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 Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2020 7:55 am
prompt The City has been lit up for the Star Festival with banners and twinkling decorations strewn off the windowsills of shop fronts and windows. The gardeners at one particular park have put their heart and soul into creating a fairy's paradise: Fairy lights have been carefully dangled from trees to make strings of stars, little beaded jewels have been hidden among the hedges, and even the old cobwebs have been sprayed with just a touch of glitter. The park is open to everyone and the citizens of Destiny City have been invited to respectfully explore the hidden wonders that have been placed throughout. The park is magical enough on its own but there have also been reports of a strange, ethereal and shimmering stranger in the park. The glimmer of a beautiful costumed figure fluttering through the park has been passed around as rumor, and no matter what anyone claims to see, no one can take a picture of it. As if simply seeing some magical figure isn’t mysterious enough, there are also reports of mischief and small pranks being played at the same time this figure seems to appear.
He was imperfect. Rakovanite never questioned that fact. No matter how he trained in the Dark Kingdom, he was still no master of stealth and deceit, no sage of tactics and forethought, no combat specialist. After nearly a year as an agent, he was improving in his abilities for sure, but he was still far outclassed by those who had been training for longer. Rakovanite was prepared to work toward better, and in doing so that opened up opportunities for... mistakes.
His least favorite thing.
Rakovanite had been out that night only for a routine draining. As a lieutenant, he still had a strict quota, and working during the evening even for something that required the most basic of Negaverse skills, was still a part of his training. Being out meant the potential to face the enemy. Being out afforded avenues to test what he'd learned. Being out was why he'd chosen to follow this path. He craved better and more, and being an agent gave him better and more abilities than he could've dreamed of as a civilian.
He wasn't afraid to utilize them when the opportunity was available. So when he'd been ambushed by some knight with his aura concealed with the help of a Mauvian, Rakovanite hadn't flinched away from the fight. He relished in the opportunity.
But only very briefly.
He didn't have the experience with knigths to know what they generally looked like in their various ranks and what exactly their powers could do. But this one had magic, and Rakovanite felt reasonably certain this was not something a page could manipulate. He'd hoped his opponent was at the same general rank as he was, but it was quickly obvious that wasn't the case. And in hindsight, Rakovanite would think that was obvious. The tactics were too thought out. Surely no page would be using a Mauvian to conceal themselves. No page would wait and lurk for the opportune time to strike.
This knight was practiced and well-learned, outclassing even a studious and careful lieutenant.
He'd caught Rakovanite by the arm, yanking with such a force that the bones in his shoulder popped with a jarring stab of pain. He hadn't even had the time to shout about it before he was being thrown back with an arm over his throat, smashing his head back into the brick wall of the building behind him, causing his glasses to be wrenched from his face as stars exploded across his vision and the edges of his sight to darken. This was not a winning battle. Rakovanite recognized that even through the severe disorientation.
He wouldn't be able to run, as the dizziness limited his mobility. The night would surely be faster, anyway. But he could still escape. He only needed to reach into his coat and squeeze the Shadow Pass Charm to slip backward into one of the shadows and out of the knight's grasp.
Rakovanite was spat out onto grass and surrounded by trees and glowing lanterns and... glitter? Without his glasses and with his gaze still swimming, he could barely make out more than that.
His breath came in quick, heavy pants as he fumbled to hold himself upright against the trunk of the nearest tree. He reached for the pen of his communication tablet, but opening it to its brightly lit screen sent a panging wave of a headache that echoed all the way down his spine. Rakovanite squeezed his eyes shut as his head dropped back to the tree, clenching at his tablet enough that his knuckles turned pale. "Come on, come on, come on..." he hissed in silent mantra.
He had to do this. It wasn't even a difficult task, usually, though admittedly harder while blinded and with only one functioning arm. He just needed to send a message to a general to come retrieve him and get him patched up...
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 5:17 am
Narcissus gazed in awe at the beautiful adornments that had been set up around him. He didn’t usually make his way to the park because where was the time? It was an effort just to make it between working at the coffee shop and working at the hospital. He couldn’t always have the availability to make detours beyond that… Oh, but he did love festivals. He loved seeing how hard everyone worked to make a typically-standard place appear magical. He loved how happy it made everyone. And the Star Festival was for such a good cause. He wanted to participate somehow, even if it was just by looking.
Basyl would’ve had to take a bus and wait for the bus and then meander around the park for as long as he wanted, and then take another bus home…
But Narcissus was practically only ever a skip away from anywhere he wanted to be, so long as there was a mirror he could pop through. He’d been told once that members of the court did their best to set mirrors as many places as possible, so that they might have an easy time traveling anywhere they wanted to go- Or an easy time escaping from anything that might do them harm.
As it happened, Narcissus didn’t need to rely on randomly-placed mirrors this time. The park had a public bathroom, and in it, a mirror over the sink. A bit gross? Sure, most public bathrooms left outside and unattended typically were. But it was just a quick hop from his mirror at home and then he was spat out right at the beginning of the park, where he could enjoy the decorations from start to finish. He stepped out of the bathroom with a fidgety attempt to dust himself clean.
Since he’d made this a powered excursion, of course he’d had to come out at night, in the hopes that he wouldn’t be seen by too many, but a night during the star festival wasn’t a private affair. There were couples mingling around the lights hung in the trees and around the fountains, people walking down little paths with hedges that had been decorated with beads.
It was a cute event, and Narcissus wanted to see it, but, ah… It still felt like maybe he shouldn’t let too many people see him. It felt like this guise was a secret he needed to keep, so he slipped off the main path and headed through the copse of trees, pleased to see that even the ones he would’ve assumed would be too far out of the way for decorations were still adorned in pretty lights and glitter and lanterns.
He’d barely even seen the shadow of a slumped-over body leaning back against the tree until he was practically right upon it.
Narcissus froze in his steps as soon as he realized- and immediately berated himself for not realizing sooner. He should’ve been paying attention to any auras out here! He should’ve been looking where he was going and not up at the lights in the trees, he should’ve-
It was an agent, and he knew to be wary of them, but the green-haired man’s focus did not seem to be immediately on him.
Narcissus held still as a statue as he stood before the other, waiting to see what he would do.
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 5:35 am
He heard the steps more than he felt the approaching aura. All of Rakovanite’s senses felt like they were swimming. The strange mesmeric wave and pull on his consciousness that he felt whenever someone else powered was near was easy to overlook when his head pounded and his vision was blurry.
But when he heard steps across the grass, he wrenched his head forward as his dark eyes popped open. It simply wouldn’t do to be caught like this by an enemy. The Shadow Pass Charm had already used up its magic for the day. There wouldn’t be an easy escape for Raovanite if he was caught off-guard again. ...But with his glasses gone he couldn’t tell much about the stranger before him, besides that he wore black. The realization far from eased Rakovanite’s concerns, and his posture remained stiff as he tried to sort out what the stranger was. If he focused on sensing the aura…
It didn’t help. The flutter of power over his mind wasn’t familiar to him. That or the disorientation helped hide the differences he might have otherwise been able to sense. He squinted toward the stranger, trying to pick out more details of their person.
They were definitely dressed almost completely in black. Not an Order member, certainly. Not the worst threat he could face. Fluttery colored bits could’ve been hair or fabric, but Rakovanite’s bad vision made it hard to tell. But the brightness made him suspect senshi more than agent. He didn’t comment on it, and instead remained silent, with his narrow-eyed gaze pinned unflinchingly on the other person.
He shifted his weight just a fraction, pushing himself to sit taller as he pulled his limbs closer into him, ready to bolt or punch or anything else he may need to be ready for.
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 5:56 am
Narcissus only had to use his eyes to know that he wasn’t exactly a welcome presence here. His hands flew up, palms open and facing out, in the universal sign for, “I don’t want to fight.” The words rushed from his mouth just as quickly, as he interpreted what looked like obvious aggression from someone who was…
Sitting on the ground, nursing a clearly dislocated shoulder, and squinting bleary eyes at him.
It almost reminded him of a stray alley cat, clearly frightened and desperate to not engage with strangers, but also completely unwilling to give up an inch of territory, no matter how unlikely those odds seemed. Okay. So he just needed to relax. Aggressive or not, this was still a person who looked like he was in need of help. And Narcissus could help, so long as this wasn’t some kind of trap or something.
He closed his eyes and tried to feel for any other nearby auras, but as far as he could tell, it was just him and this agent. This basic, level one, hurt agent. Who was clearly angry and wanted him to leave. But still.
Narcissus forced his posture to ease, letting his arms drop limply to his sides as he gazed down at the other man. He kept his voice low, trying to appear as gentle and nonthreatening as he was, but he still needed to be firm. He should sound like he knew what he was doing. Swallowing down a knot in his throat, Narcissus took one hesitant step forward. “You’re hurt,” he stated softly. “So you probably don’t need to be sitting out here in the park-” As soon as he said the words, a thought smashed to the forefront of his mind. This man was an agent. They could heal themselves by eating the starseeds of others. What if he’d been waiting here for someone to wander by?
But no, no. He couldn’t think like that. He tried to relax again. “I’m a doctor, so I can fix you up if you let me.”
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 6:29 am
Rakovanite’s dark, squinty gaze narrowed into slits. His brows pinched. His lips flattened into a thin line of distaste. “What,” he demanded in a soft hiss. Why was this boy speaking to him slowly, as if Rakovanite was some incompetent wild animal that he’d found on the side of the road? He was injured, not braindead. He didn’t need to be treated like a frightened child by some scrawny boy speaking slowly and softly.
“Your services are not needed,” he stated tightly, teeth gritting against the pain. His fingers still clenched tightly around his tablet pen. “I was in the process of calling for pickup when you interrupted, so you need not concern yourself with me.”
Admittedly, he’d been in the process of having difficulties calling for pickup, but there was no way he was just going to trust a random powered stranger who seemingly unwittingly stumbled upon him. Rakovanite wasn’t stupid. This boy didn’t have a benefit for helping him. But the conversation made his head throb, and each time he shifted even minutely to try and appear less pathetic, his shoulder sent a wave of agony bursting through his nerve endings that made Rakovanite’s breath escape in quiet, pinched gasps.
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 6:40 am
What a grouchy agent… Which, okay, Narcissus realized most people tended to be so when they were in pain, but he was only trying to help, and it wasn’t exactly being well-received… Maybe he should leave? If the agent just felt harassed by his presence, maybe it would be best if Narcissus didn’t hang around the start anything. ...But then the thought that the agent might be hanging around waiting to steal the starseed of anyone who wandered by reared its head again.
Narcissus couldn’t leave while that was still a possibility.
So despite being told he wasn’t needed, he stepped forward, anyway. “Uh, well, you’re a l-liar,” he retorted lightly, trying so hard, so hard to sound firm and sure even through the uncertain stammering he couldn’t quite control. “I can see that you’ve had a r-rough night, so I can help get you fixed up, if that’s okay with you. Or, uh, if you’re having trouble sending messages, maybe I could type it?”
He was close enough now that he knelt down at the agent’s side, reaching inquisitive fingers toward a limp and obviously misplaced arm. “I’m Narcissus. I work at Destiny City Medical Center, so I- I can help you,” he promised. “And I don’t appreciate seeing people sitting hurt and alone out in the woods, so I want to, even…”
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 6:55 am
The senshi walked toward him as though he hadn’t heard Rakovanite say that he was not interested in receiving help at this time. Rakovanite’s expression further darkened, but at least as the boy stepped nearer, he was able to make out more of his features. Long, lavender hair, bright eyes sunken into high cheekbones, a scattering of prickly, unshaven hair on his chin. And he was skinny. Not slender and toned, like in the way Zubeneschamali was, but outright scrawny.
Not an immediate threat. Rakovanite eased his weight back against the tree ever-so-slightly.
It was definitely a senshi, though not a corrupt. Not someone from his own faction. Not someone who utilized the same resources he did. Rakovanite was careful to keep his tablet well away from the mirror senshi’s hands. “You would not be able to type any messages for me,” he informed the other boy flatly. “My tablet will shut down if anyone besides me tries to access and use it.”
Narcissus was his name. A name for someone selfish and self-absorbed. Something he felt immediately less inclined to trust. Rakovanite watched the other man unblinkingly as he knelt down to him. He couldn’t say what the mirror senshi were capable of, but from this close, he likely wouldn’t be able to escape their magic if he tried.
What did he expect the worst that could happen was?
The mirror senshi couldn’t steal starseeds like the Negaverse could. If Narcissus was going to try and further harm him, he’d be doing it the old fashioned way. And he was close enough now that it would only take Rakovanite a blink to reach into his chest and crush his starseed. As long as he remained alert, maybe help would be beneficial to him. Though he had no idea what Narcissus thought he could do in this situation. Rakovanite gave a clipped nod in answer.
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2020 7:13 am
“It wouldn’t work for me?” Narcissus questioned in confusion. He knew so little about agents besides that they were secretive and dangerous. They were supposed to be allies against the White Moon, though, so Narcissus had thought that maybe a lot of what they had access to, he’d be able to use as well… Pooling resources and such. But maybe it wasn’t so surprising that they’d keep their forms of communication to themselves, even if Narcissus only wanted to use it to help one of their own.
“Well, t-that’s okay,” he stated with a wavering smile. Confirmation that he could at least look at what the agent was suffering from was a good start. “Let’s work on getting you fixed up, if we can. Um-” He blinked at the long sleeve coat currently covering the offending shoulder. And then at the leather vest over his chest…
That was a lot of coverings to go through to look at his injuries. Narcissus’s fingers fidgeted. He rubbed his forefingers together as his gaze darted between the clasps on the agent’s vest, and his shoulder, and his vest. “Um… So, d-do you think we might be able to take this off?” He asked uncertainly as he traced the shape of the opening of his vest with a finger, though he was absolutely careful not to touch uninvited. “It’s a little in the way. And uh, so is your coat.” It was a lot to try and pull his arm through, though. Narcissus knew that wasn’t liable to be a pain-free experience.
“I can help you take it off, if you want.”
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Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2020 11:17 am
Rakovanite looked at Narcissus as if he was the most stupid and vile insect that had ever crawled its way before him. He couldn’t guess the motives of a boy that didn’t really seem confident enough to be wearing a powered guise, but the name, the stuttering, the fidgeting all made him feel as though there were intentions beyond just ‘helping him’ inside Narcissus’ mind. It wasn’t like a Mirror Senshi benefitted from ensuring the well-being of a Negaverse agent.
And nothing worth anything was free.
Silence stretched between them as Rakovanite’s sharp gaze picked up and down the other boy, assessing him warily as he leaned to have as much space between them as possible. He knew his mistrust was reasonable, but it wasn’t like he had many options as far as fixing himself went. If he couldn’t even summon the ability to send messages, he’d be stuck out here- Or stuck walking home like this. But it certainly wasn’t like he was going to try and strip in this forest, even with Narcissus’ help.
Although… As a bit of the wary tension ebbed out of him, Rakovanite did have to consider the merits of being alone and partially nude with another powered individual. There were surely some interesting things they could do with these more resilient bodies…
But that was neither here nor there.
Rakovanite reached up and pinched his nails into the seam at the top of his coat, where the fabric for his arm met the fabric over his chest. He pulled, and it shredded easily away, letting him toss the ripped sleeve somewhere off behind him. “I am not presently in the habit of keeping a knife on me, but perhaps it would be beneficial for such this purpose. For now, this is good enough, I think.”
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2020 1:06 pm
It really looked like the still-unnamed agent kind of hated him? Narcissus understood that most powered meetings could be pretty terse, and the man was already hurt so probably not in an especially friendly mood, but Narcissus really did only want to help, and it might have been nice if there was less... aggression about it.
"Oh, well, uh..." He watched as the sleeve was ripped from the agent's uniform, and Narcissus let out a disgruntled little sound as he raked a hand through his hair. It wasn't. What he'd asked for. But there seemed little room to argue. He swallowed as he knelt down at the agent's side to assess the injury with both his eyes and his hands. But he didn't need to do much besides look to see that it was dislocated. "S-so... I can re-set your shoulder like this, but um. I won't be able to wrap it with your clothes on. Unless you want some anime over-the-clothes situation. It's not really good for injuries, and you'd have to remove them to undress, and someone would have to redo them for you immediately after- And ah. I'm not sure how it would work with the powered outfit, you know? It might just plain disappear as soon as you powered down."
But it might disappear even if he did it under his clothes. Narcissus scratched his neck.
"We can worry about it in a moment, though." He let a palm slide from the man's shoulder to his chest, pushing lightly to encourage he brace fully against the tree, both for his own support and to give something firm for Narcissus to shove toward. He wondered if it would be different than standard. He should be careful not to make things worse with his heightened strength. But the other man was powered too, so maybe there would be more resistance?
It would be hard to say until he tried it, though.
"This will hurt kind of a lot," he warned. "So it'd be pretty great if you didn't punch me or anything, after." Narcissus waited another bit, both to give the agent an extra second to comprehend what he'd said and prepare for it, and to steel himself for whatever might follow.
Narcissus set one hand on the man's clavicle and wrapped the other around his not-especially-small bicep before locking his arm and notching the joint back into place.
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Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2020 9:21 am
"I will have someone else handle the wrapping when it is more convenient to do so," Rakovanite retorted flatly. As long as he had some semblance of function back to his limb, he would be able to request a general to take him to Negaspace, where his body would heal more readily. If that wasn't enough, the Dark Kingdom had its own medical ward for the slew of various injuries agents could get from training. Someone there would surely be able to handle the simple task of bandaging.
Rakovanite just needed to be able to function more properly.
His head throbbed, and a short sound of discomfort escaped his throat as Narcissus' probing fingers pressed to his shoulder, sending another sharp wave of agony that echoed down the length of his spine. Rakovanite grit his teeth and dropped his head back.
An unasked for bubble of complete and devastating hopelessness popped somewhere in the back of Rakovanite's mind, and all he could think was that he just wanted to be done. He just wanted to go home and go to bed and be done. This wasn't what he wanted out of the night, and having this senshi here made it so much worse. He kept the thought from showing on his face. Rationally, he knew such feelings were unhelpful. He had the means to get through this. He just had to utilize them. He just had to endure.
A rush of air escaped his lips, and his breaths came quick and short from the warning. He wasn't frightened of pain. But whatever would get it over with quicker would suit him best. He didn't need warning or coddling. "Just do it."
He did.
Rakovanite heard what sounded uncomfortably like the crunch of bones before he actually felt the effect of it, and 'hurt kind of a lot,' was only a bit of an understatement. It had hurt when the knight yanked his arm out of its socket, but some combination of adrenaline and excitement had perhaps dulled that a bit. Sitting on the forest floor, expecting this senshi to harm him and then readily allowing him to do just that was somehow worse. The abruptness of it stole Rakovanite breath, leaving opportunity only for a short gasp of a shout before it was done. Throbbing, shaking, and done.
He turned to squint down at his hand as he lifted it just an inch above the grass to ascertain that he could before letting out a relieved sigh. It burned, but he could move it. Rakovanite shut his eyes, and his posture slumped in relaxation. "Thank you." And because he had never seen fit to give out the information before, "I am Rakovanite."
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Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2020 6:43 am
He fully expected this agent to punch him or wrench away from him or any number of things to put distance between them both during and immediately after his shoulder was set, and he held tense in preparation to do… Something. Narcissus flinched at the shout, but nothing else came, and he relaxed to sit cross-legged on the forest floor, a relieved sigh escaping his lips.
Any time something didn’t go as horribly as it might have, Narcissus found himself almost giddy from pent up adrenaline. This guy could have hurt him! -And, well, he supposed he still might. Narcissus wasn’t sure what to expect of agents of the Negaverse besides that everyone else seemed to think of them as The evil. But nothing terrible had come of the meeting yet, and the man- who finally introduced himself as Rakovanite- seemed to relax as well.
“You’re welcome,” Narcissus answered softly, a smile playing at the corners of his lips. “I’m always happy to help someone when I can, and you, uh-” His gaze held pinned to the agent’s injured shoulder. “Well, you definitely needed it.”
There were still the questions of ‘why’ and ‘how.’
Even if no one was immediately aggressive, Narcissus still had to be on guard. He’d been afraid of leaving an agent to attack someone in the park, and he could probably assume that if someone was powered up and injured… there had probably been a fight. It wasn’t what he wanted to think about, but… That was just how things were.
He swallowed and picked at the end of a strand of lavender hair. “Um, if it’s okay, can I ask how you came to be injured? And uh- how you got out here, in the middle of the park? If there’s someone else nearby…”
No other auras were on his radar, though.
Would he know if Rakovanite had just killed someone..? Would he know if someone had just lost their starseed in a fight? Maybe Rakovanite had left someone else injured too, and they had powered down to conceal their aura from him so they could escape- He winced at his own thoughts. He didn't want to be the one thinking things like this. Narcissus wanted to see the best and hope for the best. And this was... not that.
He had to ask, though. He had to know.
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Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2020 7:06 am
Rakovanite’s gaze was narrow, cold and still as he watched the senshi in front of him. His own body still trembled from the previous fight, from locking tension in his muscles and then feeling so relieved to have some normal function again. Narcissus had helped him, but that didn’t mean they had to trust one another.
But nothing was for free. The other man had aided him when he was injured, and Rakovanite thought it would be a suitable payment to alleviate some of Narcissus’ concerns and fears.
Another quiet sigh escaped him, and his dark lashes fluttered shut.
“A knight ambushed me while I was out draining. He was using a Mauvian to conceal his aura. I had no idea anyone else was nearby until…” Using his good arm, he gestured lightly toward the opposing shoulder. “It was barely even a fight. I am fortunate that I was able to use a magical item to escape into the shadows. I am still unable to teleport, and the knight would have been faster than me without a doubt.”
Would a knight have killed him? He wondered.
“Unfortunately, the magic is not very specific. I have little control over where I wind up once I use it. It was only good fortune that it put me before you.” His lashes lifted again to pin the senshi with an intense stare, though Rakovanite found that his vision was still blurry. He lifted a hand to try and adjust his glasses, only to remember they had been knocked off in the fight. Ah, it really would be inconvenient to try and get home like this.
More reason to summon a general to help him.
“I appreciate your aid, but…” He trailed off slowly as a flutter of light appeared somewhere behind the senshi. Rakovanite squinted through the darkness, focus angled obviously away from Narcissus as he tried to decipher what that was. It could be a trick of the light. The strings and glitter that decorated the area could maybe cause him to see odd things with his poor vision.
But it moved. It was bigger than that. Every muscle went on high alert again. Even with Narcissus’s help, he couldn’t afford to get into another fight. He couldn’t see. He was still in pain. The risk was too great.
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Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2020 8:33 am
Would Rakovanite even answer him? The way the agent looked at him made Narcissus feel like he was dealing with someone who didn’t like to answer the stupid questions of strangers. He had to glance away from Rakovanite’s chilly stare. It wasn’t exactly encouraging the hope that the people in the Negaverse weren’t so bad. He swallowed and tucked the strand he’d been playing with behind his ear. “You don’t have to answer, if it’s too- Oh!”
It was unnatural what a relief it was to learn that Rakovanite was willing to speak to him, and even more so that if the tale was to be believed, no one was out there suffering. Not from this fight, anyway. Rakovanite had been dealt the worst of the damage, and Narcissus had been here to at least start the healing process.
What a relief.
He cleared his throat. “A-anyway. I would still check in to a hospital, if I were you. They’ll be able to give you a steroid shot to help you heal faster, and it’ll help with the pain too. Please, please find someone who will wrap it, and remember not to be too rough with it for several weeks- Er, well. Ever again, really. Once something is dislocated for the first time, it’ll pop out more easily the next. You should probably try to take care not to get into any fights soon, if you can help it…”
That seemed like a long shot. Narcissus didn’t know why agents powered up at all, but they were collecting energy too. He somehow doubted Rakovanite would stop doing that just because Narcissus asked.
He glanced up in time to see the tension that swept through the agent’s shoulders. Rakovanite’s gaze was angled off behind him, and immediately Narcissus tensed in response, head whipping around to search for the source of whatever had put Rakovanite back on edge. He blinked. There was something in the trees, some kind of… ethereal apparition.
It’s aura didn’t feel like anything, and the being moved as if walking, slipping behind a tree and out of sight.
Narcissus turned back to Rakovanite. “Is- what was that? I didn’t feel another powered signature…” But Rakovanite had said he didn’t feel it when the knight attacked him, either. The thing was out of sight, but that didn’t mean it was gone. Would it be looking for a fight? Like whoever had attacked Rakovanite? Narcissus picked at the grass.
The agent was still injured. They shouldn’t risk a scuffle breaking out. Narcissus certainly didn’t want anything to attack him, but they couldn’t stay, less it sneak up on them.
“I-I’ll go look,” he whispered, magenta eyes wide and terrified. What would he do if the being attacked him? What would he do? “You… You stay. I don’t want you to get hurt more.” Even if Narcissus didn’t have whatever magic let Rakovanite escape from the knight. He still had to go check if there was something dangerous nearby. He had to check.
Maybe it was nothing.
He stood, and took slow, wary steps toward where the thing had disappeared.
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Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2020 9:20 am
Rakovanite had not wanted any part of being around anyone else since his run-in with the knight. He would’ve deeply preferred to wind up in this forest alone and in the quiet, so he could request a general come retrieve him and bring him to Negaspace for magically-accelerated healing. Narcissus wasn’t the worst person he could’ve run into. The senshi hadn’t done him any harm and had genuinely seemed like he was trying to help.
But it still would’ve been easier to just have it done his way the first time. Now he’d lingered too long, and he was paranoid that the same forces that had injured him earlier were liable to do the same now. Rakovanite didn’t want to risk some other Order member using the same concealing tactics as before sneaking up on him. He just wanted to go home and be done.
At Narcissus’ quiet and fearful whisper that he would ‘go look,’ Rakovanite quirked an inquisitive brow.
He wondered what the senshi would do if it was an enemy. Order were barely more tolerant of the Mirror Court than they were with the Negaverse, and Narcissus didn’t look like he was accustomed to combat. It could end devastatingly for him…
But was that really Rakovanite’s problem? He’d wanted an escape, and if this senshi wanted to run off into a potentially dangerous situation, who was he to stop him? It wouldn’t be Rakovanite’s struggle to deal with if Narcissus ended up being attacked. His dark gaze was thoughtful, wary, calculating, but eventually Rakovanite gave a tiny nod in acquiescence, and Narcissus stood and moved away from him.
It was the exact type of thing someone would call him callous for. Rakovanite was all too aware of it. The senshi had tended to his injuries, and Rakovanite was willing to abandon him here in the forest. He could think better of it. An ally was never a bad thing to have.
But this could be an easy escape. It was all he wanted.
As Narcissus stepped away, Rakovanite rose silently to his feet as well. His head pounded, as if unwilling to stand, and his vision was still so blurry, made worse by the darkness. But it was better this way. He didn’t want to wait around and see if there was an enemy lurking. Narcissus would be a good enough distraction for whoever was out here. He’d need to be quick and quiet, but he could escape without the senshi being able to track him.
Rakovanite stepped around the tree, moving backward as quietly as he could while Narcissus’ back was to him. And then, from his coat he pulled another magical item. An amulet to conceal his aura. He rubbed it between his fingers, and though he didn’t feel anything, he expected it had worked as intended. Without waiting to see if the senshi noticed the shift in aura, Rakovanite turned and ran.
It was better like this, he told himself firmly.
He was not able to win another fight, even if Narcissus was helping him. He wanted to get away so he could summon a general to bring him to Negaspace so he could go home. The senshi was sweet, soft, and gentle. An Order member wouldn’t attack him.
Probably.
And with the medallion concealing his aura, no one would be able to track him. Once he was out of the park’s forest and far enough away from any other signatures, he’d message a general to retrieve him. For now, it was easy to slip into the trees, and away from the Dark Mirror’s aura.
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