Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Asking a favor of all of you." He paused, scanned the room. "Know you're all aware that I'll become a youma at this rate. Won't take much longer. All we have to do is wait.

"Have a plan in mind for taking out the youma. For becoming human again. Means I need to take advantage of our enemy. They afford me the opportunity to excise the youma through what they call purification – same process that turns agents into traitors." Faustite paused. For this to work, she had said, you have to want it.

You have to really want it.

Faustite slumped onto a metal chair, already feeling drained. "Idea's simple. You'll all be powered down, but for Albite, who will wait in my office. Soon as I get the location, he'll know – he's got some earrings for that. Once he does, he's to find you, dehenshin, and join you. Get into a couple cars, drive to the area specified. Should be late enough at night that there's no traffic.

"Once you're near there, get line of sight. Stay far enough away that they won't notice or care. Use binoculars if you have to. Wait until the purification's over – when the fire goes out – then ambush them while they're drained.

"You should all be familiar with each other's magic by now. Share those details with everyone not on the team. Make sure you have a plan – suggest Albite go in first to tether everyone together, makes it easier for agents to dispatch them. Use what magic and weaponry you can to suppress the Princess, assuming there is one. Lysithea mentioned not needing Cosmos in the past, which either implies another Princess or a reduced need for one; be prepared for anything.

"Encke will be there. Asked for Nectaris, too. Aiming to be rid of them now." He coughed, something wet and overburdened with smoke. "Lysithea, maybe Malus, maybe others. Couldn't get her to give me names for her court members.

"Once the battle's won, asking Jet to put me back in the Negaverse. By force, if needed.

"Everyone, this is my last act as a General. Let's make it a successful one," he finished, rubbing his temples.

It's all a simple grammar lesson, really.

Super Taenite

Faustite already made up his mind. Taenite would just have to figure things out as they go. There wasn’t more they could do from their own research, so if this was all they could do to save Faustite’s life and to give him a chance at a normal life, then so be it. It was what Faustite wanted, even if the thought of purification made his stomach churn.

He wasn’t part of the team. Didn’t want to be. He twisted the ring he wore around his finger and glanced over at nothing in particular. He didn’t want to look at anyone who was there. This already felt enough like a death sentence.

"I imagine they'd have tried it if there were," not that he knew. He was simply stating what he hoped was the most obvious, because he had to state *something*, anything at all. Cryolite felt too tight in his skin, all at odds and off kilter with the facts as they'd been laid out before him; like an ongoing epilogue to a bad end. However detailed the etchings in the margins were, however many the players and thoroughly thought out the plans. Cryolite as uncharacteristically in motion, jiggled his knee, let his daggered nails run restless over an elbow where his arms were crossed.

All flinchy-antithesis to Albites strange stillness, the man likened to some hulking guardian statue who Syrus thought looked far too tired to be upright....

But not nearly as bad as Faustite.

If this was simply an evolution, and not a death? This slow, agonizing shift of form. Cryolite couldn't blame Faustite for picking the 'way out' that he had, for going to such great, destructive, lengths; even though Cryolite was sure he'd have wanted to do anything else. What continued to surprise him was that Albite was going along so smoothly with it all. Was key piece and flagship to it even! Occasionally he'd shoot icy daggered looks Albites way, because Cryolite could not reasonably believe the man was okay with this! The insanity of what they were planning - the way all the possible mistakes that lay in the cracks of the planning steadily panned out in slow motion before his very eyes...

If Albite felt Sy's eyes? Heard Tama's desperate question, the request for reassurance in it? He didn't much acknowledge it, his eyes were on Faustite when they weren't panning the room; gauging compliance, or the lack thereof in it's members. They could beg asks and seek solutions with words all they wanted, that didn't bother him in the slightest. So long as when it came down to the final hour they were with him. He'd be in the thick of it and he needed them--

To get Faustite out.

More than anything else, he needed that one thing done, he didn't give a crickets s**t if all of order and their puzzle pieced together families made it off scott free, so long as they got Faustite back; completely cured of what was 'killing him', even if it was only figuratively. He preferred the death of a mind to the death of a body. Wanted, selfishly, to have his husband where he could touch him--

And that wasn't as a malingering youma in the Rift, that was a as a human, whole, hale, alive, alive, alive!

H i s.

Theirs -- he self corrected -- as the bodies filled the room and he had to check himself, because this was important for everyone. Had to be, he knew they wouldn't've been present at all if it weren't. They wouldn't let this be Faustites last act as a General. They wouldn't let him down.

Captain Roselite

Roselite stood by Kamacite, almost hiding behind him, shrunken in on himself — as was his way. He wasn’t part of the team, wasn’t even the sort of agent that one might request to have around in case things went awry. He was there out of respect, and because he cared.

Agents died often enough in the war that there seemed to be a certain level of resignation within some of their forces, but Roselite was not yet at the point where he could accept it.

It seemed a shame that nothing could be done to help Faustite within the Dark Kingdom, that their options were so limited, that Faustite had to take such drastic measures to save himself. The thought frightened Roselite. Purification. It implied cleanliness and goodness, yet to Roselite it seemed such a sinister thing.

He would do all he could, and hope all was not as dire as it seemed.

"Consider it done," tone respectful, a slight nod of acknowledgement in faustites direction to hide the wince he wanted to show for how absolutely ruinous Faustites attempts at speaking sounded to his own ears. Clearly this needed to happen quickly as the burning man was intonating, lest there be no time to let it happen at all, and maybe one of his agents would be kind enough to take him up as a personal youma if all else failed?

It was best not to dwell on, and so his gaze shifted to where Kama stood wallflower still, hiding within folds so copious that Roselite all but disappeared behind him. He'd ask the man to be backup for their out later on, privately without the drowning pressure of so large an audience. Kama had always been reliable, and between them all they certainly had come to terms with workable tactics over past missions. Like flash bombing the enemy with the power of ten-thousand suns in order to make a retreat easier; if everything went to s**t all around them.

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This entire meeting was painful.

Helio had found himself a quiet spot amongst the group, situated towards the back and out of the way. His emotional a** didn’t need to be on display at the moment. This was about Faustite and his needs from everyone in attendance. As Helio gazed around he was pleased to see quite a large turn-out. It was clear the effect his General had on so many people and their willingness to be here now showed that effect. It helped alleviate the gnawing in his chest by a tiny fraction. The rest of that dread and anxiety would only abate once the mission was complete and Faustite was back nestled within the team house. Safe. Whole. Where his beloved belonged.

“This isn’t going to be your final mission as a General.” He spoke with conviction. Whether or not it was the last mission he’d remember as the General he was today was the real question, but Helio was determined this wouldn’t be Faustite’s last mission ever as their esteemed leader.

Prehnite’s question of a retreat. To bail and leave Faustite behind immediately ticked Helio off at the thought. He didn’t even want to entertain the idea of it happening despite that small voice in him trying to remind that it was a possibility. No. He needed to remain optimistic about all of this. Of course, Faustite had acknowledged the possibility and appointed Prehnite point. If Helio had been willing to accept the possibility he would say it was a smart move, but he wasn’t willing to concede.
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Captain Roselite

Roselite flinched. His timid frown deepened. A furrow of sadness and misery appeared between his brows.

That ******** b*****d Bloodstone...

He didn’t blame Faustite for his ire, didn’t even think he was wrong to say it, but Roselite felt guilty for it anyway. He wished Bloodstone would be kinder, wished Faustite had a better opinion of him, wished none of this was happening in the first place.

Bloodstone would be angry with him for being here, for volunteering his help again, for putting himself in danger for what Bloodstone considered to be a lost cause. Bloodstone would probably take it out on Faustite again, if he got the chance.

Roselite stood firm.

Well… he did wilt a bit. He sidled a bit closer, right behind Kamacite’s shoulder, almost touching. Roselite swallowed, too nervous to speak. He was glad for the others, for their questions and comments and concerns. The more they talked things out, the better prepared they’d be for any outcome.