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 Posted: Tue Aug 20, 2024 12:50 pm
Meninx was still having some doubts about offering Gismondine to his Wonder, but he’d weighed the pros and cons fairly extensively and sent him a message the night before to confirm that the plans were still on. He’d been vague of course, just in case the information got into the wrong hands.
A part of him wanted to wait until the General arrived first, just to make sure there was no chance for a sneak attack.
Gismondine really didn’t seem that devious, though.
So, Meninx arrived first.
He sat down on a tree stump and observed the city. When he felt an energy signature suddenly appear next to him, he jerked his head to observe–
Oh, good. Just Gismondine.
He stood up and offered a hand.
“Oh, good. You made it. You want to get out of here before anyone sees us?”
He didn’t know why he was giving him one last chance to escape–Gismondine didn’t have to show up if he didn’t want to. His presence alone should have been indication that he was here to follow the plan and visit Mars.
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Posted: Sun Sep 08, 2024 6:57 pm
Gismondine had thought about this. He thought long and hard about it…kept it secret from Juniper…but…came out tonight regardless of his misgivings.
He was curious. Anyone would be curious, he was sure. He teleported to the spot, and was pleased that the Squire was there. And also pleased that only the Squire was there.
Hesitating for a moment, Gismondine nodded. “Ah…y-yeah. I guess that would be best…You…you’re going to promise that you won’t…just…leave me up there…right?”
It was something that had occurred to him in the dark of the night, and it had stuck with him…
The nightmares from the idea of being trapped in space weren’t…good ones. But luckily he had enough things that he could pull from that Juniper need never know the real reason he was again waking up at night!
“If you…promise, then yes. We can go…”
He held his hand out, cautiously, chewing his bottom lip.
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Posted: Tue Sep 10, 2024 5:56 pm
"I'm not going to leave you up there. It's just a trip to visit. But you have my word. You and I will come back together, whenever you're ready to leave."
He reached out to take Gismondine's hand--gently, so he could draw away if he needed to. When he didn't, Meninx took it as a sign that he really was ready to go up.
Drawing in a breath, he closed his eyes. He focused.
They disappeared from Destiny City and arrived on Mars.
A plateau encircled Meninx, the Wonder, fortifying it against the harshest of storms. Withered trees, what might have once been an orchard, were visible outside when they first arrived. Whoever had once given them the care they needed to survive here were long gone, and though the trees were stubborn and had deep enough roots that no storm or time had worn them away.
A ring of tall, golden-red grass swayed in the slight breeze; six feet tall, it looked like a field of wheat and was dense enough to further barricade the city from sand.
Meninx itself was surrounded by water. The red sand turned dark, probably artificially enriched in some way to retain moisture. The water was clear, but it was impossible to tell how deep it was. Lotus flowers and lilypads covered much of the surface of the visible water. The flowers ranged in colors, mostly purples and reds and white, and the lilypads had a reddish hue to them and ranged in size from a few inches to a few feet. The largest of them looked like they might have been strong enough to support a full grown adult, but they had not had time or reason to test them.
A gentle breeze blew over them when they arrived, despite the dryness in the air. The buildings of Meninx were constructed with thick stone, clearly designed to be resilient. While the bricks were once white, they were nearly perfectly preserved–except now they were tinted red from years of dust.
It was impossible to describe the city with any one influence; at its core it mostly resembled ancient Greece, but outside influences reflected Phoenician and Roman architecture as well. And yet, there was more than that; while all buildings seemed to share common elements, some were clearly built with outside influence. Meninx was very much of Mars, but its people had not always been and it showed in the city itself. Differences were celebrated as much as whatever it had been that brought them together.
The lotus seemed to be a great inspiration to them, and it appeared often in mosaics, and carvings, and sculptures.
If one looked close enough, there were the traces of great destruction at one point in time–but the city had persevered. It had been rebuilt, stronger. It stood now, immortal and undefeated and proud.
They arrived in the center of town, in front of the courthouse.
Like many other buildings, it was a tall and imposing structure. It was built to withstand anything. Symbols and figures were carved into the stone, depicting ancient gods and idols. Nearby, and some within sight, there was an amphitheater, a bathhouse, a few temples and shrines, a library, a greenhouse, and a winery.
It was a lot to take in, so Meninx released Gismondine’s hand and took a step back to give him a moment to look around.
“Welcome to Meninx.”
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Posted: Tue Sep 10, 2024 6:21 pm
Honestly, Gismondine had no idea what to say. For the longest time, he simply looked around, his eyes flickering so quickly, it looked almost comical, as someone would look in a movie, or a cartoon where their eyes were blurred. This place…
This place was amazing...it. It was nothing like he had thought it would be, though honestly…he didn’t know what he thought it would be either and…but.
“We’re really…this is Mars?”
His mind felt as though it were about to explode, if he were being honest, and anything intelligent just seemed to float away, in lieu of stupid thoughts. Thoughts that were due to movies. Due to images of space. Of Earth from space.
He finally, looked to Meninx and swallowed, felling a little dizzy from how much his head and eyes had been swiveling. “...Why can’t we see the Earth? Like in the pictures?”
He truly didn’t realize in that moment that he was on Mars. Not the Moon. Not in a space ship looking down. But.
Still…Gismondine looked up and scanned the dark sky as though the large blue Earth would suddenly appear.
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Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2024 8:06 pm
“Hm.”
Meninx was quiet for a few seconds and raised a brow.
“I mean, I don’t know what to tell you, I’m not an astronomer? I’m sure if we waited around enough it would show up. It’s not going to be huge or anything. It’ll probably just look like a big star. We can sit out here and look for it, but…I don’t know if I’d recognize it if I saw it.”
He hadn’t really thought to look before. Up at the sky, sure. He’d seen the stars, plentiful in the darkness and free from light pollution. He could have gotten stuck staring for hours, but any time he was here he just had too much to do to stargaze.
With Gismondine here, a moment wouldn’t hurt.
“Earth’s a big prettier from the Moon. Out here, it’s just a faraway planet like all the others. But I don’t know if I could get you to the Moon, sorry. It’s got its own protection, I don’t think I can bypass it. It’s pretty anti-Chaos, sorry. But I can give you a tour of this place. It might not make up for much, but it’s something new. And you’re already here, might as well get your trip’s worth out of it, right?”
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Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2024 8:32 pm
Earth was prettier from the Moon…this…
Gismondine’s face grew hot as he finally realized his mistake and he shook his head. “I…thought. Normally…I think Space and I think of Earth just…being there…I…”
He couldn’t look at the Squire and just shook his head for another moment. “...Y-yes please. I would love a tour…does…” Pausing, Gismondine looked up again. “...Does Mars have any moons?” He wasn’t sure. Some planets did. Like Saturn and Jupiter…you heard about them all the time…and Pluto…which wasn’t a planet anymore but…
“Meninx…how does it work for Pluto? Are…like you’re a Knight of Mars…are there Pluto Knights? Or were they…gotten rid of when they decided that Pluto wasn’t…wasn’t a planet?”
That was…a good question, he thought. A smarter question…
One that showed he did indeed have a brain.
Somewhere.
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Posted: Sun Oct 13, 2024 5:55 pm
“There are Pluto Knights,” he said, nodding. “I had one up here with me not so long ago. But it’s not just for the planets around Earth. I’ve met Ganymede Knights too. Knights from places I’ve never even heard of. It’s not that I don’t care about science or astronomy, it’s just that it’s not really a big deal in my line of work. I had other things I needed to focus on.”
He doubted it was common knowledge, but you weren’t supposed to admit weakness or when you didn’t know something. He wasn’t willing to let go of that habit. Even if Gismondine didn’t seem like much of a threat, he was still a member of the Negaverse.
“I don’t think I’ve seen a moon here, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t one. Even though this is my Wonder, there’s still a lot that I don’t know.”
He gestured for Gismondine to follow him as he led him deeper into the city.
“From what I can gather, people used to live here. Once. It’s an archeological site now, not that there’s much I can do about it. It’s interesting, how much has been preserved. Every time they post some update about what they’ve found on Mars, I always wonder if they’re going to catch a Knight or wander into a place like this, but from what I can tell, I guess these places are protected with magic.
“I’m sorry, if you were looking for sci-fi shots of Earth from here. I wish I could have given you that. But I hope we can find something interesting enough to make up for it. You know, I’m glad you decided to come up here with me. You don’t seem like a bad guy. I’m still trying to figure out what you see in the Negaverse.”
He spoke gently, without reproach. Just curiosity. And, maybe a bit of concern.
He still wanted to know why Gismondine had come into his office crying.
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Posted: Sun Oct 13, 2024 6:56 pm
So even with Pluto no longer being a planet…there were Knights…honestly, someone should just make it a planet again, it was rude that it was demoted, even if that had been years ago. And…Ganymede…that…
The name tickled some memory but he shrugged it off and followed Meninx, looking around, interested and curious.
He was distracted from the sights, and he supposed that was the reason he just let loose with the information. It wasn’t like he hadn’t already blabbed to a Page about it. What made this any different.
“I was brought in to die. The General who brought me in was being stalked by a Senshi. A powerful one, and he figured if I could be bait, he could get away…it. Didn’t work as well as he had hoped but. Well. He ended up dying, but I was saved by…”
He sighed. “Someone who’s gone now. Everyone who mentored me is gone. But. I’m a General now. So I can mentor others…so…I just. This is where I am. And that’s that.”
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Posted: Sat Nov 09, 2024 4:09 pm
Meninx tilted his head when Gismondine answered that he was brought in to die. Meninx didn’t have the kindest face, and without him making an effort to hide his expression, it soured further.
“I see,” he said, but it took him a few seconds longer to really process all of it.
“You deserved better than that.”
An organization that was ready to waste energy so easily? He knew they were willing to treat people like they were disposable–they did that already with civilians. But their own kind?
“You’re a General now” he repeated thoughtfully. “...You wouldn’t do that to others though, would you? You don’t seem the type. But I suppose I shouldn’t assume. Do you mentor others?”
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Posted: Sat Nov 09, 2024 8:11 pm
“I would never. Never do that to anyone.” The horror in Gismondine’s voice was echoed in the expression on his face, and the slight anger that began to build behind his eyes. “I try to be the best mentor I can. I have learned from the mistakes that were made with me, and I strive to be absolutely better than my former Generals. Wherever they are now.”
At least one, he knew she had purified, but he wasn’t going to tell Meninx that. He didn’t want to go being too friendly or just…spouting everything.
“What about you? Do you have a mentor? A support system? I was always under the impression that your side doesn’t have such a thing…that you’re pretty much thrown into the river and told to swim.”
In a way, that had been his start too, so he did understand. Even sympathized. A little.
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2024 6:42 pm
There were plenty of reasons to trust Gismondine when he said he would never do that to anyone. Meninx found it easy to believe him. Not just because he wanted to.
“Not really,” he answered, but he was unwilling to give Gismondine any fodder to justify why being in the Negaverse was better than being a Knight. “I came into this alone and I’ve found my own way. There are plenty of Knights out there. I’m just not the most social. I’ve got friends.” It was fair to call them that, right?
“We’ve learned together. I have connections.” He shrugged. “But I think it was more of a choice not to reach out. For me, at least.” There were others who had it harder, he knew that.
He was just used to walking his own path. He hated the idea of being in anyone’s debt or under their thumb.
…Or not living up to their expectations.
“What sort of lessons do you teach them?” he asked, curious at least to know how Gismondine would try to protect them from an agency that could thought of them as fodder.
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2024 6:59 pm
Gismondine nodded, honestly glad that Meninx didn’t have to do all of this alone…except for the fact that he wanted to. He wasn’t going to get into that but…
“I’m glad that you have friends. That’s important.”
He…didn’t really have friends. Kind of. Sort of? He had Dresda. And those he was cordial with…but friends? He didn’t really…try to make friends in the Negaverse any longer…he.
Everyone just left.
His gaze grew rather far away for a moment and he shook his head sharply, looking back at Meninx. “Oh. Just how to defend themselves. I let them know that they can contact me. That I’m there for them…I just. Want them to know that they’re not alone.” It was something that struck him close to his heart, and he had to do it. Had to make sure that they knew they weren’t alone.
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Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2024 4:01 pm
Meninx found himself nodding along as Gismondine spoke, even if he was still trying to accept the fact that he had friends. His mother certainly wouldn’t refer to any of them like that, not when he was Jace. And when he was Meninx?
It was complicated. Now really wasn’t the time for any sort of doubt.
“Sounds like you really care about them,” Meninx mused. He was still guiding Gismondine around his Wonder, just a leisurely little stroll. Nothing too taxing, and just enough to see a little bit of all of it. “What do you want out of the Negaverse? For you, and them?”
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Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2024 4:07 pm
“Of course I care about them. You can’t be in a position of power and not have…have compassion for people…”
It was the truth…and it was what Gismondine believed, truly and utterly but…
DId he have compassion for people? His recruits, sure. Those who were under his protection, his watch? Absolutely.
Those on the side of Order? He wasn’t supposed to. There wasn’t supposed to be feelings there. Just simple transactions. Steal energy. Steal starseeeds.
The thought made him feel just a bit queasy. “I just. Want those that I care about to thrive and be safe. Nothing too complicated.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 19, 2024 4:12 pm
“Makes sense,” Meninx hummed. “Although, it sounds like you give more than you get. Whoever was above you couldn’t afford to give you any compassion, could they? …I mean, if they left you as a roadblock…”
His voice trailed off but he really wasn’t trying to stir up bad memories. He just wanted to make sense of things.
“I want the people I care about to thrive and be safe. How do you protect the people in your life that aren’t in the Negaverse? How do you make sure the Negaverse isn’t targeting them?” He let the question hang in the air, but it wasn’t just for Gismondine’s sake that he asked. He was curious, too.
“Is there any way to keep them safe or do you just have to hope they get lucky out there?”
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