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 Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2023 9:52 am
Cernunnos didn't much like this place he'd been magically whisked away to. The plants were strange, the food was strange, and the people? More strange than anything he'd ever even dreamed of. As long as he'd been here, he still hadn't figured out how he'd gotten here... or why.
He wanted to go home. He wanted to sleep in his own bed, not under a bush on the cold ground. He wanted to eat his own food, prepared by the capable hands of the temple's priests. He wanted to discard his filthy robes and climb into a bath. That was what he dreamed about at night. Hot water that soothed away all his aches and anxieties. Clean robes and warm blankets.
Instead, he was on this awful planet, crouched in a bush spying on one of the strange inhabitants of this place. Purple was a new shade of skintone from the other peoples he'd seen around this place, who ranged in different values of brown and cream. Another stranger, like himself? Cernunnos wanted greatly to ask, but that would have meant revealing himself, an action he very much tried to avoid... even as futile as that was.
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Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2023 3:04 am
Generally it was well hinted at that all members of the Vanguard should activate their glamours when being out on any errands that could see them running into any of the Terrans that called Earth home. Lysanna had had every intention of doing so tonight but then she stopped to consider that no one would be outside during the coldest part of the night. Her breath misted in the cool air and Lysanna had to remember that even if her physiology made it so that she was more tolerant of the temperatures of Earth, that eventually she would start to slow down. As her gaze took in the clear night sky that was above her at the moment she paused to try and triangulate where their synthetic world was before shaking her head. Only the Commodore would have the data to track Velencya and communicate with those back home. For now she had to focus on what it was that she had come out here, to this public park, to find.
There'd been a small plot of land, hidden away from prying eyes, that the cadet had taken to adapting to make a small, personal garden away from her fellow Vanguard. It'd taken her quite a while to haul away debris and discreetly bring in rich soil to mix into the earth that she'd taken a shovel to. Now as she pushed her way through various bits of shrubbery here and there did the purple-skinned femme sigh before consulting her comtech. She was almost there. Pushing a strand of her hair to tuck in behind her left ear did Lysanna suddenly feel as if someone had eyes on her and she shuddered. Oh, that feeling was not at all pleasant.
Her fingers brushed over the axe on her side before she shook away the unpleasant sensation. Was there another individual out here this night? Her comtech beeped softly as she tapped out a few commands for a scan to start but most of her attention was still on getting to her little garden. There were a few crops left to harvest before the cold of winter put everything into a sort of stasis.
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Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2023 4:32 pm
She was not doing what the others usually did, which was run or walk or ride strange contraptions around on the hard stone paths. Sometimes, the people here ventured out onto the grass they kept strangely short and played games of various sorts... or practiced war maneuvers, he wasn't entirely sure which. But that's not what the other stranger was doing. She left the paths and the open spaces for places that were harder to get to, places he liked to lurk specifically because no one else came there.
Something in her hand beeped and she paused to look at it, but it didn't stop her entirely. Cernunnos followed at a discreet distance, slipping from cover to cover as quietly as he could manage. She'd caught his curiosity now, and it seemed weirdly important to see just what she was up to. Would it be a chance to benefit himself? Possibly. It was better than sitting cold and miserable in another bush for the night. Anything, probably, was better than that.
He did wonder, though, where exactly she was going. He almost considered slipping ahead of her and looking, but quickly decided that was a good way to have her stumble across him. Better to wait and be patience, as much as he chafed at that. He wanted to know...
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Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 12:47 am
Why did it feel like she was still being watched?
Lysanna clearly was unnerved by this continual sensation of having eyes logging her every movement. The axe she bore with ease in training had almost come into her hand at one point as the paranoid sensations intensified. But what good would wielding her weapon be if it came down to a physical altercation? As much as she wanted to confront whatever or whomever it was that seemed to be tracking her movement Lysanna instead concentrated on the final push through a patch of dense foliage before taking in the sight of a six foot by four foot little patch of earth that she had lovingly tended to since her arrival. The painstaking hours of her labour of love were evident in the proof of various sprouted leaves that marked places that still needed to be harvested. One section had already been cleared out and now Lysanna was ready to finish the job of harvesting what was left.
If only that feeling would disappear.
The purple-hued skin of her hands disappeared into a worn pair of gloves as she first tended gently to the last of the strawberries to have budded, gently twisting each berry off its plant to be placed into a waiting container that was lined with paper towel. These would definitely be a hit with her fellow Vanguard members, or that was what she hoped it would be, as she continued to strip the bushes clean. What would happen if they didn't like strawberries, well it would be more for her to enjoy then.
Every few seconds though Lysanna would pause to listen to the sounds of the forest. Her comtech equipment continued to inform her that there was nothing out of the ordinary around, and yet ... she couldn't quite trust the device over what her own senses were telling her.
In a fluid motion Lysanna stood up suddenly before peering into the darkness. Her voice carried no hint of a threat but there was a bit of a demand in the words that she spoke, "look, whomever is out there, please ... make yourself known. I offer no threat to you but you are setting my nerves on edge. Would it not be better to converse face to face?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2024 6:45 pm
The young man froze behind the tree he was using for cover as the girl... he thought it was a girl, anyway, but she didn't have horns... spun towards him. He scrambled back, falling on his rear, and froze there, his heart thumping in his ears. Was she coming after him? Had she seen him? He'd had to run from other people who got far too interested in him, he really didn't want to do it again. Would she hurt him if she found him? There was no way to know.
When no bodies came charging into his hiding spot, his heart rate slowed and he let out a long breath, soft ears perking forward to hear her call out to him. Oh boy...
"I prefer not, thank you." He said as he scrambled onto hands and knees, plastering himself against the back of the tree. "Sorry for sneaking around, but I don't know you and for all I know, you eat smaller boys for dinner every night. I just wanted to see what you were doing, that's all. Promise I'm not gonna steal anything. I'll just leave you to... whatever it is you're doing."
Could he slip away without her seeing him? Hard to say.
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2024 1:15 pm
At least her senses were accurate. As the voice sounded out and gave away the fact that she indeed, wasn't alone, Lysanna gave the simplest of shrugs before giving her surroundings a discreet glance. Had that been a rustle of leaf litter on the ground nearby? Was it the mysterious owner of the voice that had answered back or was it some small earth creature finally making its own presence known to her? As Lysanna moved to crouch down at the edge of her garden she listened to the words that had been directed in response to her own comments before she gave the softest trill of a laugh. Oh, that had felt good. Perhaps she should laugh more. "Oh, I don't think I'd like the taste of small boys ... for dinner or for any type of meal, really. I happen to be, along with most of my kind, one who will not consume the flesh of a living creature."
Ducking down Lysanna reached for the top of one of her remaining plants and gave it a firm tug to release the hold that the earth had on it before gently tapping the specimen to further dislodge the dirt that chose to remain. She worked silently for a few minutes before once more picking up the sounds of movement and she sighed. Laying her pulled produced into a pile Lysanna stood and pulled off her gloves before closing her eyes to try and pinpoint a direction that the sounds were coming from. The communication tech was still frustratingly silent on its scans and she gently tapped a command to silence the soft sounds it made before laying her gloves down on the ground and she stretched.
How to find someone that doesn't wish to be found when the comtech isn't picking up anything either? Could the old, leave the area, but wait in ambush work here or would that frighten my watcher off?
In the end Lysanna walked quietly out of the clearing on the opposite side, leaving everything behind like she needed to find something else before she tried to circle back as quietly and as quickly as possible. Could she catch the other unawares? Her senses on full alert Lysanna dropped to a crouch before trying to silence even her own breathing and simply watched to see if anything in the shadows would move.
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Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2024 4:57 pm
There was rustling and the sound of footsteps... and then nothing. Concerned, Cernunnos moved to peek around his sheltering tree into the small clearing with its disturbed plant life. No one there. That made him both alarmed and confused. Had she just... left? He wasn't entirely sure he believed her about not eating living creatures. 'Living' implied that 'dead' ones were okay, a sarcastic part of his brain said, though he didn't really put much stock into that. But, he didn't know her, or any of her kind, and there was no way to verify what she'd said either way.
Did it matter?
She'd done something to the plants over there... pulled them out of the ground? Why? Nothing around here tasted very good, as he'd sadly found out. Edible, maybe, but not good. Curiosity warred with caution as the small senshi peered about, searching for the stranger. It really did seem she had just... left. Creeping slowly, he eased out of his hiding spot, gently pushing away the covering brush until he emerged into the open. It made chills run up his spine, being so exposed, but he wanted to see... The pile she'd left with her gloves was just a pile of plant matter, still covered in dirt. Strange shapes had him reaching out to poke one with a finger tip, testing the thing that had come out of the ground.
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 8:23 pm
Oh ... oh ... oh her unknown watcher was unexpectedly small. Lysanna's gaze took in the diminutive size of the individual who had emerged from the place that they had been hiding in before she sighed. Well, she could try to use her own size as an intimidation factor if this unknown person ... no, she corrected herself, this senshi refused to give up some information. In her mind though Lysanna loathed the idea of even appearing threatening so hopefully if she got a name today, that would at least be a start.
As she became the watcher to this unknown senshi Lysanna sighed as the individual went about poking at the pile of vegetation that her success at growing had yielded. Oh, well. It'd be safe unless he did something to it. Figuring out when the best time to show back up was the hard part. Lysanna needed to determine the exact moment that her watcher's attention was most diverted before she determined when it was she would sneak up on them.
Seeing a chance, and probably the only chance as it was, to move did Lysanna quietly emerge from the foliage that had been concealing her own form. She would settle for the startle effect if anything, but there was a small hope that this senshi wouldn't flee ... because ... well they looked rather interesting. Keeping her tread light Lysanna tried to get as close as she could before she spoke softly, "those are strawberries ... considered a local Earth delicacy. You can have one if you want. I grew enough for some of my friends back home."
Yes, while the term friends was acceptable, it was more the Vanguard was like family but Lysanna didn't want this senshi to bolt; not just yet.
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Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2024 4:26 pm
The small boy jumped as the voice came from right behind him, springing to his feet and turning, spreading his hands wide.
"Hey! You shouldn't sneak up on people like that... its kinda rude." He said as he took a cautious step back. Not to flee, necessarily, but he felt a lot more comfortable with a little space between them. His mismatched eyes slid from her to the bright red fruit (he thought it was probably fruit?) on the ground, then back.
"You can eat those things, huh? I'm surprised... nothing else around here tastes any good. And I don't see people digging around in the dirt at night. What exactly are you doing out here?"
Maybe it wasn't the smartest to bombard a potentially dangerous alien with questions, but it made him feel better to take the offensive, so to speak, than to stand around waiting for her to do something. Hesitantly, still flicking looks at the huge stranger, he bent down to retrieve one of the berries, turning it over in his fingers. Lifting it to his nose, he sniffed at it, surprised at the rich, sweet smell it gave off. Definitely better than the bland, woody smell of the other stuff around here.
"And how come you don't look like the other aliens? You know... the peachy and brown ones. I haven't seen any other purple ones like you."
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Posted: Tue Apr 02, 2024 3:16 pm
Lysanna almost wanted to give a retort back to this strange senshi before she simply sighed, "there's an expression used among the people of this world, something about pots and kettles. I can't exactly remember it and likely you've never heard of it so the whole point is probably moot. Needless to say did you not try sneaking up on me? Isn't it only fair I get to do the same to you?"
Even as she skirted around the little plot of land that was her garden did Lysanna simply kneel at the edge before she idly grabbed a handful of the soil before letting the gathered earth trickle thought her cupped hands. Her gaze flicked occasionally up to gather what intel she could from her covert glances before she leaned back with a sigh. The strawberry that her watcher had picked up had been sniffed at and observed but not eaten. Well maybe this senshi was still suspicious. That wasn't really surprising at all.
"There are a lot of various things that humans, your peachy & brown aliens, plant in the ground to grow and eventually consume. Earth is a veritable oasis for those who take the time and energy to gently cultivate the growth of such objects. I cannot fault those that grow fruits and vegetables as it's something I've learned to enjoy myself. It's what I'm doing right now. The digging up of my little secret garden means I'm harvesting it."
As for the color of her skin, Lysanna paused before she glanced down at her purple-hued tones before shrugging, "I'm not from this world that is why. I am more like you, as in I have another world in space that I belong too. But I can conceal myself amongst the local population if I choose to. I just prefer being my natural self out here because it's unlikely I'll be seen at night."
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Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2024 11:52 am
Cernunnos shrugged and bit into the fruit, startled at the sweet flavor of its juices in his mouth.
"That's fair enough." He said, suddenly nonchalant about the whole thing. It was fair. Turn for turn, as they say. The short boy eyed what was left of the strawberry, staining his fingertips pink, and then popped the rest of it into his mouth.
"I know they're called humans. I heard about Earth, way back when I was still in the temple. I had to know the names of a lot of places and what their people were like. But everyone is alien to me, since they're not from where I'm from." He braced his hands on his slender hips as he watched her crouch down and fiddle with the dirt, getting it all over her fingers. He almost wrinkled his nose at that.
"So stuff grows when you plant it, huh? I always thought it was some kind of magic the gardeners did. I guess it still could be. I don't think anything I planted would grow."
It was interested that this girl was from another world too. Made sense, considering how different she looked from the majority of people here. The Humans. Looks like Earth hosted all sorts, then. A change from what he had learned, but that had been years ago.
"How do you conceal yourself?" He asked, his ears and curiosity perking up. That would be very useful... the few people he had run into had been startled by him, which had only driven him deeper into hiding. Being able to go about anonymously sounded like a boon.
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Posted: Sat Apr 13, 2024 4:41 am
Lysanna's gaze was lowered as she took subtle readings of the soil as her visitor finally gave in and sampled the strawberry that he had retrieved from her pile earlier. She grinned. At least he wasn't too hesitant of her to not at least try something. From the expression that crossed his face the cadet couldn't decide initially if he had enjoyed it or not. Lysanna would just assume he did as the rest of the strawberry disappeared into his mouth. At the statements that he made and the questions that he posed of her Lysanna's own expression twisted into something that one might have taken as confusion before she gave a soft chuckle.
"Not everything grows when planted. I guess you could say it is a type of magic in the sense of being dedicated enough to make sure that the plants are watered, tended to, pests kept away, all on a daily basis. The real magic of growing things is simply hard work and the knowledge that sometimes a planting may not take. When that happens one can either give up or try again," Lysanna's gaze travelled over her little garden out here in the forest before she nodded, more to herself than anything, "I had to try once or twice to get the strawberries to take."
Remembering the other topics that had been brought up Lysanna nodded, "yes, the inhabitants of this world are called humans. I am not human but I can pass as one. The technology that allows me the ability to do this is integrated into the tech I use. I don't think it can be separated. I'm sorry that I can't help you on that front."
Lysanna sighed before brushing her fingers off from the dirt particles that still clung to them. Her gaze took in the clearing as she stood. She didn't know this senshi's story and there was probably a good chance that he wouldn't share it but then again, miracles could happen ..."I gave you my word earlier that I won't harm you and I'm going to keep to that promise. But I am curious to know if you'd share some information with me. I wouldn't hold it against you if you chose not to."
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Posted: Fri Apr 26, 2024 10:25 am
His face and ears fell. Being able to disguise himself would have been useful. It was disappointing that her tech couldn't be shared... and felt unfair. She was an alien too... why did she get to walk about freely and he didn't?
He pouted as he reached for another strawberry, stuffing the whole of it into his mouth this time. It eased his hunger and was far better than most of what he managed to scrounge up.
"Ask away." Cernunnos said with a flick of his stained fingers, mouth still full of sweet fruit. "I don't have anything to hide, I guess."
He was all but feral, living and hiding in a park surrounded by strange beings. If she wasn't going to hurt him, then there truly wasn't anything he felt like he needed to hide from her. Other than maybe specifically where he slept at night. That would stay a guarded secret just for safety's sake. He truly needed to find somewhere better, but the need to hide made it supremely difficult... and approaching any of the strangers had thus far been too nerve-wracking to attempt. Maybe this stranger could help with that... surely she could share how she'd managed to settle into this place. Then he could just follow that, whatever it was. Answering a few questions in return would be a small price to pay.
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Posted: Thu May 02, 2024 3:28 pm
Content to simply sit for a moment Lysanna glanced to the remaining plants that needed to be harvested before she once more donned her gardening gloves. She had seen the crestfallen look wash over the senshi when she revealed that she couldn't share the technology that allowed her to pass as a human. Inside she had to wonder why it was like that before simply giving a mental shrug. Who was she, a lowly cadet, to question how things worked. It was part of her mission to help save their own world first and foremost. Watching as the senshi plucked another strawberry from the pile that she had made at least eased something inside. Also having him give permission so that she could ask questions was also welcome news.
Where did she start?
"I guess I have two questions to ask of you first. One," and here she met the gaze of her visitor squarely, "where do you come from if you aren't from Earth?"
She paused before launching into her next query, "two: who are you? I don't think I've ever met someone who hasn't been willing to exchange that simple piece of information."
As she reached over and tug free another plant from the soil she raised her line of sight to meet that of the strange senshi before giving a timid smile, "if you don't want to introduce yourself to me, I won't hold it against you. You can, however, call me Lysanna."
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Posted: Fri May 03, 2024 11:04 am
A pale eyebrow lifted and the young man snorted as he reached more confidently for another fruit, popping it into his mouth and talking around it.
"You know those questions are the same thing, right? That's kind of how senshi work, their names are the same name as the planet or whatever they're from." He grinned mischievously. "Or I guess maybe its their title... but whatever. You want my use-name instead?"
"I'm Sailor Cernunnos." He said as he licked his fingers of their red stain, then reached up and touched his forehead, flicking his fingers outwards in his world's form of a greeting. "Cernunnos is where I'm from. Its an asteroid. Not sure exactly how I ended up here, to be truthful... I woke up and felt some sort of tugging, and followed it."
She hadn't exactly asked for any of that, but it felt appropriate to explain why he wasn't still ON Cernunnos. He didn't really understand it himself, so there really wasn't much more he could tell her about that, so she'd have to be content with it.
"My use name is Wisteria. You know, for when I'm not all powered up and stuff. Or I guess, for friends? Not many people ever used to call me that."
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