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 Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 12:24 pm
She was running, but she had no clear idea of where. She was no longer herself. No longer the Lenka she had been for the past…what…nearly ten years? She was no longer Millie, the person she had been for…forever. She could never again see Orin, her mother or Jett…or the children again. Never again get her hair styled by Raven. Never could she do…anything again.
She had been turned into something utterly and completely abhorrent and she didn’t know what to do.
Finally, finally the newly corrupted senshi stopped her headlong journey to nowhere and sank down, her legs trembling as they protested the sudden exercise she had forced upon them. It wasn’t something she could handle. This wasn’t something she could handle.
In no way, shape or form was this something she had ever anticipated, and never before had she felt so utterly lost and alone and scared.
The odd sense of peace that kept threatening to overcome her, that was almost more frightening than the situation itself.
Was this what chaos did? It made you feel okay about doing things like that? Like destroying people’s lives?
The senshi let out a sob and wrapped her arms over her chest, as though to guard against all of this, as though if she protected herself enough, this would go away. She would wake up and this would all be gone.
But the sobs continued, and she did not wake up.
Nor did she notice the power signature that was nearby. It didn’t feel threatening. Obviously it was another senshi like herself. Hopefully it was someone who would go away.
The thought didn’t cross her mind that it was another senshi like she was now. One clad in black, and not in white.
Had the thought been there, she would have run again.
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 12:51 pm
To say that Remarque hated the cold was an understatement, but even more than that he hated the idea of a newly turned Dark Mirror Senshi, out in the world and emotional and vulnerable.
Leto's message from Mirorrspace wasn't enough to give him much information to go by; he had taken a chance that he might find her there--not necessarily collapsed on the floor like a heathen, but then, it was Leto so he didn't know what he should have expected. She was exhausted and worn and might have been able to give him more with a clearer mind, but at the end of the conversation he at least had a better understanding of what was going on. A senshi, forcibly corrupted, now out in Destiny City.
He hated forcible corruptions, he always had. But he wasn't going to let this girl feel even more alone than she already did; the last thing they needed was someone trying to sabotage Mirrorspace, or the Court.
He might have stayed with Leto for longer if there wasn't an immediate need to locate this newly corrupted Eternal Senshi, but with that in mind he kept their meeting brief and deposited her at her house. She had people who loved her, cared for her, to take care of her.
Right now, this new Dark Mirror Senshi had no one.
So, Remarque braved the cold; he didn't dare power up to his Royal form for fear of chasing the girl away even if he could find her.
It took longer than he'd wanted--but he found her. Crying, in the distance. There weren't many Dark Mirror Eternals, and the chances of one of them being out in this weather? With those emotions?
He was too soft these days, but with two young girls he found himself particularly weak to tears.
There was a nagging in the back of his mind as he approached, like a sixth sense telling him that something was wrong. He pieced together why as he got closer. Each step became heavier than the last; even with the difference in outfits between a White Moon Senshi and a Dark Mirror Senshi, he could recognize this senshi.
"...Lenka?" he asked as he moved from behind her and to her side. His voice didn't waver and yet he felt a sudden turbulence in his emotions, a sudden rock in the pit of his stomach. His brows were knit with concern as everything clicked, horribly, into place.
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 12:57 pm
She looked up, her pink eyes red rimmed with tears and felt something cold enter the pit of her stomach as she heard the voice that was all too familiar, and saw the shape in front of her that was also all too familiar.
It was Remarque. The living image of why she knew that this was something permanent, the living image of what she first thought of when she imagined the Dark Mirror Court, though at the same time, the last thing she thought of, for she wanted to think of them only as her enemies.
“Oh.”
The word was full of grief and a confusion as she realized that she hadn’t gone into a panic when she felt him. Because she was now the same as him. She was a dark clad member of a faction that she wanted no part of.
Her lip trembled and she shook her head. “…Don’t know who you’re talking about. I’m nobody.”
Lenka was a senshi who wore white. Lenka fought against the Dark Mirror Court. She wasn’t a part of them. If she could just distance herself from who she was. From who she had been. If she could…
Maybe if she could just cease to exist, that would solve everything.
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:08 pm
The guilt in the pit of his stomach wasn't by fault of his own, he knew that, but it didn't mean he felt any better about it. "You're not nobody," he said, gentle still, because he knew what happened when you told someone to calm down--especially when they had tears streaking down their face.
Especially when their whole world got turned upside down.
"...I heard about what happened. Didn't get a name, though. I didn't know it was you."
He didn't know if he should apologize--and certainly not on Leto's behalf. But he didn't want to bring bad blood into this.
In subspace, he kept very little. Usually. But he'd been a little more prepared of late. From within his own little magical pocket he extracted a thick blanket and shook it out before he draped it over Lenka's shoulders and sat down a bit across from her.
The ground was cold; he didn't know how she could stand to be on it.
"...If you stay out here all night, you're going to get sick. No matter who you are, or what you are, you know I can't let anything bad happen to you."
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:51 pm
The senshi simply shook her head. “I am nobody now. I can’t be who I was. I don’t know who I am, and I don’t want to be what I am…” Finally she looked up at Remarque, the tears beginning to fall with more swiftness. “I didn’t want this. She’s a b***h! A witch! She…god, I hope someone hits her with a bus!”
Even as she spoke the words, she felt a disgusting, overwhelming guilt that she couldn’t understand or deal with right now. “I don’t want this, and I know there’s no going back, and I hate everything.”
The blanket felt wonderful around her shoulders, though it only made her curl up smaller under it, hugging her knees to her chest and falling back on the ground, shaking her head. “I don’t want this! I don’t care if I get sick. I don’t want to be this. Just…just let me alone, Remarque…just let me alone. Please.”
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 2:28 pm
"You don't want to be alone," he said, watching her. "You are alone and lost and don't know what's going on. Every corruption is different, but I know that you don't want this. They join us to be part of a family. And so I'm here to help you. She shouldn't have done what she did, you're right. But you're alive."
Which was another story in itself, but Leto did what she wanted, when she wanted.
"And that's better than the alternative."
No gruffness, no rudeness, no snark.
Just facts, and Remarque trying to figure out how to summon the words he needed to calm her down. To make sure she lived through the night, and well into the future--as well as the rest of the Court.
"It's not the end of the world, I promise. There's a lot about being a Dark Mirror Senshi. You liked exploring, didn't you? ...You know there's a whole world we haven't been able to map out? You liked adventure--we've more than our fair share. You want family? We've got plenty to spare. It's not all bad. I know it seems like it's the end of the world, but it isn't, Lenka. Something good can come of this, if you let it."
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 3:06 pm
His words only made her tears flow faster and she huddled deeper under the blanket, her teeth beginning to chatter. “What…what good could ever come of this? I…I am what I hate…I’m a monster now…”
She would never patrol with Goretti again. Never get to make sure he stayed safe. She would never get to do anything again…all of her friends would be her enemies now, not that she really had all that many friends nowadays…at least not as a senshi.
Though, perhaps that was a good thing.
“I have nowhere to go, Remarque.” Her voice was soft and sounded more than a little broken. “I can’t go home. I can’t go back to my p-planet…I can’t go anywhere…”
It would die without her. She knew that. Knew that she would never again see that lush, green jungle where she had once lived in another life.
“I am nobody. And I have nothing! And it’s all her fault.”
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 3:23 pm
Remarque hesitated for a moment, torn between comforting her as someone he had known for ages and as a Dark Mirror Senshi--and torn between giving her space so he didn't crowd or frighten her.
In the end, he caved. He thought about what he would want someone to do for his daughters, if ever they were alone and suffering.
"You're not no one," he repeated, reaching a hand out to rest on her shoulder. "The Dark Mirror Senshi are people, too. We're no different than any of you. I told you that, from the get-go. Different goals. You're not a monster. You don't have 'nothing'. Look, Lenka."
He squeezed her shoulder. "You've got me. And I know that might not seem like a lot, but I've always done everything I can for the Dark Mirror Court. And you've always been a pain in my side, but I've always been fond of you. You've got a good heart. I don't think it matters what color your uniform is. You're not the type of person to give up, you never have been. You're having a bad day."
He exhaled, watching his breath linger in the air.
"...Give me some time with you, Lenka. Let me look after you. If you want a hotel for the night, we'll get you one. I'll get you dinner. We'll make a plan. This isn't the end of the world. And you know? ...If it's really not working out, I'll help you find a cat, or a Royal, or whatever else we need to get you back to the White Moon, okay? But it's going to take some time. You've gotta let your starseed rest a little bit before you do something like that. All right?"
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 3:40 pm
She swallowed hard and tried to control both the trembling of her lip and the trembling of her body, though finally she looked up at him, shaking her head. “…I’m only Lenka. I can’t ever be the real me again…I…I can’t ever…my mom…my boyfriend…my friends…” She swallowed hard. “…They won’t…be able to know me anymore, will they? I have to give them all up…”
She hiccupped and shook her head, trembling under his touch, and half wanting to just fling herself into his arms and sob her heart out, but not quite ready for such a thing.
“…They won’t even know what happened to me…They…They’ll all be s-so upset…and there’s nothing I can do…”
Even if they found a cat…even if she went…wait.
She looked up, startled. “Wh-what? You…you mean I can…I can go b-back to the white moon? I thought…I thought there was no way…”
If there was a way…that almost made this bearable. The fact that she would have a choice…that made all of the difference, didn’t it? The fact that she wasn’t stuck. That she could figure things out. Find her own way…maybe.
“I thought…I thought this was all just a dead-end? We…I couldn’t save you.”
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 3:59 pm
"Used to be a one way street," Remarque explained. "Not so long ago, we found a way out. I mean, it's in Mirrorspace, so it's not perfect. Nothing about that place is, but there's still so much to figure out."
He hadn't wanted to tell her the whole thing, hadn't wanted to let slip the full story, but there was more to be earned with honesty and gestures of kindness. If he was going to help her, going to try and convince her to stay in the Court, he was going to need her to trust him. And, if he was going to reveal himself completely to her, he needed to trust her.
"Somewhere in Mirrorspace, there's a copy of your starseed. And we're going to have to go find it so we can get it out of Mirrorspace, get it purified, and then you'll be right back to Miss White Moon Lenka. But you have to trust me when I say that right now, you're not in much of a state to be wandering Mirrorspace. It's dangerous when you're at full capacity--and coming through the mirror, like how you did? Probably left your starseed a little bruised. So let's give it some time to heal and we'll figure this out. You don't have to do it alone, I'll help you get the hang of this, take care of any loose ends. Your boyfriend, your friends, your mom--any of them know you're a senshi?"
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 4:43 pm
Shaking her head, the newly corrupted senshi wiped at her eyes. “I…why didn’t you do it? Why didn’t you come to the side I was on? I had wanted so badly to be your friend…it always hurt me to know that you were trapped…”
She thought to what her mother, or Orin or Jett would have thought if they knew about her secret life and shuddered. “Lord no. They have no idea about me. And I’ve spent the last few years not powering up…so whatever powered friends I have…I doubt they’re even still around. Or that they’d care about me at all.”
Hopefully that meant they wouldn’t try to kill her…as she might have done. As she had done when she saw that Acubens had corrupted. At least…she had wanted to. It had been such a blow. That her friend had wanted to embrace darkness…
The thought made her shudder. “…You could have been free…all this time…we could have been friends…”
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 4:55 pm
"I had kids," he said, glancing over at her. "By the time we found out. I've got two, you know." He shook his head. "...And responsibilities. Thought about it. Talked about it, with my wife. But. Even now, I don't know what the White Moon could do for us."
There was something endearing about the way she said she wanted to be friends and it encouraged him to wrap an arm around her, to try and give her a little more warmth.
"We'll be friends, Lenka. No matter what happens. I just need you to trust me and we'll get through this together. We'll find a way to let everyone you care about know that you're okay. And it'll be hard, at least at first, but I know you're strong. You've never given up before. You might not believe it, but not all Dark Mirror Senshi are bad. I think, it's not unlike anyone coming into a position of power. Some people just use it differently. Do you know that we've carved out a place in Mirrorspace that we might be able to make livable? I don't trust the Negaverse, haven't in a long time." If he ever did. "If something ever happens, we're going to have somewhere safe carved out, somewhere they can't reach. Somewhere they've got no power. You'll have a spot there, too, if you want it. And if you don't, we'll just take care of you until you're good and well enough to go back to the White Moon."
And maybe convince Leto to not throw people through the Mirror without their consent. And to stop trying to kill people. He was going to have to post a bulletin on everyone he needed her to keep her hands off of.
...And maybe teach Lenka to pick a few less fights, if she could help it.
The two might have gotten along, he figured. If they weren't always at each other's throats.
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 5:01 pm
He had…he had children? She hesitated and moved a little closer to him, resting her head against his chest and sighing. “…I like kids. I’m…I’m a pretty good babysitter, you know…if you need one.” She wasn’t sure if she had known he was married either…but the thought made her feel almost dizzy. “…Honestly, Remarque this is…a new side of you. You’ve gone from pushing kids over to having them? That’s…that’s crazy.”
There was a tired, almost brittle edge to her voice but she worked hard to control it. “…I…I think…that the white moon could have helped…and you’d have had your planets…or stars or whatever the hell Remarque is…I took you to my asteroid. You saw the potential, didn’t you? You could have had that…and I’m sure…you could have just brought your wife and kids up there and raised them. Maybe even repopulated the whole world, I bet…”
The thought of having some spot in Mirrorspacae…she didn’t know what that made her feel.
“I…don’t know anything about Mirrorspace, you know…it sounds sketchy…”
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 5:14 pm
He laughed softly at that. "Yeah, well. My kids are a little smaller than you were. And they weren't starting fights like you did. They're sweethearts. Not sure what my wife would think about repopulating the whole world, though."
With Lenka resting against his chest, he relaxed a little more. She wasn't fighting to be alone, to get away, to shut down. This, he could handle a little better. He rubbed down her arm, reassuringly and with the intent to warm her up.
"Mirrorspace is a little sketchy. But it's beautiful. I don't have a world to take you to up in space, but you should see what I've got in Mirrorspace. Lot of gemstones. Some of the flowers look like jewelry. And it's peaceful. Maybe not tonight, but soon, I'll take you there. And if you don't like it," he shrugged. "You don't have to go back. But, if you've ever wanted an adventure, you should go explore it with me sometime."
The night was getting colder, but he didn't want to rush anything. He'd sit here until the sun came up if that's what it took. Until she fell asleep and he had to carry her somewhere warmer.
"...We're gonna have to power down some time," he said, gentle still. Trying to ease her into the idea. "...Go somewhere to warm up. Maybe get hot chocolate, and get to know each other a little better? I can call you by whatever name you want. Or pick one out. You wanna be Gertrude? Maggie? Franklin? Could call you Lennie, that's a little like Lenka."
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Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 5:17 pm
"You wouldn't have had to repopulate it with just her...I'm sure you could have gotten others to come up with you..." She scoffed slightly and turned to press her face against him, sighing. "...I'll look at it with you. It sounds pretty at the very least and…you say I’ll get my own space? Think…you could help me fix it up like my asteroid…?”
It sounded nice, at least. And she liked trees and vines. Fun stuff like that.
“…I don’t think I want a name for right now…I…I’m scared to power down. I’m not going to be anyone. I’m just…going to be this…nobody who’s not even real.” The tears welled up in her eyes again and she bit down hard on her lip. “I…I don’t know what to do. How am I going to be anyone ever again? I don’t…I don’t even exist…”
The thought utterly terrified her and she shuddered again, trembling and willing herself to just stop crying. This wasn’t the time to cry.
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