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 Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2022 11:46 pm
Arsenolite winced when he woke up with the absolute worst headache he'd ever had, worse than any hangover he could ever remember. Somehow, he was in his own bed, despite... Oh, s**t. Speaking of remembering things. He sat up, groaning when the movement made the room shift in unpleasant ways, and carefully stood, going to get some water for himself and hoping it would help. Probably not, since it was an oxygen deprivation headache... But Monoceros had...! He'd been...! God, Arsenolite could barely even think the words about the guy being... traitorous. How the hell was he going to report this? He needed to, God, he needed to. Rubbing his temples, he shut his eyes and thought. He'd... just have to do it. Maybe to Ashanite. He loved the guy, and he was pretty sure Ashanite would figure something out that wasn't just killing Monoceros. He wasn't sure that, back in that alley, he would've been able to actually do it, anyway, despite his threats to.Okay. He needed help. He sent a message to Ashanite saying he was en route to Ashanite's office for a serious talk, and he went to shower before marching off and knocking on the door.
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Posted: Fri Mar 11, 2022 8:39 pm
Arsenolite's message was ominous. It made Ashanite frown down at his tablet, and he sent back a quick "understood," and teleported back to his office. He'd intended to do a walk around the city, because he'd found that he missed draining, back when he was working under increased quotas for Laurelite--but if one of his subordinates needed his attention immediately, then he was going to be there.
So he teleported down, and waited--not long, fortunately, and when there was a knock, he pulled the door open.
"Arsenolite," he greeted. "Come in. Sit down. What's so urgent?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2022 12:47 am
Arsenolite hurried in with a jerky nod of greeting, feeling too antsy and upset to do... well, basically anything in the proper manner. Which was unusual. He didn't like feeling this way, but he liked what was happening to Monoceros even less. "Something's wrong with Monoceros," he blurted, burying his face in his hands and gripping at his hair. "I-I don't know what's gotten into him, but I was trying to take this, uh, alien senshi's starseed? And... he stopped me." He swallowed heavily, panting a bit and looking back to Ashanite desperately. "He stopped me. Said something about killing people being supervillain s**t and maybe this chick just needed a way home instead of being killed."
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Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2022 1:47 am
Ashanite frowned. That wasn't exactly positive news--and he'd been worried about Monoceros since his corruption. He hadn't taken to the Negaverse well or easily, and it seemed as if he might be having more problems than they'd feared.
"Generally," Ashanite said, "I would tend to advocate for corruption over killing. Especially with something as interesting as an alien Senshi. She might, for instance, have information that would be worth extracting before killing her. But I have a feeling that wasn't Monoceros's objection, hm?"
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Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2022 2:48 pm
He winced, rubbing a hand down his face at the light reprimand from Ashanite. God, he didn't want to disappoint him. "I tried to get information out of her before, but she nearly killed me. Her magic, it's just..." He blew out a harsh breath, leaning back into the chair, a hand still on the lower half of his face as the other arm flopped onto the armrest and a leg started bouncing. "Anyway, she showed up again, I needed to stop her, y'know? And Monoceros jumped down out of nowhere and said how she just... shouldn't die. We should let her go or help her get home, and not bother her?!" His voice rose in pitch as he became more incredulous at what he recounted, casting his mind back to that battle, to the moment when he'd— He'd been ready to gank Monoceros and take his starseed, too. Oh, God. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes and he took a shaky breath, shoving down the sudden need to lose his lunch. "She clocked me while I was fighting with him. I guess, I mean, he still saved my life, but he just... let her go."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2022 12:13 am
"In the future," Ashanite said, though his voice was gentle--Arsenolite's distress was obvious, and there was no reason to add to it further--"I would very strongly prefer that you bring such a high-value target in for interrogation and recruitment, if possible. A dead alien Senshi is a waste. An alien Senshi that has been brought into the Negaverse can be made use of."
But that wasn't entirely the point, anyway--the description of Monoceros's activities made Ashanite's expression downturn. He had interfered with the goal of having her let go? Had let her flee himself, instead of bringing her in?
No, that was absolutely unacceptable.
"I'll handle this." His voice was firm and certain. "There are...solutions to problems like these. Trust me--I'll ensure Monoceros is brought properly in line."
Then, he stood up, and moved over next to Arsenolite, reaching down to squeeze his shoulder.
"And get yourself checked out, medically, if you haven't already. Being knocked unconscious is a big deal, and can have lasting effects."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2022 12:26 am
He nodded absently at the rebuke, knowing he'd been wrong, but he couldn't quite care about that right now. Especially since it just seemed to be a verbal warning and not anything too official. He was grateful for that, since... God. He'd really messed up. Monoceros was so... <******** looked back up at Ashanite at the shoulder squeeze, eyes glistening and resolutely ignoring that fact, and nodded slowly. "Thank you," he said, relieved. "I'm so worried about him. And. Yeah. I'll check myself into our hospital. I..." He inhaled and exhaled slowly, trying to keep calm. "I feel like I need a vacation," he said with a small laugh, "But... whatever's going on with 'Ceros, I need to stay here and keep being a constant for him. His brain is so messed up from the forced corruption thing. I... I wish I'd never done it, y'know? Above all... even if he isn't really anymore, he's still my brother, y'know?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2022 1:03 am
Ashanite's instinct was to frown at Arsenolite's expressed regrets, but--truth be told, he couldn't imagine how he would have felt if he had Whisler brought over and instead of the man he loved, he got a broken shell. The thought made his chest ache.
"I think," Ashanite acknowledged, "that the circumstances were not ideal. I'd rather have had the chance to talk him around. Senshi who choose the Negaverse usually have an easier time adapting." He exhaled between his teeth.
"But what's done is done. And you're on desk duty, Captain, until you're given a full all-clear. I'm sure we can find some paperwork for you to handle." There was no reason to send an injured soldier back into the fight too early.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2022 1:10 am
Arsenolite gave a shaky sigh and nodded. "Yeah. I hope that... whatever you're gonna do for him really helps. I want to see him able to be happy again. Maybe we can work together again someday, or something. But, um..." He slumped his shoulders. "Desk duty sucks." He chuckled breathlessly. "I'll take it, though. I just need to not... be out there for a bit. Thank you for your understanding, General." Arsenolite looked up again and smiled at Ashanite, feeling... cared for, and like the situation would get better. Ashanite had it handled, and he could relax.
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