, the corner of her red lips twitching as she gave him a piercing look over, head to toe, with slit-pupiled eyes. He was smiling, unrepentant, and a low rumble rolled from her throat, feline and animalistic as she walked backwards, only part of her attention on where she was walking.

"You should watch those wandering fingers before they get you into trouble, Carrot Top. I only allow tail tugging in bed." She rumbled, her smile showing the tips of fangs.