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 Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2021 8:07 pm
Backdated to mid-February before Lt Feldspar's rescue ORP “General King Axinite,” Bloodstone greeted when he located the General Sovereign in his office. He might have been a newly promoted Captain, but he was not going to waste the time he had any longer. The power he had as a Captain was enough to make him realize how much another would enjoy the same power.
Which was why he brought her with him. A civilian woman, whom he stepped aside to allow in the office behind him before shutting the door.
“This is Celeste Durand. I have known her for many years and believe she will make a great asset. I would like to borrow your power to allow me to recruit her, and I will take full responsibility for her,” he explained. He could have found a General, he supposed. But his own General had been out of contact with anyone, and Bloodstone rarely met with him anyway. He didn’t need a General when he could go directly to a General King.
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Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 8:14 am
Celeste stepped into the office and looked around with the same bland curiosity with which she’d gazed upon the parts of the castle they’d already been through to get there.
She was a cold, distant sort of woman, model tall and thin, but toned from exercise, with an air of indifference about her. Bloodstone had told her about the Negaverse and she was intrigued, but she hid her interest well behind her usual emotionless facade.
“General King,” she greeted Bloodstone’s superior, her gaze flicking over him quickly enough to take his measure without seeming too bold or arrogant. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”The Space Cauldron Sorry for dumping a bunch of tags on you. emo
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Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2021 4:49 am
Axinite looked up from his desk, clearly busy with something--but not so much that he couldn’t immediately give Bloodstone his attention. And, why shouldn’t he? There was, what he assumed to be, a civilian in his office. Bloodstone’s explanation was quickly accepted and he appreciated someone who could be vouched for. Sometimes, he questioned why some agents were recruited. But, there was no starry eyed whimsy in the woman before him, and despite the surprise of the civilian in his office, he managed to collect himself quickly and rose, wearing a smile. “Ms. Durand, the pleasure is all mine. It would be an honor to assist you, Bloodstone.” Especially if he was willing to take her under his wing. “I expect you’ve explained all of this to her, have you ever done this before?” He didn’t know if the other General Sovereigns had ever assisted Bloodstone, or if he’d heard about the process before, but he was clearly willing to help and moved from behind his desk so he could stand before them without any barriers.
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Posted: Sat Mar 20, 2021 2:06 pm
“I have not done this before, but I assume it would be similar to my own recruitment,” he said, not bothering to keep too close of an eye on Celeste since she was more capable than a lot of Negaverse officers already.
“Yes, I explained to her that there would be pain involved when her starseed is imbued with power, but it would be well worth the results,” he verified, having discussed briefly what to expect on the walk to Axinite’s office. But Bloodstone had never been the chatty type, so any extra details were likely left implied.
It was okay, because if anyone was capable of handling becoming a Negaverse officer, it was Celeste. And lucky for her, he wasn’t arrogant enough to think he didn’t need the assistance of someone higher ranked than himself. He would prefer not to turn her into a youma by mistake.
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2021 2:23 pm
Celeste wasn’t afraid of pain. She didn’t actively seek it out, but the threat of it wasn’t enough to make her change her mind. If August could tolerate it, so could she.
She stood casually, examining the General King a bit more carefully now that he was in closer proximity to her. He was not entirely unimpressive, though not exactly what she’d expected. When she heard the term “General King,” she’d thought he might be… menacing, perhaps? With a more evil look about him. To her inexperienced eyes, he didn’t look as powerful as Bloodstone claimed he was.
Not that Celeste knew much about this Axinite at all. She was very much aware of her own ignorance and knew better than to pass her final judgement until she saw him in action.
“Don’t concern yourselves with my comfort,” she said. “A life without pain is unavoidable, especially under the circumstances Destiny City finds itself in. I’m ready to begin.”
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Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2021 5:57 pm
Axinite glanced at Celeste with an expression that seemed impressed, and he noted, “Already earning my respect. We’re off to a good start, I think. Bloodstone, if you can help me with this?” He waited for the Captain to join him, and then said, “You know what it is to pull a starseed?” he prompted, but it was a rhetorical question at best. “I want you to reach in, to take her starseed. I’m going to teach you how to bring someone into the Negaverse. I won’t let you make a mistake. I trust you.” He seemed to have the upmost confidence in him, and Axinite himself seemed calm and assured. He had done this many times, apparently, and was prepared to carefully coach the Captain through it. He placed his hand on Bloodstone’s arm, and there was a visible heaviness to it--and then, a surge of Chaos, for a split second, and then only peace. Axinite was fully prepared to siphon more into him, when he had her starseed and was prepared for it. “I want you to take her starseed, gently. Hold it in your hand, and protect it. And I’m going to let you guide the energy into her, to awaken all of her potential. When you’re ready, we’ll begin.”
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Posted: Tue May 11, 2021 2:03 pm
Bloodstone looked from Axinite with a nod, to Celeste. She could handle the power being given to her, he was sure of that. It might be painful at first, but as she said herself, they shouldn’t concern themselves with her comfort.
As instructed he turned towards his years-long friend and waited for the General King’s prompting to press his hand first against her chest and then into it. He could feel the surge of Chaos given to him by Axinite, which filled him with only more desire to do this right.
It took just a moment for him to search for her starseed and wrapped his hand around it, carefully guarding it from too much power at once.
He didn’t say anything to Celeste, but gave her another nod to make sure she was aware he was going to continue in just a moment. He knew the General King would be able to feel the Chaos surrounding the starseed to unlock it, so he didn’t bother turning to make sure he was prepared, trusting him in turn when he said he wouldn’t let him make a mistake.
Carefully, so it wasn’t all at once with the risk of damaging her starseed or her body, Bloodstone let the Chaos circle it and be absorbed into it, remembering very well how his own awakening felt.
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Posted: Wed May 12, 2021 6:30 pm
It was an odd thought, having someone’s hand in her chest. If everything else Bloodstone had told her about the Negaverse hadn’t already turned out to be true, Celeste would have assumed he was lying when he explained to her the process of corruption.
Subspace pockets and starseeds, magic and monsters, it all seemed fairly ludicrous until one had the chance to experience it.
Celeste kept her breathing slow and steady. Subtle threads of tension began to work their way through her limbs as Bloodstone’s hand sank deeper, but she held her ground. Then his fingers wrapped around a piece of her which she had not been aware existed until recently, and with Axinite’s guidance, power began to flow into her.
The pain was indescribable. Celeste clenched her teeth against it, forcing herself to bear it, holding back the screams that might have torn from the throats of lesser women (and, indeed, men). Her breathing accelerated, fingers tensing into claws at her sides as the pain continued to grow, radiating through her chest. She glared through it, staring straight at Bloodstone with a vicious look on her face, as if to silently say, “I hate you. I hate you. I hate you, you son of a b***h.”
Eventually, the pain grew to be too much, and she could not stop a hiss and a groan from escaping her, clenching her eyes shut and gasping as the power surged.
With the General King’s help, Bloodstone made her into a more perfect version of herself.
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Posted: Sat May 22, 2021 6:21 pm
Axinite waited, watched. He paced himself, and seemed acutely aware of both her condition and Bloodstone’s. It was only after she seemed to stabilize that he gently removed his hand from Bloodstone’s shoulder. “You did good,” he praised, “Both of you.” Neither looked like they were anywhere near to immediately passing out, but he was as he always was and seemed prepared to fuss over their health and well-being. “Do you need a seat? I have energy drinks, and cookies. And some fruits, if you need. I want to make sure you’re both taken care of. You’ve got a busy path ahead of you, and I want you to know you have my full support.” Bloodstone, with a new recruit, and a new recruit settling into the Negaverse--both could be overwhelming, and while Axinite had full faith that Bloodstone was capable, he couldn’t help but want to make sure they had all the resources they needed.
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Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 1:31 pm
Exhaustion wasn’t new to Bloodstone. Surgeries took a lot out of him, but he was good at what he did, just as he wanted to prove himself as an officer. He might have started out a bit slow as he worked through getting used to his time at the hospital and his time with the Negaverse, but with Celeste now assisting him, he was certain they would accomplish great things.
A cool smirk pulled at the corner of his lip, and shook his head when offered a seat and cookies by the General King. Instead, he took a step back to admire the new form Celeste took, thinking it suited her well.
“No, thank you, General King,” he said as politely as he could while distracted. “I think the name I picked for you is quite fitting, Carnallite. How do you feel?”
Bloodstone couldn’t help but ask, because he knew she would enjoy the power that came with being an agent.
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 9:45 am
Celeste, or whatever her name was now, took a few moments to collect herself. The pain faded, but she was still very much aware of the hand that was just in her chest, and the part of her those fingers wrapped around. She brought her own palm to the center of her chest as if to guard it, but dropped her hand quickly, deeming the unconscious move a show of weakness.
When she had her breathing under control and thought she might not stagger around if she moved, the woman who was once Celeste let her gaze pass over her new clothing.
She frowned immediately, and glared at Bloodstone again as if the choice was somehow his doing.
“No, thank you, General King,” she copied Bloodstone’s polite refusal, but went a step further by saying, “You’ve already done me a great service by putting your faith in me. I will make every attempt to live up to your expectations.”
She had no doubt that she would soon learn her way, if Bloodstone had already done so.
Bloodstone with his cool smirk and his self-satisfied demeanor.
“Well enough to knock that smug look off your face,” she answered his question, accepting the name with little more than a roll of her eyes. To Axinite, she offered a respectful lowering of the head, too long to be a simple nod, but not quite long enough to qualify as a bow. “Thank you, General King. If you have no further need of us, we can take our leave now. I’d like to familiarize myself with the castle.”
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