Summer Bugs (8 ) : Last year, one of Destiny City’s historic trees came to life after a lengthy hibernation, and it is livelier than ever. And, thankfully, mostly devoid of strange pods. Unlike the brown, soccer-ball sized pods from last year, these are all small and rarely larger than a tennis ball. The downside is that they have also been found in small clusters in surrounding trees as well. Sometimes, the hard-shelled pods tremble and twitch. Sometimes they split open and an angry cicada crawls out. The pods leak a strange, acidic sap that is strong enough to cause skin agitation–and in some cases there are even reports that it’s burned through wood or fabric. The cicadas are covered in it. Unlike the last generation, these cannot spit acid but it is still incredibly unpleasant to come into contact with them. They are food oriented and will come after everything they think can be eaten–food, clothes, hair. They are little more than a nuisance and never seem to stick around for more than a few days. Maybe it’s a sign that nature is healing–or maybe it’s a sign that there’s still something worse to come.
The tree was an impressive thing to behold. Meissa stared at the immense specimen before giving her head a curious tilt as what she was seeing seemed to register all of a sudden. A small brown shaped item was nestled about ten feet up from where the tree started to branch out from its base to spread in every direction it had the wont to grow. Just what was it that she was seeing. Was there any other option to investigate besides simply trying to climb up there and physically crack the pod open? For a moment the corrupt super merely stared at the unknown addition to the tree before placing her hands on her hips in an annoyed fashion.
Investigating would yield the best answers and even as she placed her hands on the tree did her gaze get drawn to another tree along her line of sight that seemed to have the same sort of strange objects affixed to it. A scene from a movie she'd recently watched flitted through her mind before she compared situations. Whatever was using that hard-shelled pod could have been like the toxic spores in Nausicaa. Reaching up to hoist herself up in the tree, Meissa paused as an aura sprang up nearby. Her palms twitched at the sense of the aura being aligned with order before she simply decided to wait to see if the owner of said aura would come to check out the area given her presence in it.
xits_ p a o
Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2024 10:41 pm
Ekstrom had wandered back into this specific park because she had a bone to pick with the tree. While last year’s pods were soccer-ball sized, and one had actually bowled over her lunch and leaked some kind of acid all over it one unlucky afternoon, this year–today, earlier in the afternoon–several hungry, acid-covered cicadas ruined her favorite bag and basically everything inside of it. She wasn’t even right by the tree like last time, just nearby to enjoy a nice summer afternoon. Someone had even stopped by to offer her a pretty little charm, which she happily, gratefully took because her mood hadn't been ruined just yet.
If she had the time to come pick a fight with the tree in broad daylight during her lunch hour, she totally would have, but she didn’t, so here she was.
As it happened, she was better equipped to pick a fight in her knight form anyway. She had a handy frying pan she could use to smush the cicadas, and she wouldn’t have to worry about washing it. It’d just be clean the next time she summoned it.
Convenient.
She sensed the prickle of chaos in the vicinity of the tree she was headed for, and it made her hesitate a bit. It felt stronger than her, however she wasn’t one to back down without at least stepping up to the plate, so to speak. So she walked on, briefly wondering if her wispy friend would come out to try and ease her nerves a bit because it had a tendency to show up to do just that, and once she was standing right in front of the tree she glanced around.
Nothing, no one. Not even her wisp. Just the tree and its pods, though the aura was there.
“If you’re up there among those pods,” she called, now looking up and trying to see if maybe they were actually up there. “I feel like I should warn you that the things that pop out of these pods are covered in some kinda acid. If you’ve got skin showing, you should probably be careful.”
It seemed as if the owner of the aura was coming to check on what was going on. Meissa idly paused her investigation of the pod that had grabbed her attention in order to focus on the direction that the aura'ed person was approaching from. They had stopped right at the base of the tree and Meissa froze before shaking her head. There was nothing to worry about in the sense that she could easily drive the Page off if it came to a fight but for now she was more interested in what was being shouted up at her from below. So the pods did house something, excellent. The warning about the acidic covering though had Meissa pausing to examine just how much bare skin she did have showing through her fuku.
Her gloves left spaces for her fingers to show through and her bare shoulders would make it unpleasant if this substance did manage to find places to land, but the idea of trying to harvest them began to percolate in her mind.
"That's rather interesting to know, thanks for the warning."
And Meissa did appreciate the warning. With very gentle motions the corrupt senshi palmed the sphere she had been observing before deftly twisting it off to be freed and resting on her open palms. The fabric of her gloves didn't begin to react right away but even as she held the sphere could she feel it start to rock back and forth. Even more intriguing that there was something alive inside. As a seam began to split open along the side of the pod Meissa gave an evil little chuckle before she dropped it straight down from where she was positioned in the tree. With any luck it'd smash open right at the Page's feet.
"Ooops, clumsy me."
Meissa scanned the branches for another pod before shuffling around to watch the scene below. Her gloves now had little holes in them so the warning had been true to form.
its_ p a o
Posted: Sat Jun 22, 2024 2:19 am
Ekstrom was still trying to see if there was, in fact, someone in the trees when they finally spoke. It was honestly a little freaky, like she was talking to some kind of tree spirit as opposed to another living being, because she couldn’t see them, but she got over that feeling very quickly.
She sort of had to, because before long there was a pod-grenade headed straight for her face.
The page was quick enough to react. She sidestepped and timed a swing of her frying pan right as the pod passed her on its fall. There was a loud crack upon impact, and the pod went flying.
She then glared up into the tree. “Hey! I warn you and that’s the thanks I get?”
"And I thanked you for the warning," Meissa's voice drifted down as the Page yelled up at her in outrage. After hearing what sounded like an impact with a harder object than the ground she would have had to assume that the Page had been able to deflect the pod away from the area in which she stood. It had been worth a shot anyways to see if she could get one up on this stranger. There was a moment of consternation before Meissa glanced at the ground and debated the idea of teleporting to stand directly behind the girl before she simply nixed the idea. There was the entire needing to get everything right with teleportation and Meissa had yet to master all the lessons. No, it'd simply be easier to hop out of the tree instead. Shuffling along the branch that she had been using as her perch Meissa checked the nearby limbs for yet any other pods before coming up empty.
"Having something fall out of one's hands is merely an accident. I didn't do that on purpose," even as the words were out of her mouth had Meissa holding back a laugh, "I promise you that. Anyways, I'm coming down just so you are aware."
And with that warning given, Meissa simply pushed off from the point where the tree's trunk started branching off in multiple directions before she took in the sight of the Page wielding what appeared to be a fry pan. She executed a mock bow before staring back up at the tree. She was very curious now about what it was this tree was doing. Turning back to the Page she gave a simply shrug of her shoulders before sighing, "has this been happening for a while now? These pods that is?"
its_ p a o
Posted: Sun Jun 23, 2024 12:03 am
Again, her expectations of anyone from the Negaverse treating her in any way decently were misplaced. She really had to figure out how to curb them so she would stop being disappointed.
Ekstrom continued to look up and around for whoever this was, frying pan at the ready in case they decided to keep at it with the pod-bombs. Thankfully that didn’t seem to be the case; to her slight surprise, they actually came out of hiding. The page frowned at the mock bow but left it alone considering she wasn’t taking some kind of fighting stance or saying anything threatening. She lowered her pan and gave a nod.
“Sort of? Last year they were a whole lot bigger. Probably close to the size of a soccer ball or a volleyball, and I heard that last year the cicadas that came out of them were huge and ornery. Spat acid and stuff.” She made a face at that, but continued, “I wasn’t so unlucky, but one of my coworkers developed a phobia with flying bugs because of ‘em.”
Meissa turned to glance back at the tree she had just vacated before glancing at its neighbor. In that one she had seen a nest or two as well and it was a little concerning if what this Page said was true about what came out of them and what those emerged creatures could do. If only there was a way to tap these insects into some sort of weapon that they could use against Order. Her thoughts whirled around for a moment before she clued into what information the page was giving up. So was this a new evolution then of the bugs from last year?
"In your opinion do you think that this years brood of insects aren't as dangerous to behold?"
If it looked like the insects were losing the ornery trait that had them apparently attacking everything then what was the point of trying to use this version as a weapon of some sort. Still, if someone could try harvesting the acidic sap that was coating the creatures ... perhaps there was the chance that just somehow, they might be able to create a method of slowing down Order's forces. "I could see the plight of those that have been attacked. Wouldn't blame 'em for suddenly fearing something in that situation."
Watching one of the neighboring tree's pod start to shake a bit Meissa bit her lip to not say anything to the Page before she sighed. "Any idea on where these things came from?"
Keep them talking and distracted, maybe take advantage of the situation if they get beset upon..
its_ p a o
Posted: Wed Jun 26, 2024 1:43 am
As the conversation turned into something more like a casual exchange of information, Ekstrom started to let her guard down. It wasn’t like she had reason to gatekeep any information that she had about this stuff, anyway, so when asked she freely offered what she knew.
“The acid seems just as bad, but the bugs themselves seem like they're just a nuisance this year compared to actually being dangerous last year. A handful of them destroyed my favorite bag earlier today,” she said, and her mood soured for the brief moment that she recalled the events of her lunch hour. “I don’t know if they just like to ruin everything they come across, but whatever it is just don’t let them near anything important to you.”
Ekstrom had her eyes on the big tree directly in front of them, mostly focused on what they were talking about so she didn’t notice at all what was happening in the neighboring tree.
“Oh, I know. If it was me I’m not sure I would have walked away without a phobia, either. I hate bugs, though I think I can hold my own against them if needed.” Being a knight with superhuman strength probably helped; she at least had a literal fighting chance, unlike regular civilians.
She glanced over at the next question and sighed. “No, not really,” she started, and it was at that point that she could swear she saw a pod on the neighboring tree move a little bit. There was a part of her that still wanted to give this senshi the benefit of the doubt, so she continued, but her guard was slowly coming up again. “I looked into it a little bit last year but didn’t have any luck. Honestly my luck with this tree and everything about it has just been awful, so I’ll probably steer clear of it next year. Just to be safe."
There was no real good information that this individual was providing to her about the origins of the nesting bugs. Meissa had half-of-a-mind to simply leave the area now more than ever considering that there didn't seem to be a way to decrease the risk of being attacked. The corrupt super wasn't planning on doing anything that would heighten the chances of an attack and so that meant leaving the wobbling nest in the next tree over ... alone. The Page had been looking in the same direction and so the gig was up on that scenario of leaving the member of Order to fend for themselves.
"You've said that these things destroyed your bag earlier," Meissa made a sound that could have been considered like pity before she continued, "whatever was in your bag must've seemed like food to whatever these things are. If they consider a simple satchel bag to be food, I wonder what they'd view us as. "
Pointing towards the nest that had stopped rocking and now appeared to have an insect emerging did Meissa give a little sound of warning to the other. "I'm not fond of the idea of sticking around to find out if these things are hungry or not. I could get us out of here in a nanosecond."
its_ p a o
Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2024 1:05 pm
She curled her lip at the memory of her bag.
“Food, probably,” came her answer despite it not being phrased as a question. Ekstrom shifted her gaze from the senshi to the nest she pointed at. A bug was hatching, and it honestly turned her stomach a little bit. Looking back to Meissa, she wondered if it was okay to trust her. A second ago she had a feeling that she couldn’t–or maybe shouldn’t–but now that they seemed to be on the same page on the bugs…
“A nanosecond? Are you telling me you can teleport or something?”
Upon being asked if she had the ability to teleport there was a moment in which Meissa thought about just giving a glib reply before she relented. She was still technically practicing her new abilities as a member of the negaverse but she had been getting better. There had been warnings read about trying to teleport too early with a guest in tow, but wouldn't this put the Page in her debt?
"I can teleport. It wouldn't be very far but it'd be out of range of being attacked. I just gotta be honest though, I might exhaust myself in trying to get us both to safety. I don't think it'll hurt you if anything untoward happens. It'll only affect me."
Holding out her hand Meissa looked at the Page before she glanced back to the nest they'd both been watching just as another insect emerged. The first one had already shuffled off the exterior of the nest and was beginning to look like it wanted to fly at any second, "Gotta make a quick decision though if you wanna get out of this general vicinity."
its_ p a o
Posted: Mon Jul 08, 2024 5:26 pm
The confirmation had her eyes widened for a moment, and she had to stop herself from being too impressed. It just wasn’t a good time to be, and while she was curious and wanted to ask questions it wasn’t a good time for that either.
“As thanks, I’ll cover you if that happens,” she said as she took the offered hand.
A third insect emerged just as she did, and while a few more of the pods began to hatch, the three that were already out gathered for a second. And then, as though they just discussed a game plan of some kind, lifted off and headed right for them.
It isn't recommended in the guide book for a reason, Meissa thought, but surely a scenario in which I save someone and they end up owing me is ok. I mean I don't know how much damage these things can do to a senshi or a knight but I don't want either of us to find out...
The very second that Meissa felt the pressure of the Page's hand clasping hers that indicated at least some sort of trust or truce had been formed meant that she had to shift away from such wandering thoughts and focus on where she wanted to go. Obviously it couldn't be anywhere near these trees or the insects that were flying towards them but she was limited in how far she could effectively go. Even as she closed her eyes and sent a fervent wish into the sky did she tap into that ability that she now possessed and willed herself and her companion to find a safer place.
Darkness. Did one actually experience that during teleportation?
Even as the trees winked out of sight did Meissa's grip never waver on the Page's fingers that were clasped with her own. It wouldn't do to leave the other stranded somewhere, not when she had decided to trust Meissa. Seconds later the pair found themselves standing in what seemed to be an empty playground that seemed to be at least a half mile from where they'd been previously. It was safer in the sense that the bugs would have to venture further to find them and would probably instead set upon some new target instead.
But the effort had been too much for the corrupt. Meissa blinked a few black spots out of her vision as if checking that her guest was still with her before she felt her legs give out.
Learning limitations, next on my to-do list...
its_ p a o
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2024 5:53 pm
It was probably better that this version of teleporting didn’t seem to have the same side effects as what she’d read in those Potter books. In fact, it was hard to put a finger on how to describe what it felt like, being a passenger of someone using the ability–it just happened way too fast. One moment she’s watching as a small but growing hoard of insects was gunning for them, and the next they were free and clear in some random playground a good enough distance away that she wasn’t worried about the acid-covered bugs coming to ruin her knight uniform, or worse.
Ekstrom was still holding tightly onto Meissa’s hand when they arrived at the new location, her grip subconsciously getting stronger when the scenery before her literally changed in the blink of an eye.
The page blinked a few times before relaxing, her grip as well as the rest of her. She turned to the senshi with a broad smile, then, and was about to express her gratitude when she watched in slow motion as her legs started to give out.
“Whoa... Okay, I think I've got you,” she said softly as she caught her mid-fall. She carefully adjusted them so Meissa could lean on her for a bit of support, and once they were stable-ish she started walking them to a bench she spotted not too far away from where they were.
“You weren’t kidding about getting exhausted, huh?"
Meissa's eyes took a few precious seconds to focus now on the vista even as she registered the fact that she hadn't hit the ground at all. The feeling of her legs being like jelly still hadn't passed yet. It was all that she could do to simply be led towards the bench that the Page was guiding her over to. When the fact registered in her mind that it would be so very easy to turn the tables on the Mercurian Page something inside stilled her questing fingers. Maybe it was the lack of will to do anything more than continue to use her unexpected teleportation buddy as something that she could lean against, a bulwark against the exhaustion that pulled at her bones.
Upon being asked a question though the corrupt senshi perked up enough to nod her head.
"Normally it's not like this. I think taking you out of danger was too much," she fought off another wave that seemed determined to drag her under into unconsciousness by sheer force of will alone. She would not put herself in a more extreme position of helplessness if she could avoid it. Her voice sounded quiet to her own ears as she grimaced, "new life lesson learned but was worth it ," she rambled on as her voice dropped off, "now you owe me..."
Initially Meissa had planned on following through with some sort of payment idea. But as weak as she was now energy from a victim wouldn't have helped her. From what she read about starseeds, one could have perked her right up. The only starseed within reach was though belonged to the Page and at the moment it would be a miracle if she could come out on top in a battle. No, the payment would have to come later on down the road ... somehow. Even still, Meissa attempted to sit straighter on the bench before locking her gaze onto Ekstrom,
"Need your word on this: you will repay this debt you owe me. I will promise you I won't ask for much ... but simple truths ... I need some form of favor returned probably down the road."
