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 Posted: Sat Apr 06, 2024 8:06 pm
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Things had been a bit touch and go as he'd had to take care of Liam after the attack so he'd really only been able to briefly get time here and there with his team outside of the time he'd been putting in carving crystals in his office. So far Brassite seemed to be the only one doing well and it bothered him. Now with things running smoother, he sent a message out to their tablet with the address of a park not too far from a bus depot as well as a note to wear earphones.
Chalcanthite still wasn't sure how well things effected those who were powered up but it was as sure a time as any to test things out. Sitting on a bench, he ran his hand over the black and white mauvian on his lap before pulling out his fife. There were enough people wandering around and with Desiree here hiding his signature, he blended in as someone who may have left a concert or band practice. It was one of the few positives that came with his uniform even if at times he didn't look as much like a General as others did.
Watching the people, he had to keep a close eye on them all once he started playing. Anything could happen and he didn't have enough data to form a better plan. At least he'd have his mauvian and soon one of his lieutenants to provide coverage. It was riskier than he normally liked to be but he needed to start using the instrument he'd made to figure out its limitations and applications for the future. If it could give him some inside into the other crystals he worked on then that would be even better.
"Cover your ears if you can Desiree, I really have no idea how this may effect you. If any of them stand out let me know and I can call a sovereign in." Exhaling, he held the crystalline fife to his lips and started to play. It sounded just as odd as the first time he'd played it but he could see how the closest civilians slowed and swayed in place, almost as if they were deciding about the direction they would continue on in.
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Desiree followed Chalcanthite along tonight which was nice for once. She'd been going out and exploring things on her own behind their back for months now so it was a pleasant change of pace to help her musician out. There was a bit of tension about them again, something that had faded during the month that Liam had been on house arrest while injured. Now things were back to normal and so the tension was back and she'd been keeping a closer eye on them.
"So I get to meet one of your little students now, don't I? I look forward to it and I'll keep an eye out as well." Settling a bit more into their lap, she pulled her hat over her ears a bit more to block out the sounds of the city and soon the alien sound of the other's instrument. Her good eye narrowed as she watched the change come over some of the civilians, it was not what she'd expected but still something that could be useful if not dangerous.
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Posted: Sat Apr 06, 2024 8:35 pm
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It was pretty weird to be walking around with earplugs in, seemed kinda not The Move at night when you're supposed to be a danger to the general populace. But her boss thought it best, and so Brassite trotted on over to the park in a muted world. It was a lot like when she held herself underwater in the tub or pool, letting the whole wide world get extra far off and distant. Which made it extra weird to experience that eye open and walking forward.
Soon, there was something well, off about the folks milling around the park. Especially once she got close enough to see Chalcanthite playing some kinda flute. Did her boss...invite her out to like, help him busk? Was teacher pay that bad? Well, whatever! This was her first assigned mission, so she was gonna do great at it even if it was passing 'round the hat for dollars'n'change.
Speaking of hats, though! That! Cat!!
Seeing Her Fluffiness in her Spendipitous Hat and General Fanciness, Brassite did an excited little steppy dance, a few shades less urgent than a Gotta Pee Shuffle but still extremely vigorous with excitement. Once that was out of her system she gave a professional little cough and pulled out a metal bowl from her space, setting it down in front of the two on the bench.
Good thing she carried it around in case a certain monster-puppy looked parched. What was her general even thinking, busking at the park without setting up something for folks to toss money into. Good thing he called her in on this one.
Righting herself, the girl gave him a chipper wave, wondering if she was supposed to like, get the crowd going. Was she a plant for the audience? Get them to cheer at the right time or help get the money flowing? How'd he known she'd done this sort of thing before? Though, honestly, since her general was a handsome sort he probably didn't need as much help as Uncle Sampson had. Thank ********, since her uncle's trombone act had been as hard a sell as they come. It'd ended more a "pay him to leave" scam than anything.
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Posted: Sat Apr 06, 2024 9:02 pm
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The civilians milled about, wandering closer to the sound but with no real speed or energy in their steps. Chalcanthite's eyes flickered between each of them, searching for any that seemed to be uneffected. Luckily it looked like they were all in a daze. It was at that point he noticed Brassite doing some sort of dance and it took a lot to not laugh while he played on.
The appearance of the bowl for money was a bit much and he sputtered and sent the fife away. Shifting slightly, he stood while giving Desiree enough time to hop down as well. None of the civilians had made it close enough to touch him this time so after picking up the bowl he carefully pulled his lieutenant along and away from the crowd as they started to come around.
Once they were far enough away, he motioned for them to take out the earplugs before he started to speak. "Tonight we are going on patrol, with a twist. I need to test some things and you should be able to drain freely without any interruption. The earplugs are a precaution in case my fife works on powered individuals as well." He looked down towards the Mauvian as they started circling Brassite.
"Also, this is Desiree, she is here to help keep our signatures hidden so as long as nobody from Order has us in line of sight we will be effectively invisible."
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She'd gotten the message as he'd bounced his leg slightly before standing. Following along she noticed how young this student looked and wondered if they were actually one of his students from the afterschool program he ran for younger children. Circling the girl's legs, she threw her side into their shin as she purred.
"A very interesting approach to the scene she happened upon but I think I like her already." She'd seen the little happy dance they'd done before coming over and figured it was due to her hat and general appearance. It was something she was getting used to as it had happened more than once since she'd met other powered individuals outside of her musician now.
"You must be Brassite, it's a pleasure to meet you."
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Posted: Sat Apr 06, 2024 9:19 pm
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Awww, the show was already over? Well...the crowd didn't seem the most lively or likely to drop their pockets. More like to drop dead, honestly. Pulling out her earplugs, Chalcanthite's words made the whole picture a lot more clear to the point she realized it was a different picture entirely. He'd made those people like that. Brassite looked at her superior with total awe. He'd done a magic on them!
She'd thought that sort of thing was senshi only, maybe some of the more powerful youma. But here her boss was, double-classing or whatever the cute nerds called it. And it'd be super useful for draining, 'specially since she still had to touch folks to pull energy out of them. Bouncing on her toes she was about to tell him she understood and would totally bring back so much energy tonight when he introduced the cat in the hat. Immediately all that awe and admiration was wholly redirected to the mauvian.
"How do you do, Miss Desiree!" Brassite puffed up a bit that the cat already liked her. And already knew her name. "The pleasure's all mine, ma'am."
She made a little show of stretching her limbs and wiggling her fingers as if to loosen up her energy draining muscles. "So you make people passing by all like...slow n'brain foggy and I take a lil energy off the top? Are there any sorts you want me to avoid, sir?"
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Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2024 7:07 pm
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Watching Brassite bounce around full of energy made him feel a bit tired. Had he ever had that much energy? No, not ever, not at least that he could think of. But then again he'd been busy with things for his whole life, a crushing weight of responsibilities coupled with a habit of always taking on more.
It was good to see them getting along with Desiree though, he wanted to keep his cat around if he could, on the nights they weren't with his partner keeping an eye on them and making sure they remained safe. It wasn't that he didn't trust Liam, he just didn't trust the rest of the powered individuals in the city or that unaligned magic not to cause him harm.
Pulling his fife out again he ran his hand over the feathers on it for a moment before speaking again. "Yes, the sound that comes from this fife causes people to fall into a trance and they tend to move towards me. Since it leaves me at risk I tend not to use it often but I figure it would be useful to help you out. Just a little off the top or as much as you would like but if they pass out that may not be the best. I will keep an eye out for anyone that may be unaffected but you should do the same. Desiree will be following along to see if any of them have potential. It is... a little different than how things happened with you but I would hazard a guess that you would think of it more like she is looking for a magical girl or boy? The odds are so-so but I still like to keep an eye out."
It felt odd calling senshi that but he figured it would work for now and he would go into detail later if they wanted to know more. "Now pop those earplugs back in just in case and Desiree, I think we can try this without you covering your ears but if you feel off I will keep an eye out for you." Waving Desiree and Brassite along, he took up a different position on a slightly further away bench and started to play after everything was back in order.
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"Perfectly well this evening though if you like I go by Des as well." She liked how polite they were and how easily excited they seemed as well. Another gold star for them in her mind as they were already prepared to get to work. It was good to see someone who had some work ethic to them, something to offer the Negaverse and her musician.
Nodding along she circled the girl's legs one more time and started towards the crowd with them. "I don't mind seeing what happens since there aren't any others around that I can tell. Plus with two sets of eyes, we can find out the limitations." She knew he was looking to expand a bit more on his research into those rift crystals in his own way, even if he rarely gave the details. It made sense given the implications and his views on things.
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Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2024 7:46 pm
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"Like getting mobbed by zombies, huh?" Well, without the getting eaten part. Hopefully. She was pretty sure he'd have led with that if there was a chance of some passing auntie taking a bite out of his ear. She liked that she got to watch his back a bit while he helped her gather energy from a bigger group than she'd have dared tried on her own. Despite the number of scout troops and school teams she'd gotten kicked off of, Brassite really did enjoy a nice piece of teamwork. It's just always been a matter of finding a team she could work with.
And she sure as hell could work with this one!
Even Miss Des had a special part to play, sniffing out magical potentials which sounded neat but also gave Brassite a sulky pause, for a second indulging in the fact that some people was born special-er than her. Of course, that was just due to like, being born. It's not like they'd earned that power or attention, right? Not like she had. What was the word for just getting born into getting something like a good job or whatever? Neapolitan?
Wait, that was ice cream.
Anyway, this rocked and she was gonna do great. Popping her earplugs back in she gave Miss Des a thumbs up and her boss a few pew-pew fingerguns to show she was ready to get the show on the road.
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Posted: Tue Apr 09, 2024 6:02 pm
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Chalcanthite did nod at the zombie reference even if it felt a bit odd. He'd never really seen those things in the city before and honestly hoped they wouldn't appear beside the doppelgangers and giant spiders that he knew could show back up in the fall. The very idea of them made the hair stand on the back of his neck as he focused on playing and watching the slowly moving civilians.
They always seemed so glassy-eyed, moving without a lot of purpose in his general direction. Natron would probably say something related to some sort of government mind control conspiracy, something he figured Brassite would have been all ears on hearing about. It was weird, very out of the norm, but they seemed to take it all much better than he had over the years aside from youma and that crystalline wasteland the Rift was.
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Desiree noticed the pause and bumped into their leg again. "Just because they're magic doesn't mean they're better. Those youma find them similar a snack and from what I've heard you would like to find a youma friend of your own one day. Also, I think hard work is more important than starting with a boost like that." It was why she always appreciated agents even if her duties lay more in finding senshi and helping them with their own problems. More often than not as a counselor instead of actually helping with awakening and upgrading their abilities. It wasn't far from what she'd been to Chalcanthite, even as a regular housecat over the years.
Moving ahead of Brassite, she focused on each person as she circled them. The sound from Chalcanthite's fife sounded wrong to her, she really didn't like it but it didn't seem to be doing anything else really. She had her own theories brewing already, given the fact the thing was made from a crystal found in the rift. Odds are it wouldn't effect those from the Negaverse but she did wonder if that would cover the mirror court as well, not that she really wanted them to test it on Melpomene.
Looking back to make sure everything was going smoothly with draining, she took a seat in the grass and scanned the area for any oddities. She'd switch to her glamour if needed to be a bit more effective at punching or kicking.
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Posted: Sat Apr 20, 2024 6:18 pm
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It wasn't so much the power, but rather, just being born special. Like, literally the center of a whole damn world-special. But then again, it's not like she was born rich or anything in the regular world and she had plans to address that. So just like the rest of her life, Brassite was just gonna have to boss babe her way up the ladder here, too.
Off to the side, the lieutenant observed the people passing start to slow, their expressions emptying. It was honestly creepy, but also pretty cool. Like a scene in a horror movie. Quietly she began to move among them, not all that fast, but never quite stopping. Her thin, strong hands lightly traced along the back of a hand, the bony knob of an elbow. An arm brushed against theirs. A palm gently braced against the low of their back, briefly supportive.
And with every touch came the same pulling strands of energy, pulling and winding into first one glowing sphere, then a second.
Are any of you special? Brassite thought as she drained a little from each one. More special than this?
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Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2024 9:04 pm
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Catching Des's look, Brassite noticed how close people were getting. It was like, super eerie when paired with their vacant lookin' faces. They sure didn't look all too special, when met with her general's magic flute powers. With a little smirk, she made her way back more quickly, not bothering to be as cautious about draining along the way. A couple people staggered a little, and she wrinkled her nose.
Right, no knocking folks out.
Easing up a bit, Brassite grinned at Chalcanthite as she reached his side once again. She bounced on her toes, riding a wave of energy that had less to do with what she'd drained off people, and was instead centered around feeling more powerful, more in charge and in control than others around her.
The lieutenant caught herself nearly humming a jaunty little tune, stoppering with a quiet cough, flushing in embarrassment. It'd suck if she messed up her boss's song with her own noise. Thinking on it, she gave him a close look to see how he was doing. As far as she was concerned, everything in life came with a certain sort of price tag. Did it hurt or drain him to be playing folks into mindlessness like this?
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Posted: Mon May 13, 2024 12:13 pm
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Watching for only a bit longer, he didn't quite like how close some of them were getting. As soon as Desiree and Brassite were back within reach, he stood and ceased his playing. There would be just a bit of lag time before they all came around so he scooped up Desiree under an arm and placed a hand on Brassite's shoulder before focusing back on his office.
Setting Desiree down on his chair, he turned back to look at Brassite. "Sorry about that, you did very well but I felt too many were getting close. It seems that the music had no effect on Desiree so in the future we can find out if it affects you or any other agents."
It meant more time with the thing and probably a few volunteers. Leaning against his desk he pulled the fife out and looked it over again. "I think at this point, I can let you in on what I have been working on. It does have to do with the youma, those creatures that we as agents can have a bond with." His own was somewhere, probably looking for more crystals so that they could add more to the perch here near his desk.
"As you near a promotion, which I am very much looking forward to, we can start looking into youma and the Rift. I have been working on something to make traversing the Rift a bit easier for lower-ranked officers as well as the senshi who are park of our ranks as well. Youma are not as friendly towards them or mauvians like Desiree but hopefully what I am working on will help ease some of the issues."
Standing back up, he made his way around the desk and unlocked the top drawer of his desk to pull out a few half-carved items made of crystal. Offering one of them to Brassite, he held another up see a bit better in the light of his office.
"My fife is made of a similar material though not exactly the same. I found a place where the crystals seemed to resonate or hum as it were. The youma seem to be calmed by the sound and if I can get things sorted these small tuning forks should be able to provide a temporary zone of passivity. Or maybe it would be better to say that it makes them less likely to bite or attack those that would otherwise be targeted."
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Desiree was not as pleased about being picked up that way but once they were all in Chalcanthite's office she accepted the seat she was set on and went about curling up to watch. This was a project she was invested in, for obvious reasons.
"I would appreciate not being pecked by Voce or any other youma so I look forward to this working out."
She very much hated that bird of his but at least there were some ground rules set so things weren't as bad now. She still eyed the perch with all its crystal decorations carefully, knowing that the youma would just appear whenever Chalcanthite called for them or if it had something to report or provide for the general.
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