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 Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2020 10:05 am
How long had it been now? Honestly it felt like forever at this stage and Shaowei was safe to say that in the grand scheme of things she was ok. The first week had been rocky, she'd been uncertain and overly cautious in some parts of the city, but after a while she began to realise that whatever magic had warped her mind and toyed with her senses had long since passed.
She was safe again, that much was clear, and the more she pushed herself to go outside and explore the more settled she became. She'd even set goals for herself and over the course of the last few weeks she'd been training her wraith (now name Bomba), to be more subtle and gentle in the manner in which it extracted energy.
So far, it was going well.
Nevertheless this didn't prevent her from pondering over the fate of her companions. She had been inadvertently rescued by a prowling Athalia in recent weeks, but he hadn't stopped to talk. He'd shot out of nowhere, destroyed the unfortunate Youma in his line of sight, and then promptly strode off again with no further remarks. At the very least this confirmed they were alive but were they actually ok?
With no real way to track them down she had taken to relying on luck for this one. Eventually she would run in to one of them and hopefully it would be someone talkative, at that stage she could at least make sure that they were all right. After everything they'd been through she had a vested interest, differing factions aside, they had been with her for some time and she did care...
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 5:54 pm
October had been a weird month. Most months were, to some capacity and context, when they involved a large holiday--or holiday season...--in Destiny City. But this October had been especially weird.
So far as Realta felt, it was like living through two Octobers. One in the foggy, shadowed, and ruined village. One in the city proper. One was, comfort level and logically, far better than the other. Partially because the latter included a certain brunette's birthday, and that had meant cake--and apple tarts.
Half-off Halloween candy a couple of days later had also been wonderful.
But one thing had lingered in her mind, a little sort of shadow since they suddenly appeared back in the city after that whole fiasco.
What had become of Shaowei and others?
They'd no time to really exchange contact information, and Realta wasn't familiar enough with the Dark Mirror Court to approach unknown entities about queries concerning one of theirs. Not all members seemed to be fond of White Moon agents, at any rate. So as she meandered through the city on her usual paths and random ones, she kept her 'radar' out for that... odd Chaotic aura. Less Chaotic really, sometimes it seemed, and just more... odd.
It was one of those outings that radar beeped, where she mentally mapped a new route between one of her favorite cafe-bakeries, and one of many small parks that usually had some youma skulking around in the evening hours or early mornings--likely released by an agent hoping to reap energy or more from late-night wanderers, or early morning joggers. Her body suddenly jerked to a halt, ears perking and swiveling as if they would help to fine-tune the spark in her mind.
No such luck, but she walked a few steps this way and that way, feeling how the sensation shifted till she had a better sense of its direction, and bolted that way. The lilac and black Savannah made easy work of the alleyways and rooftops, along fences and over dumpsters.
Being a Mauvian in feline form, she gave no energy signature herself. It was a blessing, truly, to keep herself safe as she wandered. Now, as she approached the distinctly Off energy, she wished she could give a sort of... signal. If only to see how they'd react in turn.
Keeping her expression light and steps quiet, she rounded a building and halted again, smile growing in delight as she recognized the collection of dark purples and lighter pinks. The feline began to purr immediately, trotting towards the figure with pearl eyes bright.
"Shaowei! My dear, it's wonderful to see you again! How've you been? That was a rather rude return we had, wasn't it? No time to even speak in the aftermath!"
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 6:16 pm
That voice, she knew that voice! Shaowei immediately spun round on her heel, to come face to face with the largest cat that had been in their group. As a Savannah it was safe to say that she had a rather dominant form, but the warm tone and comfortable approach made her recognisable. She was confident and to be fair, Shaowei posed little threat to someone she considered to be an ally.
...How could she not be an ally after all of that?
"Realta!" She replied with a similar warmth, stepping towards the feline with a light clop of her shoes on the pathway below. She had momentarily forgotten about her wraith, a looming presence that followed after her though seemed to be largely harmless for the time being. Whether this was through her own will or it was sentient was open to debate at this point in time, but Shaowei was of the opinion it had some form of intelligence in there somewhere.
"It was rather sudden, I had been wanting to check up on everyone to make sure they were all right," she admitted and shook her head. "I mean I think I ran in to Athalia, but it was more of a blur than anything so I'm not really sure?" she pursed her lips thoughtfully.
"I figured that Namielle would be all right but I was more worried about the others, I just wanted to make sure they were okay," she sighed and rubbed the back of her neck.
"I mean Athalia was pretty beaten up by the time we got out and Metis hadn't exactly had fun in there either," she pointed out. "I feel like I might have gotten off lightly," she confessed.
"I know it wasn't 'real' but those sort of things don't always go down well for everyone and... well, I was worried," she paused briefly and lowered herself down a little so that she was crouched. "So, are you and Metis ok? She's happy and in good spirits now, right?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 7:37 pm
The brightness that was Shaowei did, for a moment, overcast the shadow that lingered behind her. It gave no odor, no sounds. The faint creeping sensation down her spine, the guardian merely attributed to her lack of recent exposure to the Dark Mirror's aura. An instinctive response to the presence of Chaos, even when unwarranted like in such circumstances.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you did. He seems to get around a good bit, at times I'd say almost more than's good for him," she added with a snort, though she continued to grin as only a cat can. "He's not entirely chatty lately. It's nothing personal, at least he's been that way to everyone," the Mauvian shrugged, the sword marking along her back rippling slightly as her muscles bunched, rose, and fell. "If you stopped him long enough, you'd likely get a nod of greeting, perhaps a grunt, maybe a hello if you're very lucky. But I think he's alright for now, considering his state at the end there."
She was no psychologist. Realta didn't know the extent of what he'd endured within the mists and shadows, caught beneath the ground by the monster. He'd sawn Metis home, even stopped by for her birthday. He was alive, he was functioning. Namielle hadn't raised any alarms about there no longer being food available in the house, or that Orias had somehow replaced him with a drone.
Padding a bit closer, she began to rub against the senshi's legs once Shaowei crouched, leaing into her as she curled around her in a simple means to offer comfort. "We all responded differently to the illusions and assaults being set upon us. There is nothing wrong with this. Athalia suffered a great deal, from what I could tell, but he's alive, and as are the rest of us, thankfully. We could ask for nothing better."
"Metis is alright. She was shaken, but she is processing. She's been worried for you, in fact, so I'm happy I can bring back some good news! We weren't sure how to locate you and ensure you were alright after everything, yourself." Realta sat back, looking up towards the purple-haired girl. "I'm alright. It was stressful and unnerving, but I've been keeping myself busy and trying to keep an eye on the others. But what about you? That wasn't an easy lot to deal with--"
She was going to say more but stopped short, the hair along her back bristling as her tail fluffed. Pearl eyes stared up, focused sharply on the dark figure that loomed beyond Shaowei. A low yowl formed in the back of her throat, muffled as she didn't yet open her mouth. Standing again, she prowled around the senshi, trying to put herself between the young woman and the unknown creature.
"What are you?" Her voice snapped out, demanding and authoritative. "Not a youma, but I've not seen a specter go floating around Destiny City before, either..."
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 7:53 pm
So, he was alive but Realta could only provide something Shaowei considered to be a non-answer. That was fair, and to be honest he might not even feel like it was anyone's business to pry. So long as he was functioning she supposed she'd count that as a win. The confirmation that Realta was in seemingly good spirits and Metis hadn't had any permanent scarring was a genuine relief to her though.
"I'll have to figure out a practical way of addressing that," Shaowei mused in regards to being difficult to contact. She was sure others might have reservations about it, but there must have been some sort of open channel she could use. Alternatively, maybe she could create one? She was a smart woman and maybe if she was given enough time she could figure it out.
She'd have to look in to that.
Nevertheless her attention to shift to Realta's change in tone and she glanced over her shoulder towards her companion. It said nothing, and a mild flicker appeared to be its only response to her query. Even Shaowei hadn't been able to get the thing to talk, that was another thing she would eventually have to research as well, but at the very least it did seem to have some base instinct and the ability to follow commands.
"That's Bomba," she said at last and shook her head. "They help the Mirror Court," she added and pursed her lips. "He seems better behaved than a youma though, the last youma I saw didn't really seem to care if the person was even on the same side as it," she explained. Suffice it to say that she had yet to discover that the youma very much liked the taste of senshi and well, starseeds in general.
"He doesn't really seem to do much except -" she motioned to him with a wave of her hand, he remained where he was. "Float."
"He only seems to act when he's told to right now which isn't necessarily a bad thing in the grand scheme of things, we're still working on a couple of things and if he wandered off on his own I'd be worried at what he was up to," she murmured.
It sounded ominous, but in reality the wraith had a penchant for heavy handedness and until she managed to get the balance right she would sooner keep a tight leash. She could only pick up and prop up so many unconscious people per night before it looked a little bit suspicious.
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 8:24 pm
"Bomba?" The name was an odd one, and Realta didn't exactly simmer down when Shaowei made her little introduction and explanation. Her eyes remained pinned on the shadowed form, pupils round to take in as much light as possible.
"How does he assist you? And what are they?" Meaning there was more than just this one. Realta wasn't sure how she felt about that... but she made herself sit back down, tail flicking about in some level of annoyance behind her as she continued to eye the creature. It didn't move, as Shaowei said, but she knew nothing of the entity, its purpose, or anything--and Shaowei's unnerving words helped nothing.
"Would you be willing to enlighten me? I know precious little of your court, something I wish to rememdy, to be fair. Bomba does seem to be more obedient than a youma, that's true, so he does have that in his favour."
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 8:35 pm
"From what I understand a part of our world relies on the excess energy of this one to exist," she explained. She had no reason to hide, she knew of no reason why they should hide. If they truly believed their way was the right way then her remarks should have come at no surprise to anyone and even better, may help to convince some of those who weren't entirely sold on the concept.
"A little like fuel in a wood burner, we need to tap some of it to keep the world spinning," she shrugged just a tough and smile. "These guys help us do that, their touch can take some of that excess energy and return it to the woodburner," she added. An overly simplistic view perhaps, but it was one that was palatable and one that she seemed to believe herself which was important.
More interestingly, she also seemed to have implied it was slightly less nefarious than the manner in which Negaverse existed. They stole, they maimed and they killed whereas she... Well she knew Bomba did knock people out but that was largely unintentional and she was working on this with him. He would get better, there would be more finesse, she just needed to be patient!
It was as she was discussing this that said wraith's attention was drawn to movement in the distance, a jogger nearby with headphones firmly in their ears. Largely unaware of the area around them, they continued down the path without a care in the world and Bomba appeared to be following suit. The wraith wasn't moving quickly yet, but it was certainly weaving with considerable grace through the shadows towards the unfortunate soul while the Senshi's back was turned...
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 8:50 pm
These were certainly answers she'd not anticipated recieving. Realta's head turned, focusing on Shaowei entirely, eyes wide in bafflement on what she was hearing. Relies on... excess energy from this world..?
Something about that though made concerns raise in her head, reminded of how the Negaverse functioned. Though Shaowei did not seem to suggest such hostile, barbaric ways... "You say some of the energy is needed, not all then? You do not need to harm people to gain energy? Am I understanding that correctly?" She hesitated only a moment before her tail began to flick all the harder. "I would be very relieved if that is the case, but I must be sure I'm understanding this correctly. You have been very kind, very sweet even, since we have met, and I hope to further understand your court in large part due to your kindness to us during the fiasco in the village."
I do not wish to be enemies, was the obvious unspoken words, or so Realta hoped. "If you keep the wood burner analogy, a whole forest could be eventually destroyed if too much wood is taken--but if it is taken a bit by bit, giving the forest time to regrow, replenish, then it is sustainable for both parties. Is that... accurate?"
She turned her head again, this time to look again towards Bomba. She was curious about how the creature took energy, and of course what it was used for--but she jumped to her feet, startled by its lack of presence. "W-where did he--oh stars above, Shaowei, what is he doing?!" The guardian tensed, seeing the dark shape slip off towards a figure in the distance. Not speeding towards them, but hadn't the senshi just said he wouldn't move without being told?
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 9:04 pm
"That's exactly it!" Shaowei gave a smile. "We need to make sure our home is ready to look after everyone if this one...goes up in smoke," she grimaced. "At least that's what I understand anyway, the war that's happening right now could cause everything to implode and there needs to be a safe haven, our world isn't strong enough for that just yet but in time it will be," she pointed out.
"What's the point in building its strength up if there's no one to live in it?" she asked. Perhaps she was being naive, but she wanted to believe this was a genuine pursuit and what they were doing was benevolent. Their methods might appear questionable to anyone who didn't know the full story but in the end it would benefit them. Her aim was to be sustainable in the end, after all if you killed the source of something then it would make anymore of that thing and then she'd be out of luck.
Her train of thought was broken though as Realta directed her attention back to her wayward Wraith and she groaned.
"Practicing," she murmured and pulled herself to her feet. "I'm not very good at this yet and he can't get any better at it if I'm not any good at it so we've been working on a softly-softly approach and I may have been practicing on the dog walkers and joggers," she confessed. "They're all normally very healthy and I make sure they're safe but I guess Bomba likes routine," she finished.
She did seem to be a touch embarrassed and exasperated.
She didn't afford any further explanations as she began to shuffle quickly after her wraith though. It wasn't long until she had managed to catch up to him and she quickly snapped her compact open and drew him back inside. Given he hadn't ended up touching the unfortunate man, he could continue about his early morning unharmed.
Shaowei on the other hand, slumped.
"I think I should call it a night on this one though," she glanced over her shoulder and Realta and offered a wry smile. "He's been trying hard but I think I'm hitting a wall and its causing issues so it's probably for the best he takes a rest and I do too," she conceded. It might not necessarily be the conclusion Realta would prefer, Order were unlikely to really accept the need for energy harvesting in the grand scheme of things, but Shaowei had intervened to stop any harm from occurring.
"Maybe next time I can show you how it works properly and you can decide for yourself?" she offered as she slipped her compact into the depths of her sleeve. "I've heard the stories about the Negaverse and we don't take anyone's heart," she pointed out gently. "But I can understand that my word might be hard to trust and seeing is believing..."
She took a breath.
Should she risk it?
She opted to take the risk, just this once.
"I normally practice here or in the thoroughfare at the subway as people are going home from work," she cleared her throat. "People are already tired and ready for sleep, so it's a good time to collect the remaining dregs. They'll replenish by morning," she pointed out. "You can see for yourself if you would prefer and then you can decide how you feel about it," she added.
"For now though I really should go before it starts getting light out and people start wondering why there's a weird chick in a costume running around. Look after yourself, ok?"
A tiny wave was given and at that point the Dark Mirror Senshi began to walk away. If Realta did decide to bear witness to her work then so be it, hopefully she wouldn't bring too many friends that would make the Mirror Senshi regret her gambit...
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2020 9:34 pm
Ideally, Realta would have preferred to have gotten a sample of this energy-draining then and there. See how it functions, see what is normal--maybe ask to experience some herself.
But Shaowei's explanation made sense. Build up something to protect people in case this war got out of hand--as it likely could...--and house them as an alternative to this world. Her tail flicked. How many senshi were working on trying to do similar on the White Moon side?
If the Dark Mirror Court needed a bit of energy to fulfill this goal... wasn't that a good goal to work towards, to help assist with? She frowned, considering this potential avenue of research. She'd need to seek out others of the court, hear their motives and thoughts.
Was Shaowei a typical representation, or an outlier?
Bomba's attempt to skitter off to gather more energy almost seemed comical to her now, though she worried a little to see how Shaowei drooped a tad. "You're still working on it, though, and that says a lot," she offered to try and soothe the young woman. "You'll continue to improve, and thereby be able to better lead and instruct Bomba. You have a good tactic forming, it sounds like." How surreal--telling someone they had a good tactic for taking energy. That was an unexpected first. But this one wasn't malicious about it.
Realta missed what it was that Shaowei had used to call back the creature, only noticing that Bomba vanished, something that made her perk up in interest. Still, she nodded her head to the other's recommended path the rest of the morning. "That sounds like a good plan to me--I still have a section of this part of the city I wanted to map out for myself, but then I'll be resting a good chunk of the day, I think. You've been working hard, and you more than deserve a good rest."
The offer to see the display again though, had the Mauvian nodding her head in delight. Especially given how she was offered valuable information to locate Shaowei again. Realta was touched. "Thank you, Shaowei, for telling me that. I will certainly come back and take you up on that offer. I think you've got a good system, to take a little from those already heading home to rest. There's no harm done to them, or to negatively impact their day. That's smart thinking."
"Go rest, my dear, and I look forward to seeing you again soon."
The guardian bowed her head to the retreating senshi, her mind a buzz with considerations. She'd not tell any other of her plans, she decided, until she better understood the process herself, and could safely say it wasn't a threat--or didn't have to be.
No, she'd keep her meeting between just her and Shaowei. The young woman had done plenty to earn that much of Realta's respect and trust, it'd be unfair of her to risk her safety by involving others before Realta could be able to ensure a positive outcome for all.
At least the morning was turning to be a lucky one. About time, really.
[Fin~]
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