Welcome to Gaia! ::

Summer was sitting in full swing and the heat was a physical wall that Hopeite was walking into each day. Not that she minded. The heat was easy enough to mitigate, unlike the uncomfortable creeping chill of winter's cold. It was why July was one of her favorite months. There was no June rain to dampen her spirits, no August humidity to suffocate her. Just dry, perfect heat to enrobe and warm her. It was the perfect time of year, in her opinion, to start the next phase of her plan for Harmonia. She was trusting her. Understanding her methods. Or what she posed as her methods. It was time to start framing herself as a victim.

And so Hopeite stood in the waning sunlight with the sack of starseeds in one hand and a shopping back of knick knacks in the other. Small tokens of her gratitude for the help that she was going to be receiving. Of course, on the other hand this also served as a bribe to maybe keep the youma from harming her. Their last meeting still rang loudly in her ears. Bazzite had been ready to consume her should things not go according to plan... Hopeite swallowed a bit hard and steeled herself. If all else failed, Hopeite was not above fleeing. How far she could run from those wings and those legs... she was unsure. But she was low enough to try...

Bazzite didn't do much to keep himself hidden from the Lieutenant. The lure and promise of starseeds, combined with Benitoite's request to leave the Lieutenant unharmed, were more than enough to keep the youma in good spirits. Though he was summoned nearby, he took the liberty of walking the remaining distance on alien legs. The breeze smelled lovely and the stars were twinkling deliciously in the sky.

Like thousands of tiny souls, just wanted to be chewed upon.

"'Lo, Lieutenant." came a metallic, tinny call. Bazzite didn't seem at all disturbed by how he sounded, though it seemed to be a deterrent to others in the Negaverse. Once within close proximity, the youma bent over to give Hopeite's hair a good sniff. Her scent would be committed to his memory in case something happened to his eyesight as a result of this encounter. "Cigarette smoke and shampoo. Interesting combination. Where is your senshi friend? I'm excited to meet them!"

Summer nights were always pleasant, even when she was out on patrol. Nothing could really ruin a good, cloud-free sky, warm breeze, and the bustle of the city below her as she stood atop one of the many buildings around the city. The one, in particular, she had chosen overlooked a busier intersection and being 23 floors above the ground ensured no one would see the senshi from the ground. Feet draped over the short wall the surrounded the precipice of the mini-skyscraper, Harmonia sat perched like a small bird.

Stretching her arms upwards she made a few sounds of appreciation for the movement before sighing heavily and dropping her arms back down and bracing herself with her hands on the edge of the small ledge. "I almost just want to go home and sit out on the roof or something." She mused aloud to herself. Of course, if she got caught doing such a thing, her mother would have strict words. In all truthfulness, staying in the city as Harmonia was much easier.

A flicker of an aura caught her attention. Harmonia glanced in the direction it came from. It was a Lieutenant. Eye's narrowed as she tried to catch of glimpse of whoever it was but it was undetermined if the person approached by buildings or ground. Eventually, the form came into sight as the agent lept from a slightly taller building.

A smile crept across Harmonia face as she raised a hand and waved. "Hopeite!" She called in response to the woman's own call. "Well, I am glad it was me and not someone else then. But, you're pleasant enough that I'd hope they wouldn't just outright attack you for approaching them." Such a comment was a true telling of Harmonia's blind faith in people.

"How have you been? Well?" Green eyes quickly scanned the woman for any injuries but found nothing. "You seem it!" She said as she swung her legs around to the other side of the ledge, her back to the city below. "Want to join me? I am just enjoying the night. It's so gorgeous out and it's a bit easier to see the stars from up here."

He was excited, exhilarated at the thought of the hunt.

Bazzite had been tracking them ever since Hopeite left his side. He could feel them, smell them, and was getting hungry. Knowing Benitoite was watching over him, the youma dropped to the ground in a crawl, knowing he'd be sensed by the senshi called Harmonia long before he was seen. Knowing a general idea of how far Benitoite could sense things, the youma waited until he was just on the outskirts on what he believed Harmonia's senses would be.

Once the locust-beast was certain Harmonia could sense him, Bazzite rose to leap towards them, allowing his long legs to give him the momentum he needed to jump like the locust his body resembled. With a metallic shriek, wings buzzing, he sought to rake claws into the senshi, hoping his face and disheveled hair would make him appear more feral than he really was. Best to keep them on their toes.

Bazzite appeared like a monster out of a horror story. He was all claws and ruthless cries and he took Hopeite's breath away. So this was what a youma was capable of? This was what they could be? Not the mindless monsters that sought out whatever food they could but... intelligent and thinking beasts. Capable of laying and acting on traps... She would have fallen victim to his ravenous claws had Harmonia not grabbed her and pulled her to safety. It was then that she snapped back into character, her knees hitting the roof beneath her painfully. Was she getting too old for this? Another feral sound form Bazzite that sent adrenaline rushing through her body from crown to toe told her otherwise. The fear that was in her eyes when she turned to Harmonia in that moment did not have to be faked as Hopeite recalled the questions from so long ago.

Should I eat them both?

"Harmonia," the tremor in Hopeite's voice surprised her as she pushed the younger girl behind her. "Harmonia listen to me. I need to you run... I'll keep him busy while you get away."

Hopeite didn't wait for an answer. She lunged forward then, tiny fist curled in to a hard little ball and she smashed it as hard as she could into Bazzite's ribs... or... where his ribs should have been. She was so small next to him, she remembered suddenly as she looked up to see him. So small, so... weak. Her fist crumpled into a painful mess as she made contact -- injured, but not broken. Fear struck her in that moment. Had she crossed a line? Was this damage to the youma that she had not been permitted? She should have been more specific. Laid down more ground rules. Clasping the hurt hand to her chest Hopeite whirled on her heel and hollered with all of her might, "run!"

Another roar escaped his throat, the youma seeking to mimic a feral's animalistic behavior. His luminescent eyes were mere blue pinpricks and blue flesh stretched backwards towards tapered ears, revealing rows of sharp teeth. Bazzite could look positively ferocious when he wanted - or was paid to. With a buzz of his wings, the youma made to follow the pair as they leaped away. Harmonia's power was considerable - on par with Benitoite's, but there was no fear. Bazzite did not fear death, for he could not die forever. The Rift would regenerate him after a few days, and Benitoite would know exactly who dealt the killing blow.

Following Hopeite onto the roof, the youma stood to roar again and was summarily punched in the stomach. Touching, as Bazzite hardly felt a thing. His thickened carapace thanks to being bonded with a General granted him more than enough protection from Hopeite's loving tap. Blue pinprick eyes looked down at the lieutenant and he wheezed, brushing her hair from her face with the dusty wind the gesture created.

No, the lieutenant wasn't his target - it was the senshi. Bazzite kept the plan in mind, that Hopeite had to protect the senshi from a vicious youma attack. Best to keep up with the vicious side of things. The lieutenant was ignored for now, the youma dropping to all fours to claw after Harmonia.

For just a moment when the whole thing began to unfold, Hopeite was worried that it would all come apart. She feared that perhaps Bazzite would forget his role and act of his own accord. Maybe the general would have implanted his own plans -- he had no reason to help Hopeite, after all. Most of all, she worried that Harmonia would see through her ploy and see what was truly happening. After all, she wasn't a stupid girl.

Hopeite was just smarter.

Or at least, a better actress than she had thought herself.

Bazzite snarled and lunged and Harmonia screamed and dodged, exactly like she'd planned it. It was like watching a premonition unfold before her in perfect reconstruction. Everything, down to the very last detail was exactly as she had imagined it. As Harmonia tugged on her gloved hand with surprising force, her marvel only continued. With wide eyes and slack jaws, Hopeite turned to face Harmonia. Everything was suddenly happening in slow motion... Bazzite running towards them and she could see every mottle imperfection on his hide. Every strand of wild hair as he tossed it like an animal. Harmonia with her wide-eyed and girlish fear Her flailing arms. Her frantic voice.

And just like that, it was over. Reality tugged her blinking and dizzy from her experience and injected her limbs with adrenaline so quickly her nerves nearly caught fire. What was Harmonia doing? Balancing on the edge of the building so precariously... was she going to jump? Hopeite's heart leaped into her throat at the idea, but it dropped suddenly as she realized what Harmonia was trying to do. If any harm came to Bazzite, then his general would have her skinned alive.
And though Hopeite knew that youma couldn't really die per say, she wondered if being sent back tot he rift to regenerate would count as harm. She didn't want to take that risk. Did she bank on the premise that Bazzite having enough control to stop and not fly off the edge or did she intervene? If she did, where would they go? They were what... thirty stories up? Would they survive that fall?

Hopeite unstuck herself from the fabric of time again, moving in the slow motion that she had witnessed before and acted before she could even think. She ran through mud and leaped from the cement shoes that grasped at the ankles, landing squarely on Bazzite's back. His wings beat viciously at her arms and sides, like thin sheets of plastic. Would they cut her? No time to think. She wrapped her arms around Bazzite's great throat and held on, nowhere near tight enough to cut off any air flow, but convincing none the less... she hoped.