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Crocoite was feeling strong. He was feeling scary and imposing, and definitely on track to becoming as notorious as his General. Moreso, in fact. He was going to be everything she wasn't: a leader, a powerhouse, and a nightmare that no one would ever dare forget.

He could see the changes in her, and they were pathetic. She was becoming weaker, while he only grew stronger. Where she faltered, he would flourish. It only made sense that as the teacher fell, the student rose to even greater heights.

Sensing the senshi, he could feel the aura was stronger than the ones he was used to. That meant she had to be a Super, but that did not intimidate him. At the moment, his confidence knew no bounds, and his usual caution and self preservation instincts were taking a back seat to his bravado. Ego often won out over common sense, despite how rational and calm he liked to pretend to be.

Maybe he was just enjoying the taste of chaos a little too much.

He walked toward her instead of away, though he was in no hurry. He had his cane at the ready, walking with it leisurely and spotting the senshi not too far off. He grinned, the corners of his lips curling viciously, eyes glinting as he locked on to her.

"Good evening, miss."

Crocoite tried not to look surprised when she said she'd heard of him, though a pulse of electric pride and excitement shot through him at the idea. So he was already gaining a reputation, was he? Or perhaps he had just managed to find one of her friends. Either way, the more people that talked about him, the better it was for his gaining ranks within the Negaverse.

He knew his General had a notorious reputation, and it was his goal to surpass her in every way.

"Crocoite, if you please, but you were very close. To what do I owe the honor of your knowledge? I cannot say I've ever heard of you before." Not by sight, anyway, as she had identified him by his cane. He tapped said weapon lightly against the floor, an idle habit he had that made a vaguely annoying clicking noise in the otherwise still and quiet area.

He was not expecting the White Moon soldier to come at him, jerking backwards and trying to dodge her fist, but unable to match her speed. He was greeted by a strong punch to his jaw, sending him tumbling backwards with enough force to chip the sidewalk.

Ow.

Scrambling to his feet, tasting blood but not allowing himself to stop and take stock of the situation, he took his cane in both hands and leaped at her as quickly as he could, barely recovered from her blow but still aiming to swing his cane at her head as hard as he could. She might have been stronger than him, but he was not going to just roll over and let her defeat him without a fight.

"If I hurt her, then surely she deserved it. Perhaps, if you are so concerned about how young your soldiers are, you should not be sending children into the battle field. Just because they have been given powers, does not mean they should be fighting. You might as well be handing them guns and putting them on the front lines. If you send someone out to fight, then I will not hold back. And I fight to kill."

He had no apology to offer, not feeling bad in the slightest for doing his job. In fact, he very much liked what he did for the negaverse, and was well on his way to finding a more secure place in it. For now, he was just taking orders as they came, and continuing his patrols.

Making 'friends' like this was just a bonus. At least he knew he did not have to hold back, and if he could win, he would be able to really prove his worth. Maybe get that promotion he was looking for.

Or, as it quickly became clear to him, he could just break some of his ribs.

"Ooomph!" he grunted, as her kick connected. It sent him falling backwards, and he threw himself in that direction to attempt to put distance back between them. He did not keep on his feet, though, despite his best efforts and fell heavily to his backside.

Growling, he struggled to his feet.

"So you've got a grudge to settle, eh? Fine. I do not fear a fight." Which was, of course, a lie. When it came to risking his survival, Crocoite was a massive coward. He was just at odds with his pride, which forced him to stay when his brain screamed at him to run.

Uh oh.

Crocoite was beginning to see that perhaps he had bitten off a little more than he could chew here, though he had never intended to strike up the ire of a Super senshi while hunting lower ranks. His cockiness got him into the deep end now, as he probably should have run away when he had the chance. And, of course, due to his rank being low he could not teleport away to safety like he had seen generals and captains do.

Crap.

Now was not the time for banter or trying to look tough. He had to keep his focus on what was happening in the fight itself, rather than distract himself with thoughts of sarcasm and taunting. It was way easier to talk a big game than to actually follow through with it, as it turned out.

The punch connected despite his best efforts to pull back. It caught him on his jaw and he was sent stumbling back again. He was dazed, unable to really get his bearings and leaving himself wide open for another attack. Did she say she killed?

He needed to call his General. Though it was embarrassing and she would punish him, he was running out of options.

Crocoite was not sure how this was happening. He had been so confident only moments ago, and now panic was beginning to set in. He was unsure if he was even going to survive this fight, let alone win it. That was a long gone fantasy, and he was more concerned with preserving his miserable life than his easily damaged ego.

After all, there was no way he could get stronger, or get revenge, if he just flat out died here.

All the air in his lungs rushed out when her foot connected to his midsection. He crumpled. He was not going to ever admit out loud that he was curling into a fetal position, but he certainly was. It was pathetic, and made him feel miserable, but he had few options. He just covered his head and hoped the beating would eventually stop, and he wouldn't be dead at the end of it. He did try to reach out to his General, wanting to contact her before his brain gave up.

Crocoite was dazed, and barely heard the senshi over him. She was probably gloating, but his ringing ears thankfully blunted the impact of her words. Likely, his ego would have been as badly bruised as his body currently was, had he been able to hear her. Not that he had any will or strength left to do anything about it.

This was how his illustrious career in the negaverse was meant to end? In some pathetic, forgettable and ultimately meaningless fight that no one would ever hear about? No one would ever care what his name was, or what he might have accomplished.

Because he failed to do anything.

He felt like he was waiting for an eternity for her to stomp on his head, or some other fittingly brutal end to come for him. Instead, he heard a frustrated tone in the air, and then she was... walking away from him? His vision was blurry, yes, but the fact that her form was getting smaller was still easy for him to see. She vanished soon enough, and everything was still and quiet.

Maybe he'd just lay there for a little while longer, and hope his General got his call for help and would actually show up. Somehow, he doubted it.