Amarissa listened quietly as, one by one, people spoke up. She felt a little left out of the loop considering the new information about the tenuous military alliance. Mild irritation crossed her face at Peter's accusations with the purification. Still, she waited though even past Valdis's monologue and Kousuke's arrival. Finally, she spoke when everyone had had a chance.

"Well, I guess that makes it my turn. First, let me extend a formal greeting to my estranged knight. Also, I'd like to point out that my purification powers have only recently evolved in such a way to allow for purifying someone without killing them. As much as I like Valdis, I don't want to kill her. Your 'surmise' about our less than a year of experience is correct and that goes for our awareness as Senshi and Knights. We're months old to this life and these powers. The most guidance we've had so far is a pair of memory impaired felines and a mysterious Nazo. We've been fighting for our lives at every step, having to deal with some things before we were even really ready. We beat Scorpio, as a team. I know we can work together. Our problem is that we don't. We have people that skip out, and people that take matters into their own hands without asking the rest of us. We have people withholding information from other members. We're not a team, at this point, because each of us has chosen, whether consciously or otherwise, not to be," she said, her voice calm but forceful.

She continued, pacing to stand in front of everyone as a whole. "Most of the time there's a battle, it's only a few of us that answer the call. We have new members that don't understand any of this either. Yes, Sophia reaches out to those she knows. But we need to be reaching out to them as a group, not as an individual.I agree that the military needed to be addressed somehow so we don't have to continue to fight a war with two fronts but Valdis is right. If we let them be our leaders, nothing will change. I can't say whether any one person can truly lead us as a team, or whose right for the job. Whoever we choose though, we have to follow and trust that that person can lead us and the military." Amarissa finished, taking a moment to look at each person. She then turned and went to stand with Kousuke, reaching to grab his free hand.

Kaguya fell silent as she was the most outside then most of the other senshi and knights. She felt very much out of place in this meeting overall with selection of leadership. The pink haired female had moved over to David as she saw him look like he was going to rip everyone apart. As she herself had done it before trying to control her own fury at bay. She had heard what Keitha and Kail spoke of and felt a bit of understanding as they were trying to get them selves fixed before coming back. More so on Keitha, fear was always the beast that they all had to contend with, although when the moon knight spoke up. Kaguya's inner ire was ignighted as she gave a glare to the man. Then something amount mentioning the pet name that her father gave her from time to time came a bit way to close to home. "What...did you just say" as that was more in a shocked tone then anything else to her. Then just shook her head slightly at this fact and better put it behind her and then Valdis spoke up on everything else.

She waited for her to be done and the info dump was rather massive then the other worldly travels the Moon Knight had spoke of. Well at one hand she was greatful that they were getting the help from the militaries in general. But this man was one of there better advantages against the covenant? It did not put her at ease at all as it just seemed off for her. ".....I can not give a good opinion due to me only joining a short time compared to the rest of you. Amarissa and Sophia, both are the better of the canidates for this." she said calmly as she could. And walked to the thing that had a tally of votes on the matter.

"......One thing I have to agree with on Amarissa is the withholding information and some choices being made without our imput on choice. It shows lack of trust, and trust is something I hold much more then anything else. Most of my life I have tried putting my trust in people. But most of the time the people were plotting something to only put a dagger into my back. I understand perhaps it was done for the greater good. But I can not trust people if there doing things behind my back. If its good or bad, in addition with this though. I am sorry Sophia in advance for this. But it feels though your just a mouth piece for Valdis" she said looking over at Sophia and then to Valdis. The look on her face was that she was not pleased with what was going on.

"But I can not ignor what Valdis has said either....Since Sophia has been the only one to try and get us together. Trying to make us a team, and yes she does have that.....but I am conflicted with my own mind on who to pick. IF there is a tie breaker I will make my choice then said Kaguya but then turns to Valdis and she looked at her with a death glare. She then steps over to Valdis "You and whitey over there shut the hell up on Keitha. Yes she ran from her duties, but she came back. Heck she admitted that she was weak. That shows some guts, but cull the weak....what kind of crap is that. We should be giving some support and understanding to her. Things like that just defeat people and make them feel worse then dirt. She has enough guilt so you and whitey back off, Or I will personaly kick both of your asses" she said defending Keitha. Even though Kousuke did say something, it was more laid back. Kaguya perfered to be a bit more to be a lot more direct.

Sophia’s expression softens as Keitha speaks. “No, I understand. This is… well, it’s a large responsibility that was given to us without any regard to our own opinions on this matter. We all have our own struggles with it, I am sure. I mean, there are no guidelines for this after all. We are glad to have you back with us.”

She looks surprised at Kail when he says that he lost someone, “I am very sorry for your loss. Please, don’t feel the need to hide that sort of thing from us. We are all in this together. At least, we should be.”

However, she does feel the need to defend Kousuke and Lance. “No, Kousuke hasn’t made the soundest decisions, but I can’t really be too mad at him for that, considering some of my own. He’s always looked out for all of us. Never has he put his own needs before anyone elses. He did die for Ama and myself, so I am grateful that he is part of this team. As for Lance, has anyone besides myself talked to him like a human being? Oni isn’t some mindless monster. When the battle at the shrine was over, he didn’t go on some wild rampage after that,” she says, rubbing her hands a little.

She nods at Ama’s nomination. She could understand it. Honestly, she could understand it for most people. “I’ll admit that not all my plans have been the best. In fact, I’d be the first to say as much. And yes, Ama has been calmest out of any of us.” She raises an eyebrow, “It would no longer be my job to bring and hold the group together. Just like it would not longer be our job to negotiate with other groups. As I said, being the leader of this group means more than combat decision-making. All of that would fall onto Ama’s shoulders. I trust that you feel she is capable of that.” She looks to Ama, “Should she win this vote, if she wants me around in an advising capacity, I am more than willing to accept that.” Smiling, she adds, “Not that I stay quiet about my opinions on matters, but I guess I’ll take that official title.”

The rest of Peter’s story is told, and a lot of it is new information to her ears. However, Peter’s nomination of her takes her aback as well as the fact that he seemed willing to fight for it. She can hardly understand why. It was clear to her that he thought of her as a child. “I’ll accept the nomination, but I rather no one fight over this. They have a right to self-determination as for who leads them. As for Valdis, purification is not something she wants to my knowledge, and you mentioned you did not want to be purified of your own corruption. As she presents no danger to any of us, I fail to see a reason why she must be. By the same logic, we would have to purify you against your will. I don’t believe in taking that kind of action unless our hand is forced and it is in the best interests for all parties. I hope we do not become the kind of group that forces our what we want on the world.”

Sophia can’t help but feel a little mushy inside at Val’s nomination for her. Her support with her was touching, and in clear understanding of how she thought for the most part. A little unsure of what to say, all she musters is “Thank you.”

Sophia walks over to Val and Keitha as she voices her irritation, “But don’t be so angry with her. She made the right decision in the long run, and it’s a hard issue to grapple with, speaking as someone who grapples with the issues of being a senshi all the time.”

She’s almost happy to have Kousuke come in to lighten up the mood when she sees her own knight. She’s almost at a loss as to how to interact with David at this point. “Picking a leader, and deciding what our next course of action should be,” Sophia responds to Kousuke’s question.

She considers Ama’s words before responding, “I suppose we do need a change of attitude. I am hoping some of that changes here and now. Hopefully, everyone understands what this election represents. However, if I spoke to you all as a group, I would never get a chance to learn about each and every one of you. The individual and the group must both be addressed.”

Sophia looks a little agitated at the Val’s mouth piece comment that Kaguya makes, “I think you mistake our friendship for something else. Yes, I talk to her about my thoughts, my ideas, and my plans. She has some influence on what I do because I respect her opinion as a friend, and I find it important to examine multiple sides of an issue. However, all of those things were born from my own mind. I didn’t call this meeting because Val said it was a good idea. My idea to make meetings with both governments came before speaking to Val on the matter. Mostly, I didn’t want us to get hurt by those militaries, and for us not to unintentionally hurt them. Yes, I should of spoke to more people other than Val and Kail on the subject of this. I apologize for that. However, I would like to say Val and I are not always in agreement. That is ok though. We are own people.”

Looking over to Kaguya, before announcing to the group, Sophia says, “Please, no more threats of violence. It doesn’t foster good discussion. Ultimately, we are trying to work together, yes?”

Finally, the frustration had built up long enough. Yinko's scowl scanned left to right, examining the entire group. Hands clenched, he rose to his full height, and picking up a piece of scattered firewood, smashed it against the nearest barn's support beam. The echoing crack rebounded through the dilapidated building.

He waited until all eyes were on him until he spoke.

"You think a few scattered plans, a few minor successes, and selling out our identities to a government agency that has actively experimented on human beings is something to be happy with?" the warlord snarled. "You think we can trust ANY of these goons, and just go about this war like it's a social club?" Pacing back and forth like a stalking tiger, the young man seethed in anger and intensity. "And you think so few of us respond to a threat because we CHOOSE to ignore it?"

He let his questions linger. No, he wouldn't give them answers, or try to force-feed the information. It wasn't something he could make them understand. They had to WANT it.

His eyes focusing on Sophia, Val, then Kaguya, they quickly broke away, the knight stepping out of the barn.

A flare of fire. Draconic Rage in his heart. "Going it alone will get you killed faster." As if to illustrate his point, Peter exploded into motion, blurring as he moved, immediately going for an open palm strike to David's right shoulder, putting just enough force to unsettle his footing, before he followed up with a sweep kick, and grabbed David by the collar to throw him back into the barn.

"I am a Chaos Agent. I could have just killed you in six different ways. What makes you think that just because I find Sailor Venus tolerable, that I will allow you to turn your back on me after throwing a hissy fit." He cracked his neck, and stared the man down. "You think you have it hard? Grow up. This world has gone straight to hell, and if you act like that, I will do you the favour of killing you quickly, so that one of the Youma do not do it slow."

He cracked his knuckles behind his gauntlets, and stared at David. "This? This has potential. You just have to give it nurturing like I am, you ignorant child. If they were beyond saving, I would have had this place filled with Napalm before I chose to set foot inside. The Youma and Sailor Venus have explained they did not give their identities, and I am going to take them at their word. If they lied to me, they know what it will end with."

He stared at Sophia. "And you. I think you should know well by now that Salvation must be force-fed. To everyone." His voice was a low hiss. Behind the helm, he was glaring at her. "It is your duty to MAKE SURE they are purified if they are in your group. It is why I am -NOT- joining. Just making sure your group stands, and does what I need it to." It died away just as quickly as it came, the emptiness coming back. The challenge had been met.

Kousuke listens to the speeches and frowns especially after Ama's. As they go on he prepares to leave, but Amarissa grabbing his hand stopped him. He looks down at her tense expression and nervous face and frowns. I guess I can't just leave them to it this time huh? He lets go of Amarissa's hand and walks into the center of the group with a frown on his face. Kousuke's emotion control begins to seep from him subconsciously. His fragment of the golden crystal appears in his hand and he raises it above his head. As he does a warm light extends out and the barren ground suddenly begins to turn sprout grass and flowers. After a minute or two he lets out a breath and they seems to be standing on an oasis of life saplings, grass and flowers around them.

He clears his throat and stands tall. "Ummm, hello everyone...I am the Earth Knight, I'd appreciate it if everyone would take a couple of minutes, take some deep breaths, take the sticks out of their asses and try to at least be happy to see each other." He says with a neutral expression.

His eyes come to rest of Peter who was threatening David. "Moon Knight, sorry didn't get your name, but stop it. Being a stuck up prick isn't helping anyone's team spirit or improving our situation. We can have a dick waving contest some other time and preferably in less polite company."

He looks at David. "I know you've got issues with how we do things, that's your choice and it's fine. Each of us was picked for a reason don't feel you need to stay, though I think we would appreciate input from a combat veteran seeing as how most of us have very little."

"I'd like to say my piece and I'm not going to ask you all to agree with it, or even buy into it." He takes a deep breath. "We beat Scorpio, since then we've met several more of the zodiac, I think it's pretty clear that most of them do not want to fight all of us since if we are able to beat him we as a team are a threat to any of them. But I think it's important to establish, the Zodiac are smart, they are probably moving through human society, and if that's the case at least one is probably somewhere in the military. In addition the Zodiac who killed the senshi before us is still roaming around...my predecessor, the former Earth King, and he is carrying the golden crystal." After sharing this he looks at everyone.

"But even with all of this power at their disposal we are still here, we are still alive, we can beat the zodiac. Getting upset with each other and trying to prove who's in charge or create a regimented structure is only going to create walls between us. In the end the senshi are group of friends who have the power to help and restore the world, and we knights are the ones who signed up to protect them and join the fight. We're fighting for a better tomorrow and yes we haven't done the best job of working together, but we've been making progress, if slowly. So while we're together here and we have this discussion I would kinda like us to be a bit...ummm...nicer to each other." he says.

Then he walks over to a bag he had brought. "And to that point, I don't see why we can't have a bit of fun while we discuss the important matters." He takes out small portable grill, several large chocolate bars, and several bags of marshmallows, this is followed by a couple of six packs of soda, and several six packs of beer. Finally he walks around the back of the barn and returns with two boxes of pizza. "No reason we can't enjoy this little brainstorming session." He sits down to the picnic.

Valdis turned when she saw the jumping bean join them, she shrugged when he said it had been a while since they had all gotten together.

”It actually hasn’t been that long, our first meeting was but a few weeks ago. It hasn’t even been a month since the first of you awakened.”

Her eye twitched slightly when he yet again jumped to a conclusion without the full picture. She let out a long sigh as she rubbed the bridge of her nose in slight frustration, apparently she would need to reword herself…why wasn’t some people like Sophia didn’t need translations but others did.

”I was not saying she find conviction, I merely stated she has to prove she has it before most go and trust that she’s not going to back down again. Actions speak louder than words that is how that old saying goes Yes? I personally would not go and ask someone who has had a history of freezing or backing out of a fight to be my right hand in a battle which would require no hesitation. When you are fighting the enemy is not going to wait until you get yourself together they are going to go for that opening.”

She folded her arms across her chest.

”I understand that we are mostly all just in our teenage years and its beyond unfair to expect one of our age group to have to make the decisions and find the back bone to go through with said decisions. Unfortunately we have to grow up faster than nature intended.”

She fell silent as Ama took her turn to speak, her eyebrow quirked at the word choice. When she was finished Val had both a frown but thoughtful expression. She both agreed and disagreed on points that Ama had made. Then Kaguya said her bit only to turn Valdis sharp violet eyes narrowed she barred her fangs towards Kaguya just daring her to try.

”For christ sakes you people need to be spoken to bluntly, before jumping to be angered so quickly try listening to the rest of the statement! Go on repeat what I just said to her, the full sentence after the cull the weak part or did you really just stop listening then? Hm? I am not here to coddle any one of you I’m not anyone’s mother and quite frankly I don’t think the majority of people here understand how little time we have to get our crap together. Now the previous statements of both Ama and you have their merits especially for those who were not a part of the first gathering. Those who attended the first one were all aware of the directions that we had to go towards.

At the beginning of this month when the first meeting took place at the park, we had all agreed that the military’s involvement needed to be investigated, along with hunting down the crystals as a priority. Part of opening a door to be able to explore that area was making contact with the military on friendly terms. We have made progress in that front because the group that SAID they would went and did it. Those who are getting this information and ‘not sharing it’ are putting their full efforts into collecting the information and pushing forward plans for the good of the group.

As for this not sharing part, I personally believe I have approached each and every one of you for the exception of Ama, the jumping bean there, Keitha, and perhaps a couple of the new ones…I believe I have shared what I have come to know quite well. Kaguya you yourself I just talked to the day of the dance…Now comes the point where I disagree slightly with one of Ama’s points. Yes we need to address the group, however at times the luxury of doing so is impractical. There are going to be times when information needs to be shared with only a couple otherwise there is a large chance things will become screwy. Or going back to another point sometimes someone in the group just won’t be ready to emotionally face it. Information overload can be crippling….So the delivery of said information has to be done tactfully for the individual. Kail…Little Mouse…Take the information dumps I have brought you from the past couple of weeks, would you have been able to comprehend it if it had not been broken up?”


She looked back to Kaguya she was about to say her piece when little mouse beat her to the point. A small smirk appeared on her face, pushy cat seemed to have made an influence after all.

”I only have a little to add on to what little mouse says, I have to do very little to influence her. Mainly because I agree with most of what she says. Her ideals were a bit….farfetched at the beginning however they have grown from irrationally ideal to plausible. She has influenced me as much as I influenced her…..otherwise at least half of you would be pantsed right now and your high school lives a mess. Going to the military was indeed her idea, I had attempted to set up a third party to deal with the military for us…it failed. So her idea had merit so we made sure to include both the Japanese and American so neither would be able to stake full claim. Though…I have no clue how the American negotiations went…I was not allowed to attend those”

Her attention was ripped back from the others to see Yinko taking a hissy fit of epic proportions. Her eyebrow once again noticeably began twitching. DID NO ONE LISTEN? Her eyes narrowed as he chose to storm out after his little rant, really he needed to cool his jets. He was more hormonal lately then a teenage pregnant girl on her wedding day…. She was about to raise her hand to aim a well aimed shot toward the snow on the roof to send it cascading down at him when Peter beat her to the point. …She was really getting annoyed that he kept earning damn points. She only found herself nodding in agreement with the Loonie. Even with the part of forcing those who remained chaotic to be purified.

”He’s right the main group associated with the military cannot have any taint, it will be used against you. Not only is it bad PR which you do have to think about, it can be used as a weapon against you. Chaos taints the energy that you rely on to use your powers….pure energy is much more powerful then tainted magic, you need less of it to get the same results. You can’t afford to be tainted when you’re going up against people who know how to use the energy that they have effectively...and as for you Yinko, there is a reason for why we needed to join with the military…it was not an option to have not to…we need them for their numbers alone in the final battle. Even those in our group have specialties in which they shine the greatest when used with a large mass of people, I for one want to see them to be given the means to shine to their full potential.”

She was actually surprised when Kousuke stepped up to speak. It was well thought out, non-combative and expressed his point of view clearly and concisely. She nodded in approval, she had not seen this side of the knight yet. Perhaps there was hope for him after all.

”He’s right about the Zodiac I have no doubt that there are Zodiac with in the military, particularly involved with the Spector program. It’s the only one I have gotten a lead on to…but may I say good job jumping bean on locating a crystal, I’m glad to see someone was looking for them. But are you sure he is a Zodiac? If so which one…However I disagree with the idea of not establishing a ranking order. Only do to the fact a leader is there to listen to all its subjects, they do not get to make a decision just willy nilly. However this group has a large history with disagreeing with one another…a leader needs to be elected so we do not divide yourselves further. But like it was said before you’re not required to join with the group…there’s the option of putting yourself as a renegade, but understand that you will be treated as such by the military and such. If your identities are discovered there would be no legal netting to fall back upon. However you will have more freedom to move about by yourselves. Just note you may find yourself fighting two battle fronts at times.”

And then he brought out food…everyone was bringing food to this meeting. Her eyes widened at the sight of chocolate and marshmallows…they were making it harder for her to leave the group. A pout formed on her face….why couldn’t the Zodiacs bring snacks? All they brought were freaky twins….she would have to dig in after however…she had something to show them first. Valdis stepped forward to place herself in the middle of the group.

”I think our main problem is you all haven’t a clue to what the end battle will be like, none of you know what you’re going to be facing….and soon. If nothing changes…if the covenant is not stopped this is our fate as it stands.”

Valdis held her hands out beside her, purple sparks of energy surrounded her hands and soon the entire area around them transformed. The ground would drop out from beneath them and the view below would show the obelisks, each one glowing red. Above them large cracks would appear in the sky, as reality itself begins to give away to another, darker world. The view would shift to them upon the ground again, the sounds of horrific screams would reach their ears. Hordes of youma descended upon reality as the rifts in the sky grew and gradually enveloped the entire world. The suns light blocked out, the only light the pulsing red energy from the rifts.

The view would change as countless, horrifying creatures descended upon civilizations. Youma, true monsters, entities that lacked words to describe. Militaries and police easily ripped to shreds, the smell of blood was thick in the air. As the youma continued to ripped through the people it didn’t matter man, woman, or child. You could hear there wails, and see the life leave them.

”None will be spared, youma will come down without mercy. They have long been separated from us and long to feed. It will not matter how old, how innocent, man, woman, or child. They will devour all….the child you may see playing today you may see being eaten limb by limb the next. There will be no more laughter, only screams of agony and wails of despair.”

Within the vision time seemed to be sped up while the rest of them stood still, only experiencing clips of horrifying visions. They watched as humanity crumbled within a matter of days. The group may even see the deaths of some they knew outside of their alter egos, a class mate, a co worker, or a friend or teacher.

There was a lapsed once more, battered and beaten survivors with no hope in their eyes labored tirelessly to rebuild.

”Yes some will survive but they will be forced into slavery, the most fortunate fate they can look forward to is manual labor for the rest of their days. Others…others are not so fortunate.”

The vision will shift to show themselves in a dark laboratory, a man lay upon the table screaming as another picked at their flesh. More humans floating in tubes and on other tables waiting to be experimented on. Many were missing limbs, or replaced with something more youma like. Others were forcibly being transformed into mindless creatures for both labor and consumption.

”Some will becoming nothing more than livestock…dumber then your average cow…stripped of their own humanity”

They were now back on earth…the world itself was in ruin. All traces of humanity’s brilliance now crumbled stone and metal. The scenery darkens and new, chaotic forms of life begin to overtake the world making it entirely inhospitable. Glimpses of a few who survived and escaped the clutches of the covenant were shown. They were battered and beaten…and very few…the scenes shifted to show families passing away due to starvation…or worse.

”The chaos energy will further corrupt this land, the very environment will become deadly. Plants will become carnivorous, drinking sources poisoness. The survivors who escaped will have nothing to live off of….they will either starve themselves or be eaten by something else….Our families…yes we can protect them…but we cannot hold off forever.”

Glimpses of the family members of all senshi and knights are killed or worse, each senshi and knight relentlessly hunted until a violent death. After the last death of the protectors a deep feminine voice booms around them “I AM THE GODDESS OF THE DARK KINGDOM! NONE SHALL OPPOSE ME” Skies permanently red, the world is lost..

The vision fades and once more they would all find themselves back at the farm house. The sparks in which had surrounded Valdis hands faded and she collapsed to her knees, her breathing slightly heavy. Her maroon eyes scanned the rest of the group.

”We will all die if nothing changes now….we have weeks…maybe a month at best before those obelisks awaken. There is no more time for arguments…we need to work together to stall the final act….with that said someone throw me a damn chocolate bar”

Kail knew that he would screw things up with Valdis although it did allow her to press her objectives. Although when Kousuke showing up and at first he was making some leeway with him, but then when the food came out. That's when things just went down hill. He was going to get pissed with the Knight but then, he could feel Valdis's rage. For once in his short time that he knew her, this made him afraid. But she calmed down slightly and then it was time for the bitter pill for most of them to take. Valdis showing them if they failed to shape up and he felt sickend and perhaps even overweilmed even more then before. The sickening images were more then enough and Kail was barely able to keep his constitution up. Although Kail had to drop to one knee as the info was way too much.

He would more then likely have nightmares in the next few days or more depending if he could kill the images. But more then likely not and one thing that was going to plague him. Was the grip on sanity he had in his mind. Kail would need to get his shit back together or he was going to lose it. "This....is perhaps a bitter pill to take. But we all need perhaps this blow to the gut....So after this....look deep within you for a answer now" he said and knew he was going to need a drink. His fox Aiko after having her visiting time with Valdis she ran over to her master. The animal worried about her owner's well being sat down next to him. Trying to put him at ease with whatever was worrying him.

Amarissa's eyes widened as Kousuke held up the shard of crystal. She watched in awe as the ground around them sprouted and bloomed, a bright grin on her face. Those that knew her might see the restraint she exercised in not rushing over to kiss him. She liked his speech too. It was short, but it hit some good points. The food was perhaps a dangerous thing as it had the potential to undermine what they were doing here, but her stomach protested audibly at her thoughts and a sheepish look crossed her face. There wasn't time to enjoy his generosity, however, because Valdis stepped forward again. It occurred to the moon senshi that for someone not of their group, and possibly consorting with the enemy as she was a youma, that Valdis had her dainty hand dipped quite far into their honey pot. She shook her head, but didn't say anything and then something happened she didn't expect.

The visions were horrible, Valdis's words only serving as a rude narration. Amarissa gasped as she watched governments and countries fall to their knees under the onslaught of youma and monsters. People were tortured, killed and eaten like animals. Those strong enough to survive, enslaved. She saw her own mother, the mess that was her father, and Kousuke all corned. The youma played with them like toys before ripping them apart. Tears fell unhindered down her face, her eyes glazed over with the pain of all that Valdis forced upon them to watch. By the time it was over, the moon senshi had hit her knees. The weight of what they were up against heavy on her shoulders and chest.

Kaguya would keep her mouth shut as Sophia gave her a scolding and then Valdis with a tounge lashing. She just silently took it as she was still new to the group and was not sure how things were going to work. Then saw Kousuke show up as the man was ment to be her knight but was playing knight for Amarissa. Perhaps the better choice then working with her. He actualy had a good and perhaps a mature moment, until he brought out the food. Which caused her to facepalm at this although saw the gold crystal and was about to say something. Until Valdis showing them all something and it was not pretty and was going to be nightmare fuel. The imagery started to make her green in the gills then the massive slaughtering, then perhaps the more sickening vision she saw was the man getting picked apart. Then the massive tanks of mutilated people in them and then perhaps the most sickening thing that got her. Was the slaughter of her family and everyone else and the decay of the earth. As the vision ended Kaguya was holding on to the side of the building where she was at. Not to fall to her knees out of shear fear although the fear was too great and she fell to her knees. She was afraid and could not get those images out of her mind.

"No...no more....please no more" she said and was visably freaking out. It had been several years since she had felt this overweilming sense of fear. This was different then the torment that plagued her with bullies. This was far more worse, if they failed this would happen. All of this was way too much for her. She did feel powerless and perhaps the small things she did were nothing to what she just saw. What could she do now at all for the group.

Sophia stares at her own knight in annoyance. “If you want me to restate it: I did not sell out your identities. No one knows who you guys are unless you told them yourselves or revealed yourselves by getting into trouble somehow,” she growls back. This was frustrating. She sometimes thinks David and her are holding two different conversations. She closes her eyes, trying to relax for a few seconds. Try to see things from his point of view. A point of view that she hardly understood because he kept to himself despite reaching out over and over again, despite helping to save his soul from crushing darkness. Calmly, she continues, “Sometimes I feel like you aren’t listening to me at all. I gathered you all to find a new way forward. That means make new plans of action. I understand that you are worried about the both governments. I am not telling you not to be. So if you actually have a suggestion for anything, we would be willing to hear it. As I said before, nothing is off the table, particularly if you present a good case for it. So please, can we just talk about things without shouting?”

She blinks when Peter gets angry. She runs over that direction to attempt to stop a fight, but Peter stops first. All this was unexpected. Evidently, a heart was still beating in there somewhere. Just far away from her. He reminded her of Yuuichirou right now. There was something savable, but it was far, far away from her. His address to her was unexpected. There was some part of him that wanted salvation but also fought against it. And that was something she promised him, wasn’t it? She doesn’t say anything, but perhaps he could see that she was willing to accept the challenge given to her. However, it isn’t for his reasons. The wheels in her brain already set into motion to develop some kind of plan.

Valdis then speaks. Well, she certainly had a lot to say. She doesn’t interject much. She thinks about the information overload. “Hmmm… maybe or maybe not. I think I would have been fine emotionally, but I suppose I might not have remembered it all. I think beyond that I doubt I would have had the time most days to hear it all. I feel I have hardly any time at all.” Then there was the discussion about the military and governments. She’d never understand why the rest didn’t see the benefits of that kind of relationship. She sighs as Val says she doesn’t know what happened with the U.S. military. She didn’t really have much of a chance to talk about it yet. “Well, I’d be perfectly willing to tell you how those talks went if people calmed down about them. We even met a new senshi with the marines.”

She nods along with what Kousuke says, “You know, you are absolutlely right! It is great to have everyone gathered together even if it is all business.” She walks around to find a stick, and upon locating one, heads to the marshmellows, and puts multiple on. “Moon Knight, do you want one too?” Food was an excellent way to get Peter to calm down at least. She wasn’t sure what to do about her own knight though. He was likely to get more upset by this activity. Sitting down to begin to make smores and places the binder next to her. “Thanks for putting stuff in perspective. We all are still alive and are so far doing well. And we have part of the golden crystal. One step down kind of. ”

She watches the marshmellows heat up and begin to turn more golden in color as Valdis continues to speak. Val pretty much had everything covered on that end. So much for making everything sound nice, but maybe they needed to hear everything more bluntly. However, then the scene changes. She stands up as death consumes everything around them. She feels queasy as she watches people get ripped and torn apart. She watches as so many that she cares about get cut down, and then arrives the vision of her own death. Her barrier falters with the last of her strength, and a blade goes through her heart. She keeps a hand over her chest like she can feel it. Her expression become stoic as she walks over toVal, handing her a chocolate bar. From there she walks her over to the grill and continues roasting the marshmellow. Her eyes are distant as if reliving what she just saw again and again and again. “So… what now? Where do we go from here?”

Peter paused. He had been idly checking the edge of Clarent, but... “Endymion yet lives? Well then, I will forgive your presumption to command me, half-spawn of Terra, because I may yet get my vengeance, for Beryl, and my own exile.” There was a gnawing, his Dragon finding the weakness. Then the sound, of a faintly hidden song, or a lost note. The ethereal song of a lost maiden. The sound of a DRAGOON, or Funnel... And then the cracking of glass. It was to him, inside of him, though perhaps Sophia heard his walls cracking.

And then Kousuke opened his mouth. “Maybe you signed up to protect the Senshi. I was blackmailed into it, and then had Cosmos ask me to make sure all of you do not make the same mistakes my timeline did. I have been in this world for eighteen years, and served as a Knight in my own timeline. Blackmailed into it, and denied purification as I was.” He chuckled darkly at that. “And then they were so scared of the Dragon they burned him out of my flesh, but left him in my soul.”

“Drinks are in the cooler to your left, Earth Knight. And you are a Knight to me. I will call no man King.” Not until he was sitting upon the Brittanian throne.

Everything Valdis said, the Serpent did not oppose. And then when he saw his own fall... He began to laugh. There was a sound of shattering glass, the tinkling sound preceded by the sound of a whining Buster Cannon, and the spray of DRAGOONs. His barriers finally down, his emotions practically streaming off of him. He began chuckling first. And then it was filled with his own bitterness and condescension. The Taint overtook him in his end. And it was the Dragon who met her... Only to be burned away. But he died smiling, died laughing. Died free.

“I get what I want in the end... I am with her. And I get my chance.” He was barely able to keep himself standing, the exuberant psychosis bringing him to shake with his laughter. But when he looked up, he saw something wrong. Why was Beryl frightened? Why was she leaning on the wall, needing support? Why was Beryl HERE? But... “Endymion... Earth Knight... Whoever you are... Your partner needs you. Sailor Moon could use your help.” He had more pressing concerns as he walked towards Beryl slowly. “Shh... I am here at last...” His gauntleted hands slowly took her shoulders, before pulling her into him. His aura was wrapping around her.

“All you have to do is believe in me, and it will go away...” There was a huskiness, a darkness to his voice, the predator in him alive and well, but yet. “It is alright... Shh...” He was holding her tight to him.. The feelings rolling off of him were a combination of Agape, Eros, Resolve... And protectiveness. There was something wrong, a magnetism in the air, an attraction, but not coming from him. It was resonating with him, but he was the target, not the source.

He looked up when Sophia offered. “Thank you, but I supped before...” There was a warmth to his voice, more than that, he seemed at peace. Holding Beryl in his arms, there was a true happiness there. His hood fell forwards, and he shifted so he was nuzzling her cheek, the mask falling away, before being caught in his hand with a small motion. The energy dissipated, and they could all see the Moon Knight's crimson hair falling over Kaguya's body as he held her tight to him, eyes closed. “I will not let you be hurt, Beryl...” His eyes lost their glow last, as the spirits, alight in malachite energy, flowed into him, and his aura died away. Ghostly pale, but strong arms were there, holding her tight to him as his transformation dropped away.

The man looked exhausted, even though he was holding Kaguya tightly. The eerie moan heard all around them as the spirits departed, seven having arrived, and six fleeing, the mocking laugh being strangely soft this time. He paid it no mind, the crackle of malachite energy near him as natural as his breathing... He was silent as he held her there, the same lost expression he had worn when he was trying to talk Sophia down... His gloves were in black leather, and his coat, normally azure was black as the void. The white trim to it, like fire, along the hem, seemed strangely meaningful. As if it was purposeful in the variations, not random.

The argument with Peter died away as Sophia and the others interfered. Watching the newcomer, David snarled. He didn't trust that guy, not in the slightest. There was something...unchecked, dangerous about him.

Retreating to the nearest corner, David patted down his pockets, checking for the knife. Feeling the cold, reassuring metal, Yinko glanced momentarily back to Peter before curling into the darkness.

The conversation bounced back and forth between each member of the team, the others indulging in marshmallows, candy bars, and other snacks. Then, quickly, Val started talking, and then, the headache intensified.

Gripping his head in his hands, David could feel the nightmares rather than see them. Slamming his eyes shut, David tore at his hair, trying to clear the visions. It didn't work.

When it was all over, the conversation was quiet, but serious. There was no doubt anymore. The timetable was short, and they had to act.

"Question," David asked, once again retreating to his corner. "What do we know about the obelisks? Material properties, radio emissions, conductivity, the whole bit..."

Kaguya felt someone embrace her from behind and during this freaking out period she heard a man's voice speak to her. Perhaps something dark and slightly animalistic in nature. But at the same time protective and there was a feeling warping around her, flushing away the horrors that she had seen. The fear was being forced back as she bealived these words and let it flow through her. The pink haired female became calmer and calmer until she came back to normal and she was about to incur her wrath for the older rubbing his cheek against hers. But heard him calling a woman's name and wanting to protect her. Kaguya's fury was dropped a great deal and went with a much more calmer tone and action. Deep down she never had someone to really protect her as she herself had to take care of herself. Sure she had her parents to protect her but that was family. She did not have a friend or someone to just come to her aid. At the same time a bit envious as whoever this woman was as she had someone like this.

"I'll be fine now, please let me go sir knight. And my name is Kaguya not Beryl " she said calmly and gently touched Peter's arms to signal him to let her go. "Are you sure you are ok" she asked. Since the man was slightly off kilter and she needed a small amount of breathing space. Kaguya now had a lot on her plate to think over, mostly the visions she saw. Plus the loony moon knight. Perhaps he was just as messed up as some of them, as they all had been scared in some way or another.

Keitha rubbed her temples a head ache beginning to grow. Not out of annoyance but out of the fast amount of information that had been shared. Some was of the actual fighting that was to take place and their actions in being fighters of justice. What made her head hurt the most though was the discord in their whole group. It seemed that there had been a lot of unspoken feelings within in the group and now that they scratched the surface of those feelings it all exploded. It made her frustrated because she didn't understand hardly what anyone was saying. They had started to get involved with the governments? They only had a few weeks until what? And with a sinking feeling she realized it was her fault, but there was nothing she could do about that now besides pay close attention to what the rest of the group was saying to catch up, and possibly later swallow even more of her pride and ask someone to explain it all to her.

She nodded at those who gave her empathetic apologies, "I thank ya all fer understandin me and forgiven me. And thanks fer stickin up fer me, but don be mad at Valdis, she isn sayin tha words she's sayin with anger in her heart. She's right, it does hurt a little, but tha truth is never an easy thing ta swallow. And tha last thing Ima say about me absence is this, I will do me best ta do right by ya and prove ta ya all tha I have a place on this team."

She the lapsed into silence once more listening intently to the others, questions springing into her head with each sentence everyone spoke. What was wrong with Valdis, why did she need to be purified? Youma what? Who was this new jerkface knight? And what the hell was coming out of his mouth? Her special earrings were not helping whatsoever to decipher what he was saying.

Her mind was filled with questions she had stopped paying attention, that is until Valdis showed them her vision. The only word or words that could form in her mind was horrific, grotesque, vile, disgusting. It was enough for bile to rise in her throat and nearly make her sick. How could the world come to this? Fear was sparked inside of her, tears began to stream down her face at the sight of her father was slaughtered, the last of her family, and Keitha never cried, especially in front of others. She wanted to look away from all of the chaos but she couldn't not until had all melted away and they were back in the present. She covered her face with her hands as silent tears fell from her eyes. How could she have bee so weak? To run away from her responsibilities while she needed to be training to help prevent the upcoming tragedies. While the vision was awful and would give her nightmares it also gave her clarity, Keitha would never ever run away from being a Sailor Senshi again. She would embrace it, and help save the world to the best of her abilities.