Welcome to Gaia! ::

Everything was set, Celestina was going to meet up with Hestia and this Lysithea who knew of someone that could help her get out tomorrow. The house was purchased and Emily was seeing to it that everything was being set up in the way Celestina wanted, and her notes were written, as well as they could be. She knew there would be memories lost, a price for her freedom, and so the important bits of her life were written down.

Information on Emily which of course included a little bit about Hestia, information on Oliver. Information on Daphne and on Dagon, and…information about her own family. The money, where the money was. Why she was doing this crazy thing.

Her goodbye note was written too, and the fact that she was going to make this all look like it was planned. That she was planning to die...that had been jarring but. It would hopefully keep everyone safe…herself especially.

Emily had been made the executor of her will, and was going to get the majority of what was left, with some going to Samir, just because. And the rest of it being donated to the school. Romanos might not need the money, but…perhaps if she gave what she could to the Negaverse…they wouldn’t think that she was a traitor. Just. That she was depressed beyond any help. Which…was safer.

When the decoy body was placed in her house, Retzian took one last look around and teleported out of there.

She was early, but a walk around the park sounded nice…time outside sounded nice. It was one last walk, and she deserved it.

Of course, feeling the order aura approaching, Retzian hesitated for a moment, but then headed over, half assuming that it would be this Lysithea…or that Hestia had gotten stronger but. “Oh! Nectaris!”

The grin had Retzian relaxing and without a second thought she moved closer and took hold of Nectaris’ hands, squeezing them lightly. “I’m doing okay. Just. Um. Well. It’s a lot going on, but everythings fine! It’s what I want, and…I’m going to be leaving the Negaverse tonight. I…had thought you were the Senshi that’s going to help but, it’s you...and now that it is you…I…do you think you can take me to the Moon?”

The worst that Nectaris could say was no...and. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot as I’ve gotten things together, and I promise that this isn’t a trick, I left a fake um. Uh. Note that I killed myself back in my house and we even put a fake body and…ah. It’s the Senshi of Unicorns and Hestia who are going to be helping me and they should be here in an hour or so, so we have a little bit of time and I would…I just. I want to see it before I forget whatever I forget, and I haven’t stopped being able to think about what you said…and…”

She chewed her lip for a moment and looked at the woman, eyes filled with pleading. “...Please?”

Retzian smiled brightly and nodded, taking hold of her hands and nodding again. “Yes please. I…I’m scared. And I’m nervous. And…I don’t know. I don’t know what to expect but…I’m ready. There’s a Senshi that I promised to do this for, and I’m not going back on that promise…and there’s Dagon…she knows that it’s happening too…I…didn’t include you in the note to myself…but maybe! Maybe if the Senshi can take you too, you’d like to come as well? I don’t want to forget you, Nectaris!”

Especially since she was going to get to see the Moon...a butterfly garden on the Moon. How lucky was that? How cool was that?

“I’m sure that she wouldn’t mind if you came too…as my…as my second emotional support buddy? Along with Hestia? I mean, I have two hands and each of you can hold one for me!” Giving an almost nervous laugh, Retzian shrugged. “I heard it would hurt a little so…I don’t want to have to be alone…”

Once, the Moon had accepted Sylvite’s Chaos. It had taken it, transformed it. She had committed herself, and she had become something new.

Something better, the Code thought.

The Moon had safeguards to prevent attacks from Chaos, but they were not infallible. People were not infallible.

The Code was just looking out for Nectaris. For itself. For Retzian, too.

When Nectaris and Retzian arrived, it was not in the familiar warmth of her Wonder and, instead, in the cool chamber of the Code.

The room itself was not particularly large but it didn’t feel smothering. The walls were white and had traces of faded pastel.

There were no decorations. No furniture. No windows or doors.

Just a single, floating orb that hummed with magic. It hovered above a pedestal in the center of the room. It was made up of a million tiny specs of light that swirled around in. The light was warm, almost welcoming against the coolness in the room.

Except, it felt like it was judging them.

It had no eyes, but there was an acute sensation of someone standing before them. A brief silence passed and then, it spoke.

“I hope I’m not interrupting something by bringing you here.”

Oh. Oh.

Okay. Maybe they weren't getting a cute little butterfly reprieve. Retzian looked confused and, honestly, pretty upset, and Nectaris shot her an apologetic glance before she turned to the glowing ball that was the Code and wiggled her fingers at it in a tiny wave.

"Hi, Code," she said.

She understood Retzian's anxiety. Nectaris was literally a Moon Knight and even she was feeling some of the gravity of the situation. For something with no eyeballs, the Code really did have a way of staring people down, and anyway, getting snatched away from her plans and landing in this chamber where her own life had been turned upside down a year ago did have a way of making things seem dead serious.

"Uh, so this is the Code," she told Retzian, like she was at a party trying to wingman and doing a bad job at it. "It's the source of our Knight power, and it's pretty cool! This room's where it lives. This is where I purified, actually. You called us here, right?" she asked the Code.

She didn't see what else could be happening here.

"And this is Retzian," she said, gesturing at the Captain beside her. "She's like me. She wants to purify, so you don't have to get weird, okay?"

Retzian hesitated. “I…only wanted to see the butterfly garden that Nectaris spoke of…I have…a friend and someone who is going to take me to her world and get someone to purify me…yes…but um. I don’t seek it here, no…I just…”

She felt so…awkward and had to glance down at her feet, shrugging. “I just wanted to see the butterflies…and I can’t purify without Hestia being there…she’s helped me so much with all of this nonsense and…I mean. Yes I am going to purify but I didn’t come here seeking it…just. Nectaris said so many nice things about the moon and I keep wanting to see it…so she brought me up here for one last…wish of mine, I guess…but I don’t want any trouble, I promise…”

“You don’t need to worry,” the Code reassured. “...I don’t sense any darkness in your heart. That’s not what this is about.”

Of course it was protective of the Moon. Of course it should think that the Negaverse might be trying to tempt Nectaris back.

It was hard to argue that there was any danger when they were both here with starseeds full of hope. Nectaris had overcome the Negaverse. Retzian could, too.

“When were you planning on leaving the Negaverse?” The Code wouldn’t force anything on her–couldn’t, anyway. But it could make sure he had a chance to make this go as smoothly as possible.

“If it’s soon, I have an opportunity. If you’re interested. Cosmos isn’t the only one who can hear starseeds. And yours is calling to me as much as any I’ve called here before. The Chaos doesn’t make it easy to hear, but you standing here, in front of me, it’s loud and clear. When you purify, you’ll need a Wonder. A new source of power. Somewhere to protect.”

It let the statement hover in the air and then asked, “Would you consider helping guard the Moon? There are places here with old and ancient powers. Places that need protection as much as any Wonder. I think you’d be a good fit. That’s all this is.”

She seemed too shaken to be up to something, and the Code was confident that she was serious about wanting to escape the Chaos.

It just wanted to make sure she could.

With her suspicions confirmed, Nectaris couldn't help bouncing up and down on her toes, or giving Retzian's hand some gentle but excited squeezes. She didn't get too excited about it, because she was pretty sure this place was supposed to be kind of solemn, and sacred, and magical, but at the same time, it felt like her chest was gonna burst from even more hope and happiness.

"You'd be a Knight," she said, unknowingly echoing the words that Ganymede had spoken to her in this very room before her own purification. "That's what it means, when you protect a Wonder-"

Which, Retzian seemed a little confused about that one, so Nikki clarified, "A special place, like my butterfly garden? When you protect somewhere like that, for the Code, you're a Knight. And, uh,"

Okay, she couldn't help it. Solemn place or not, Nectaris was scooting over to squeeze Retzian in a very enthusiastic side hug.

"It's saying you could be a Moon Knight! Like me! We'd be twinisies!"

As far as the other question, Nectaris kept silent to let the Code answer. She didn't see why the friends couldn't be around for the purification, but she also wasn't the one with the power to send the two of them back to Earth, or to summon the friends here, or anything like that.