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It came as a surprise to receive a text from Scylla on her senshi cellphone. It was usually Genevieve or her own brother (who sent a vast amount of emojis and pictures of himself in various places in and around Destiny City), so to receive a message from Scylla was unusual. Her fellow Eternal had inquired as to whether or not she was free to visit over a meal, provided by an establishment that catered to people of the powered persuasion. Kallichore had no idea such a place existed, and she was used to powering down before ordering food, hiding and powering back up again after the meal was finished.

The last time she had seen Scylla was amidst a battle with what she suspected to be a product of the Dark Mirror Court, given that so many of them, including their royalty, had shown up. The thought was unnerving in and of itself, being so close to royalty that, like Ares, wanted to subjugate or parasitize any White Moon Senshi they could. Kallichore’s skin prickled at the memory.

Shaking her head with a deep sigh, she responded to Scylla, asking for directions. She would arrive a little earlier than the time Scylla had designated and sat on the roof, watching the citizens below. She knew from experience that her luminescent markings would be even more off-putting to people than someone like Scylla would be. Despite her costume, the dark-haired senshi would pass more easily as a normal human being than Kallichore would.

And so she sat on the edge of the roof, legs dangling below her, pondering.

Kallichore’s ears pricked at the sound of Scylla’s pristine golden heels, turning away from gazing at the stars to greet her fellow with a smile. “Good evening, Scylla. No, it wasn’t long. You… didn’t have to bring food, but… thank you. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

The senshi of the kraken looked… weathered, but perhaps they all did. It was a given. Working and studying days, patrolling nights, exercising to keep themselves from being easy prey. The life of a senshi was difficult, to say the least. Kallichore hesitated for a moment, deciding pointing such a thing out would be construed as disrespectful. “The last time I saw you, we were battling those creatures in the park. I recall briefly seeing Acubens. I remember when she was White Moon. A wild one, she was. Still seems it. I wonder what happened to her…” It was more rhetorical than anything else, the senshi of madness graciously taking a cup of coffee to hold in her cold hands.

She shook her head. This wasn’t a time for forlorn retrospection. “...I apologize. I am well, Scylla, all things considered. Parsing how best to provide guidance to my younger brother, who is a super senshi now. How has time treated you since we last saw one another?”

There was a small, spherical glass bottle tied at her hip, but Kallichore did not draw any attention to it. Contained within was a silvery liquid which seemed to behave like water - sloshing to and fro with the same fluidity and viscosity as water. The bottle was given as much attention as anything else on her fuku. Sealed with an old, thick cork, the bottle looked well-worn, but cared for. Kallichore didn’t seem to reach for it as a drink option, in any case. The coffee would do just fine.

"They are certainly Chaos..." Staring down into the depths of the coffee, Kallichore wondered for a moment what the battle would have been like had Acubens never been baptized in the mirror. "...that is the simple truth of things, whether they can acknowledge it or not. But, we both know that. Family may simply be propaganda to swell their ranks. Ares claimed to want a family to replace the one she couldn't return to... but... We may never know for certain. What was that creature, by the way? With so many Dark Mirrors showing up, they most certainly had something to do with it. I've never seen so many in one place, save for that night with Ares."

Kallichore had nightmares about that moment for many months afterwords, haunted.

She seemed content for the moment to simply hold the coffee and speak to Scylla. "I was... away for a long time, seeking that answer. He awakened while I was gone. Sometimes..." Kallichore looked away, squinting into the distance. A few quiet moments passed before she spoke again. "At the very least, I am immensely thankful he is not touched by Chaos. Things would be... much more complicated than they already are. ...I wonder if, perhaps, I've been away for too long and left him alone. I'll do what I can to make up for it. "

Even if she wasn't very good at it.

Scylla's hesitation caused Kallichore to turn back to her and tilt her head, but she didn't press any further. "...has your introspection born any fruit for you, Scylla?" Another sip of her coffee, and the senshi of madness began to simply enjoy Scylla's company.

The senshi in red didn’t seem startled by Scylla’s barbed reply. In fact, Kallichore seemed more intrigued than anything else. “Holding her to the rules… Yes, she would have been very hypocritical if she didn’t adhere, but expected the rest of us to.” She recalled a stern warning when entering into the Blood Moon Court - obey or face consequences. Even Ares herself, one of the founding members, would not be exempt. “...one might say that respect is more important than power in an organization, and one cannot gain respect by shirking one’s own rules.”

She waved away Scylla’s apology. “We both have a great deal of emotion tied up in the Blood Moon, the Dark Mirror, and Ares. There is no need to apologize for expressing it.”

The kraken’s information, straight from Acubens herself, was incredibly interesting. Kallichore seemed to fully engage with Scylla, turning her body slightly to face her blue counterpart. “I wonder if perhaps this mirror wraith was like the Greater Youma at the power plant? But the thought that Ares has been missing for a while…” Kallichore tapped her chin, silent for a moment. “...the term missing implies the Dark Mirror Court is unaware of her whereabouts. If she were on a journey, I would think Acubens would have used a different phrase. Away or maybe even stepped down or out. But missing...”

What on earth could cause a being of such immense power to disappear from her Court? It was disconcerting.

“Yes, I do wonder how it might have reacted to a true Parallel. That isn’t something I had considered, previously. You’re very astute, Scylla.”

Against her better judgment and rather detached attitude, Kallichore placed a gloved hand lightly on Scylla’s shoulders. “I think… they would be proud to know you are working diligently to keep the city safe. While there is no telling whether the war will find them or not, please find peace knowing we will do what we can to protect them.” Senshi of madness or not, Kallichore wasn’t lying when she alluded to protecting Scylla’s family if need be. Family was incredibly important, whether it be a birth or self-constructed family. The Blood Moon was a family to her in her time of need.

Scylla’s next question was something Kallichore had more experience with - introspection. She smiled warmly and turned her gaze to the twinkling blanket of stars above them. “...my question, you see… Scylla, I was running for so long. My body ached as much as my soul. I was desperate to know, what is my place? What was I meant to do? My previous endeavors bore no fruit, offered my mind no solace. I had arrived at an impasse - a fork in the road without direction and no instinct to lean on. Fighting Chaos tooth and nail only swelled their ranks. They grew fat on anger and sorrow and desperation, and I practically spoon-fed Metallia herself.”

With a chuckle, Kallichore waved her hand. “Ah, I’m waxing too poetic. My apologies.” Pulling some of her gray hair behind an ear, she continued. “I stared into the past as well, Scylla, and returned to my moon to ask. It was there, I found a pool, and that pool gave me a terrible vision of my deepest fears…”

A hand crept to the bottle at her side, but she did not open it. “...The Kallichore of the past had said that if one were to push through the deepest, darkest parts of their soul, the moon would guide them to the answer they sought. And so… it did just that. I saw a wondrous vision of a glorious goddess, with long and silvery hair and a dress made of the stars themselves. She oversaw a great machine, the cogs of creation itself. It was… breathtaking.”

Kallichore looked down to the bottle, resting against her thigh, and tapped it. “I am to guide. That is my place. Aggression does not pull Chaos from the hearts of men - the truth does.” Picking up the bottle then, the senshi untangled it from the mess of cyan-colored string that attached it to her fuku. “...this bottle is not the liquid from the vision-pool, but one similar. It is what I relied on heavily, years before. It calms the mind. I do not need it any longer, but I carry it with me in case someone is in need.”

--and the only people left to remember those blood-stained mistakes will be…

“You, and I, the Jovians... And whoever else we tell the story to. We will not forget.”

She felt Scylla lean and while Kallichore thought she wasn’t well-versed in simple social cues, or possessed the warmth of Maia or courtly grace of Ganymede, the senshi in red tried to return the favor. She shifted to prop Scylla up, to allow the senshi in blue the ability to lean more heavily on someone, and have that someone prop her up in return. She wouldn’t have to worry about falling, not tonight.

Brown eyes closed as she listened intently to Scylla’s pain and fear, trembling words of a warrior and frightened daughter, one who was terrified for the safety of her family. And who wouldn’t be? Each of them ran the risk of premature death when powering up. One could not divulge their identity to the family without risking a member being a part of Chaos. Everyone seemed forced to swallow their second lives and press on as if nothing was out of place. Kallichore nodded, understanding.

“Why do you suppose you are running towards the fights now, Scylla? Is it because you are strong, and wish to make a difference? ...or are you running from something else, and hope to fight it by fighting Chaos? Perhaps it is both. Forgive my assumptions.”

Kallichore was not Sibyl, the senshi of the past. She did not have the authority or position to pretend to be some space psychologist.

Without a word, she placed the rounded bottle in Scylla’s lap, which was warmed from her hands. The liquid shone silver from the moonlight cascading down upon them. “I, too, ran at a breakneck pace. Ran into skirmishes, worked myself to the bone in order to sleep. I even contemplated willing corruption, simply to end the pain.” There wasn’t shame in her voice, not anymore, but it was cathartic to admit to someone who might have the slightest bit of understanding. “One cannot outrun one’s own thoughts. Wherever you go, there you are.”

Her gaze raised to the sky. “...that bottle will provide some relief, if you are willing, Scylla. It refills every dawn. A balm, it will soothe the pain, but will not heal the deep scars. For that, there is something else. Whenever you want, I am willing to help you walk that path, if you so choose. Many are not ready to walk that path, and Chaos feeds upon it. So be it. When they are ready, when they can truly see, then truth will be revealed.”

After such a difficult and heavy conversation, Scylla’s description of her home planet earned a chuckle from her companion. “Your planet sounds like a… fun place? Does it have… water slides, too?” Kallichore’s attempt at humor probably wasn’t the best.

"I understand."

It was a simple, quiet admission. Kallichore remembered the sharp stabs of regret, the realization that her actions were ultimately meaningless in the grand scheme of things. A few years ago, it felt as though she would never make a difference, that she lacked the power to influence the war. It took years, but Kallichore had learned to ask the proper question to receive the answer that, while different than what she expected, was ultimately the most satisfying.

"Regret. Guilt. Shame. Hopelessness. Terrible weapons that cut deeper than a sword." She hung her head, silent for a few moments, as if mourning the sacrifice Scylla had made but didn't identify openly. Her senshi companion would not pry any further. Scylla's wounds were her property, to do with what she felt best. "...giving up is shame, continuing to suffer is excruciating. There doesn't seem to be a way out that ends in satisfaction. I understand."

The senshi of madness chuckled quietly when Scylla compared the bottle to the enticing relief of alcohol. "It's... not the most elegant of bottled solutions." The liquid was alien in appearance, which lent to an understandable apprehension. To most people, it might look like a poison. At the very least, they would second-guess imbibing something not easily identifiable. "I'll talk to my engraver about making the bottle more... aesthetically appealing for marketing purposes. Consider yourself a well-respected connoisseur of thought-sculpting liquids. I look forward to your critique."

Kallichore smiled slightly. A genuine smile seemed out of place on her.

"...I'd like to see a fossilized kraken, honestly. It's quite fascinating how starkly different our previous lives were, how unique each culture was to its place in the universe." The moon for which she was named was incredibly small among the vast number of Jovian moons. The culture was strange, insular for the most part, and very self-examining.

I suppose it depends on what you consider satisfaction. If your mind has been torn apart and remade until you don't remember why you were unhappy, I suppose you would be content with your lot in life.

The senshi in red seemed to consider this for a long moment. If one wasn't aware of one's previous agony, there would be no reason to be dissatisfied with one's life. They may never know what they had lost - or elected to have removed. You can't miss what you don't remember you had. "Such is why I considered it myself, truthfully. But... it was too shameful to leave the people behind that depended on me. I had to search for another solution. It was a terrible burden to carry in the meantime, however."

Her brother, Themisto, was the primary reason she couldn't allow herself to become corrupted, regardless of the mental anguish. She couldn't leave him behind and risk not remembering who he was. She couldn't risk attacking and potentially killing him without the slightest idea of how much he meant to her in their previous life.

Kallichore scoffed at the thought of paying two thousand dollars on something you would imbibe and then excrete not a few hours later. Then again, what price can a person put on relief? "...forgive my ignorance, but was that a metaphor? Two thousand is a month's worth of work for me. I can't imagine spending so much money on food or drink. What is Viniq?" Clearly she was out of her league, both in knowledge and income bracket. Scylla was tossing out names of things she didn't not recognize from casual conversation with others, and she didn't recall seeing anything called a Viniq in the books she loved to read.

The offer to see the land of Scylla was graciously accepted. "I'd love to, honestly. I've read of krakens in mythology books, but never thought I may one day see a real specimen. Perhaps we could trade, if you were so inclined. A visit for a visit."

The look Kallichore gave Scylla was identical to one she would give if Scylla had grown a second head.

"Excuse me? I can't accept something as expensive as a several-thousand-dollar bottle of anything, Scylla. Well... with specific exceptions." She could think of a few, first-edition books from centuries past that would very likely fetch such handsome sums. Kallichore hadn't the slightest idea that Scylla dealt with large sums of money on the regular. The thought never crossed her mind. "That's such an extraordinary amount of money, I'm afraid I'd drop it and waste it all."

The description of Viniq - something Kallichore had never heard of before -- was surprisingly fitting. Scylla was apparently quite familiar with her exotic alcohol. The shimmering, swirling liquid wouldn't offer Scylla much in the way of taste or texture, but the relief of mental anguish may make up for it. "...I'm afraid I don't have enough friends to share such an expensive drink with. It's a kind thought, however. Thank you, Scylla. That's quite generous of you."

Wednesday, that was the day she traveled to her homeworld. Kallichore made a mental note of it. "Wednesday it is, then. Would you like me to meet you somewhere, or should I await your text?"