It's almost euphoric, really, to consider his second job going so smoothly. Given his most recent encounters with the White Moon and their allies, he had no reason to consider that they'd attack him - he hadn't killed anyone, and energy draining was such a trifle that he could probably talk himself out of it. Promise to reform. Slather them up with enough bullshit that they'll nod and smile and wish him well on his way to becoming a better person. And he knew he should've felt guilty about that, for lying to them and embarking on these terrible tasks in the first place, but with each passing day the whole damned thing became easier to swallow.
Maybe he could rationalize it because he had no intention of killing someone. Draining an individual to death was counterproductive - like tearing out the bush to pick the berries. And even though he considered the boons of murder many times, constantly rehashing his financial situation and how much better it might become if he just accidentally went too far one night, but... Could he really do that?
And every time he asked himself that, it became harder to say no.
Adonis stood and turned from the man who slumped over in the alley, who wore his classy business suit with the ketchup stain over his gut. He wore his hair slicked back much like Chase, but the tufts of silver set them apart; he remembered considering their similarities and wondering if he was doing Chase wrong by targeting him. And he remembered smiling and wrapping an arm around the man's shoulder, but he felt something... strange beneath his blazer. Something like a growth, or maybe horrible inflammation, but the man didn't seem to mind, so he thought little of it.
He had a purple splotch on his lip, like a permanent mole, and Adonis found it very hard to refrain from staring. Sometimes he'd wonder what would come out if he cut it, and other times he wondered what caused it - maybe because of this, he couldn't remember the conversation they had. But it didn't matter now; he had his energy and the man slept the hours away in a grungy alley, where maybe no one would cut his lip mole and maybe no one would discover the strange growth on his shoulder and maybe no one would comment on the ketchup stain on his shirt.
Adonis left the mouth of the dismal alley and crossed the street. Finding fire escapes on the side of taller buildings was easy enough, and they proved far friendlier to climb than simply trying to jump to the roof. However, as he jumped to crest the first story's railing, the old, rusted handrail snapped beneath him and he pitched backward toward the ground. Landing in a heap, he cursed his luck and sat up to scan his surroundings for onlookers. No one he noticed, but a presence slowly blossomed in his mind - a White Moon one at that, and it didn't feel terribly threatening. He thought nothing of it and attempted his ascent once more.
By the time he crested the building and scanned his surroundings, Adonis found the origin of the aura near him - a girl with vibrant red hair and a dress reminiscent of the Roman military of years past. She was coming toward him, and she didn't look terribly happy.
Rather than stick around for a chat, he started in the opposite direction.
Die Fluegel der Freiheit
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 7:21 pm
Penthesilea, unfortunately, was not one to let a Chaos agent go unbothered. She had sensed the aura and so waited, like a hunting predator, on the roof nearby, because to her surprised he seemed to be coming towards her. She stood out of her crouch as he crested the building and grinned, approaching closer even as he started to run.
"What's the matter?" She asked, picking up her pace to catch up to him, "scared of little ol' me?" She was tiny, and she knew that, but at least her heels raised her a little, and the clink of metal on metal and metal on whatever these roofs were made from did have its intimidating aspects.
She watched him, taking in every aspect of this man as she approached closer. "The hell are you, anyway?" He looked a bit like a Senshi, and she didn't see an obvious weapon - but he didn't feel like a Senshi. His aura crawled under her skin and sank in, and made her a little sick. Something inside her buzzed.
Adonis didn't waste much time in returning her bait, though it did not dissuade him from continuing to avoid her. His quota met, he had no reason to stick around and entertain a pretty face - especially when that pretty face belonged to that of the enemy. "Petrified really - right down to my bones. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to quake in my boots right over here and if you'd just avoid me, I'm sure we'll both have quite a nice night." Sarcasm wasn't normally his style, but she started it.
At least that was his admittedly juvenile logic.
However, when she asked about him, he drew to a stop at the edge of a rooftop. With one boot still poised atop the lip of the building, he half-turned to answer her. "How about a deal, then? You leave me alone tonight, and I'll tell you what I am. Sound good?" He flashed her a charismatic smile, hoping that an information trade and a handful of kind words might dissuade her from pursuing him further. Energy burned a hole in his pocket lately; he couldn't wait to turn it in and prove himself through procuring more than his quota required.
But... On the off chance that she might still attempt to stop him, he needed a game plan. Xenotime taught him something to the effect of using his environment to facilitate his actions, and a quick glance about the place confirmed a steep drop, a nearby air conditioning unit, and a telephone pole planted in close proximity to the building. Not exactly stellar choices, but he wouldn't have much time to consider their use if push came to shove.
She was of his level, that much he could tell - Roman outfit aside, she fell far short of him in terms of height, and her lithe stature suggested that he might be able to take her in a fight. Besides, he had magic at his disposal that produced effects similar to a chemical burn, which might buy him enough time to escape if he had to.
Otherwise, throwing her off a building certainly solved a few problems.
Die Fluegel der Freiheit
Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 9:07 pm
Penthesilea laughed and kept approaching. She wasn't going to let him get away - not when she couldn't trust that he wouldn't wander off and hurt someone else. She couldn't do that; it would be dereliction of the duty she'd given herself as a soldier of Order.
"I dunno, I could always just beat the answer out of ya," she said. She, too, scanned the environment. Yes, she was smaller, but she trained against larger opponents all the time, and she was trained explicitly in an art that revolved around negating threats as quickly as possible. Send him off the roof, jump down and hopefully land on him, the wall would be good to knock him against - yes, for someone trained in an art designed to be ruthless, she had plenty of options.
"In fact, I kinda like that idea," and then her grin became a little crazy, perhaps almost murderous, as she picked up her pace and ran at him, already plotting how best to get him off the roof and onto the ground. If she let this drag, her magic would provide a finisher, but she had no illusions that her primary weapon was and always would be her own body.
She wasn't shaking off or relenting any time soon, from the looks of it.
Adonis hadn't met a senshi before that would actively pursue him like this, either, and he was at a loss whether to just keep running until his longer strides outpaced her or if he should actually stand his ground and fight. As a soldier, he knew his duty was to stand and face the enemy, but... Without even a modicum of combat training and absolutely no inclination toward beating someone's face in, how could he? She hadn't done anything to him (except threaten to beat him), so why should he turn around and attack her for a simple threat?
Because she would deliver on it. He sighed, more a breathless whisper than anything, but the thought still lingered. She would do it. Look at her. She'd kill you and probably laugh about it later. Hell, listen to her - she doesn't sound like she's quite all there, does she?
Adonis decided that he shouldn't waste time hopping roofs anymore; instead he dropped to the ground from the safest location he could manage (though it cost him valuable time and distance on his opponent), and only when his feet were firmly planted on the ground did he look up to regard the menace coming his way. Like a whisper of red across the sky, she caught up with remarkable speed, and he found himself inwardly cursing for his neglect toward soliciting training. Because of that, he might actually find himself in a losing fight with another senshi.
And Adonis didn't like losing, either.
"We really don't have to do this," he tried one last time, backing up while he made a last plea for a simple truce. "Look, if you're really so interested, I'm a Negaverse senshi. Adonis, if you want to call me by name. Now if it's quite alright with you, I'd really like to get home now. Early day tomorrow and all." Offering a relatively nervous smile, he tried to bow himself out of a potential disaster.
Die Fluegel der Freiheit
Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 9:14 pm
For no reason other than flourish - and she didn't flourish often, so she indulged herself when she could - Penthesilea flipped over the edge and made a rather nice landing on her feet in a predatory crouch. The same vicious grin was still on her face as she stood up, cascade of red hair tumbling around her. She had to admit, while she normally didn't wear it loose because it got in the way - or so she worried - it was rather fun to have it down for the look.
"Well, Adonis my darlin', I'm Penthesilea, and unfortunately for you I'm of the opinion that we do have to do this because I can't have a Chaos b*****d cross my path an' just walk away." In fact, if it was up to her, he wouldn't be walking anywhere tonight. "Sorr,y but you're gonna be late to whatever you've got." She did not sound sorry in the slightest.
She seemed even less sorry when she ran at him to close the last bit of distance and swept her leg low to take him off his feet. The sooner she had him down, the better her advantage.
To Adonis' dismay, this was the first time he'd been called a b*****d without the word sexy to preempt it. But he had little time to consider this, as soon after her introduction (to which he would've bowed and tried to flatter his way out of an asskicking), she rushed him.
And she rushed him with the intent to send him to the ground, but he would only recognize this in hindsight. Instead what he recognized was the sudden shooting pain in his ankle, and the way that his legs shifted suddenly beneath him. He recognized the hard impact the ground had on his back, and the temporary paralysis that accompanied it. At least she said I'd be late - so she's not going to kill me. Not yet..
It struck him as harrowing to consider death so quickly.
Add that to the fact that he'd never met a White Moon senshi so intent to attack him, and he found his preconceived notions on their court thrown into peril. And since he wasn't one who learned to fight, especially when his mind was ablaze with mistaken ideas and realizations that refuted his earlier concepts, Adonis wasn't sure how to react to her. Or how to react to hitting the ground so heavily. Or how to react to the possibility that the enemy wanted him dead.
So he kicked at her. Maybe it was too little too late, maybe it would do nothing at all, but he couldn't very well lay around and let Penthesilea choke him out or break his neck. Even if it meant calling on his magic, anything outweighed the potential outcome of losing his life without even fully understanding why. And when he finally found his tongue, he responded in a manner that could only be characterized as the opposite of eloquent and charming: "Sorry my a**! I din't do a damn thing and you're attacking me for existing!"
He hoped, desperately, that she was just jealous of his hair. Let it be anything easily rectified - easily righted, so he might go home without a limp or a broken bone, or simply not go home at all.
Die Fluegel der Freiheit
Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2013 9:05 pm
Penthesilea grunted when his kick connected - she hadn't actually expected him to fight back, given that he'd mostly been trying to talk her out of attacking him further. It was too bad for him that she was utterly relentless, and that kicking her didn't deter her. If anything, it just made her angrier. She sidestepped away, walking next to instead of in front of him, and looming over him before slamming her boot into his side.
"Yeah, your existin' is kinda the problem I've got," she agreed. Her aura sense was still buzzing with the sheer wrongness of whatever he was. This didn't feel like Damocles. Damocles had felt like Chaos and something else and he hadn't felt right, certainly, but not aggressively wrong. "Now are you gonna tell me what the ******** you are or do I hafta start breakin' bones?"
She hoped he knew by now that she didn't make empty threats. She couldn't pull his starseed, certainly, but she could kill him other ways. Slower ways, more fun and interesting and painful ways. She was pretty sure that as far as most of her Court was concerned, that made her a monster, and she didn't particularly care. Her entire experience with the White Moon was Avior the whiny b***h, and if that was her Court, she'd handle things on her own, thanks.
"Or are you actually gonna start fighting?" She kicked at him again, grinning viciously. God, she enjoyed her metal heels.
The strike to his side coaxed a howl of pain out of the Senshi of Skin, and he desperately regretted it after the fact. So much for maintaining an air of class and mystery when he was getting his a** kicked by a pipsqueak with a chip on her shoulder... Maybe the White Moon truly was dangerous.
It occurred to him that perhaps the easiest way to explain what he was involved showing her his attack. And by doing so he might manage just enough time to get away from her and power down to escape, provided the pain was distracting enough to dissuade her. And if that didn't work? She obviously knew how to fight - it wouldn't take much time for him to end up another victim. Another mess for someone else to clean up.
Another pile of guts to make a buck from.
Another strike to his ribs and he managed to stifle a groan, though the wince on his face showed his pain well enough. "Are you insane? You don't have to fight me and I certainly don't have to fight you!" Additionally, he needn't divulge any other facts aside from that he is a Negaverse senshi. It wasn't as though he knew much more than that. However, she wasn't going to wait around for him to come up with a lie - so he hastily covered his aching side and scrambled away from her presence.
Once he managed to clamor to his feet and continually edge away from her presence, he managed enough guts to stand up to her in the most underhanded way he could conceive of. "Fine, fine, I'll tell you what I am. I'm skinned." He stated enigmatically, looking her in the eyes. And as he retreated toward the network of alleys, he held out his arms and his gloves melted off to expose untouched ivory skin.
If he was lucky, she'd flinch long enough for his escape.
Die Fluegel der Freiheit
Sailor Scout Attack: Skinned Range: 20 feet Duration: 20 seconds Number of uses: 2 Number of targets: 1 Adonis holds his arms out, palms up, and the gloves on his uniform burn away. The change is mimicked in his targeted opponent, who he must make eye contact with, and they feel the effects of a mild chemical burn. They see a few layers of skin peeling off, some irritation, and some decent pain. Only occurs on the arms, and can be interrupted by attacking Adonis before his uniform manifests any changes, preventing him from making eye contact, or by shutting him up somehow before he can utter the name of the attack. Once the duration ends, their body goes back to normal (as does his uniform).
Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2013 9:51 pm
"Insane? Yeah, I get that a lot," she acknowledged, her grin rather vicious. She was going to enjoy taking him apart, or so she was sure.
Penthesilea was not prepared for his attack. She tended to consider herself to be one with a strong constitution, but there was something particularly horrifying about watching your own skin peel off. The pain didn't bother her, it was the sight. She made a strangled noise of disgust and started stepping backwards, away from him.
She never ran from a fight in her civilian life. She was doing it now because she wasn't sure if whatever he had done was real or not, and she didn't want to test to see if he had something else up his sleeve - gloves, really.
It would give him plenty of time to get away, because even after the magic ended she stood stock-still in horror, watching her arms through the gaps in her gloves to make sure that they were really still there.
Initially Adonis gaped at the unfolding damage as well - skin opened up like a flowering blossom, exposing glaring red meat beneath. In hindsight, he considered it a testament to her strength in that she could tolerate such a gruesome sight, but the shock spread plainly across her face that proved the statement contrary. However, Adonis was not so absorbed in the scene that he considered it a good idea to stick around and watch the ensuing damage. As someone who easily struck him to the ground and threatened to kill him for little reason, the blonde senshi found it in his best interest to escape while she proved distracted.
The initial shock subsided, and Adonis scrambled to his feet with what adrenaline-fueled energy he could muster. He winced with a groan when his side protested greatly to the movements, and he readily displayed his unfamiliarity with pain by wrapping his arms about the injured muscle as if to protect it from ensuing harm. Afterward he through the alley, into its deeper reaches, though he leaned toward his favored side while he desperately sought cover from his first real fight as a senshi.
Upon clipping a dumpster with painful success, Adonis released a somewhat-suppressed groan and leaned against the offending dumpster heavily. It hurt to stand steady, to idle when the senshi who threatened to kill him was still nearby, but he counted on buying himself time by powering down. If he could just become Adrian Frost once more, she wouldn't think twice to attack him again, right? Alternatively she could be the type to strike out at anything with a pulse, but he'd hedge his bets on this decision and relinquish the outfit in favor of pretending to be a benign and clueless citizen.
With a steadying breath, Adonis lost his rights to power and magic in favor of a black tank top with embellished leather strips and dark wash jeans fitted to his figure. His side still blazed with pain, but Adrian managed to slip through the remaining alleys with few obstructions.
