Transplanting Flowers [closed]

[trustme]

Who: Flowers Over Bones, the Sailor Senshi, and possible appearances from other rescuers
What: Flowers Over Bones leave Virgo and get help escaping from the Sailor Senshi
When: April 13
Where: Virgo HQ, then on the streets and back alleys of Vista City
Warnings: Violence, mental manipulation

Sans was determined to run and bring someone with him. Luce didn't waste a moment starting to pack when he told her. She was going to get her family out of Virgo now.

The rescuers were informed and the Sailor Senshi that had been waiting so eagerly for this day prepared to meet with Rei and her bandmates as soon as Sans teleported them to the agreed location. From there they would split into groups and take different paths to the warehouse where Silver would be waiting to begin surgery to remove their brain chips. Blanche would notice something wasn't right, no doubt. An entire band doesn't simply walk out the door, even with the teleporting head start. Someone from Virgo will try to stop them and hopefully they won't succeed.

Comments

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin freezes for a moment, tangled up in shock and panic. She didn't know what she had been expecting of the Virgo minions coming after them, but even if they had been bunny plushies come to life she would have still been scared out of her mind. Her limbs don't work right, like her puppet strings have been cut. It's really only by chance that she can scramble out of the way of an attack.

And then time slows. Fear clears.

Pao-Lin knows what to do.



She feels like she's settling into a routine she's rehearsed a million times. She's no puppet, now -- she's a fighting machine on autopilot. Her opponent looms over her, easily a foot taller than she is, but she has no doubts about cutting him down to size or bringing him to her level. She's the Lightning Kung-Fu Master.

...Lightning Kung-Fu Master?

He opponent lunges. Pao-Lin sidesteps...and then shoves him aside, sending him flying into one of his compatriots.]

[lightthedarkness]

[Sailor Moon was readying another attack when she saw Pao-Lin take out two of the robots and she smiled.

Well, this just became much easier for all of them, she hurries over to the robot that Ivan had thrown the phone at and fires another attack while it's distracted and focused on Ivan. She lets Pao-Lin handle the one near her, keeping aware of her, however, in case she had to use another attack.

Sailor Moon looked around, all six dealt with for the moment.]

Everyone alright? [She asked as she kept the Tiare at the ready.]

[sponsorigami]

I'm fine.

[ He'd do better if he had some actual weapons on him, but he needed to get rid of his phone in case he could be traced that way. Ivan continues running the way they had been going before their ambush.

They need to clear the area before more come, right? ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin shakes out her hand as she runs.]

I'm fine too. [Man, that hurt more than she thought it would. Those mechanical soldiers of Virgo's are no joke, not that they were one to begin with. They definitely need to pick up the pace and lose any that might be following or tracking them.]

[lightthedarkness]

Alright, let's keep moving before more show up to this location. We're almost there, maybe about ten to fifteen more minutes.

[She begins running again, not letting them get too far behind and keeping an eye out for any more robots, the streets they were taking, thankfully small and out of the way enough that only parked cars were really around them.]

[sponsorigami]

[ Having sent Trucy his texts and smashed his phone, Ivan can keep a better eye out for anyone approaching. He also changes his form from the random teenage boy to a random teenage girl at the earliest chance. (When no one is around and they are completely out of sight from any onlookers.) He'll do that every time they come across hostiles, hoping to keep a small element of confusion. ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[These are certainly streets Pao-Lin has never been down, or would have thought to go down. The farther they go from Virgo HQ, the more lifeless Vista City seems...or is it just this part of town? Or perhaps it's the stress of the moment influencing her? Although it would make sense for their rescuers to hide out in a lesser-visited section of the city.

Pao-Lin's hand still tingles from when she had slapped down the Virgo soldier, albeit less strongly than before. It occurs to her at some point, however, that she's keeping pace much better than she thought she would. She's been going at what feels like a dead sprint for who-knows-how-long but barely feels out of breath. In fact, fear for her life aside, she feels exhilarated. She feels...free.

A smile makes its way to her face. Things will be all right in the end, she thinks.]

[lightthedarkness]

Look out! [Sailor Moon suddenly lifted her Tiare as several bricks and more pieces of wall fell as it was blasted into, the bricks landed on the dome of light abilities created and several five more robot soldiers, this time with weapons themselves focused on the small group.]

Message to Flower Over Bones Band Members: Return now, and I will spare you from severe punishment. [The voice coming out of the robot was a recording from Blanche and several guns and the one with arm canons that had damaged the wall in the first place were trained on the group, the dome keeping them at bay but Usagi was feeling the strain, she'd not be able to keep it up if she wanted to be able to attack again for their safety. She wouldn't tell them that, however. She swore to protect them and she would keep her vow.]

Don't listen to him! [She insisted.] He isn't going to get you, I won't let him!

[sponsorigami]

[ Ivan has no intention of returning to Virgo like this. If--When he does, he'll be returning on his own terms and with the intent of helping others escape or gaining information to help plans go forward. (Again, Ivan has the thought that he really would have been better left behind enemy lines, but there's nothing he can do about it now.) ]

Don't bother fighting them. Run! They probably have an army!

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin quickly skids to a stop and promptly runs...seemingly in the direction that the three of them had just come from. She's actually backtracking -- she thinks she saw an alternate route around a block or so behind them. Of course, that's assuming that that route isn't also blocked off or intercepted by Blanche's robot minions.]

[lightthedarkness]

PAO-LIN! [She called out as she ran TOWARDS the guards and out of the light barrier.] WHAT ARE YOU DOING COME BACK!

[The robots are quick to make for Pao-Lin, reaching out to grab her.]

[sponsorigami]

[ Ivan doesn't even have time to call out when he sees Pao-Lin dart in another direction. However, rather than telling her to come back as Sailor Moon has, he spins around, runs, and activates his shapeshifting power to switch forms again. This time, he's a force to be reckoned with as his momentum continues, and he slams into the robot about to grab Pao-Lin as a large green suited hero.

Pao-Lin may be naive, but she's not stupid. Ivan trusts she has a reason for what she's doing. ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[Sorry about that, Sailor Moon. Pao-Lin has a tendency to act on instinct and her impulsiveness -- sharp and fizzy like electricity -- is even less restrained without explicit memories of her experience on the field to temper it.

But it's her instinct that lets her duck and dodge around (first) the robots trying to grab her and (second) a transformed Ivan suddenly colliding into one of them. She's thrown slightly off-balance, but she manages to tuck into a roll and come up running, apparently heedless of Sailor Moon's cries.

If either Ivan or Sailor Moon follow her, they might eventually see that she's on a route that leads to a single bridge leading across a water channel in the direction of their destination. It's a bit of a gamble, but if they play things right they might be able to cut Blanche's goons off behind them.]

[lightthedarkness]

[She wished someone would have warned her about both their abilities and their incredibly bad habits of not listening.

She idly, briefly since she couldn't afford much spare thought to the matter, wondered if this was how Michiru felt when dealing with Haruka. She shifted her wings and flew up into the air. Of all the things to deal with...

She flew over to them and wiped out another guard who was firing at her, the light barrier collapsing with her movement. She landed behind Pao-Lin.]

You can't just do that when you have no clue where you're even going! [It was just as well that they made Usagi memorize every minor street to their destination.] Do you know these streets, do you know that the paths here will lead you to where I need to take you?

[She honestly can't have this happen again, goons or no goons. She's not strong enough to be able to work with suddenly new plans, she's not able to protect them so easily as she is, and she's terrified to fail them, to break her promise to them, to herself, to Rei.]

[sponsorigami]

[ Oh no. Sailor Moon does not talk that way to his sister. The frustration and anger over this situation has built up enough, and he doesn't try to hide it once he catches back up. ]

We tried asking you! But you just take on everything yourself! We are not helpless or weak like you think we are!

[ Ivan fires back. He is really getting tired of their supposed rescuer treating them like this. When they get to wherever they are going, Ivan wants nothing more than to get away from her. ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin, on the other hand, looks pretty sufficiently contrite. She waves her hands in front of her a little, as though the movement could disperse the tension.]

Ivan, it's fine! I just...panicked, that's all! [To Sailor Moon she says:] Sorry...I just panicked, that's all.

[Oops, she's repeating herself. (Panicked! And panicked again! ....huh?)]

[lightthedarkness]

You also didn't tell me you could fight. [She let out a sigh. She looks at the robots and allows Ivan to yell at her.]

Full-disclosure, then, but you have to follow the plan, we don't have the numbers to keep fighting them, and we certainly don't have the time. I'll give you the address. [Though she had no idea if they would even know where it was. Regardless, Usagi provided the address to the location, though now more than before she worried about the robots getting them.]

Run ahead, I'll deal with these robots and join up afterwards. You are the ones we're trying to get out of here. [And it was a very good thing that Haruka and Minako were not here to hear this or they'd both slap her.] I can get them with one shot if I do this right.

[And she had to get it right.]

[sponsorigami]

Thank you.

[ Ivan tries his best to sound more restrained after his earlier outburst. He doesn't think he was given a chance to say what he could do, but now's not the time to point that out. Sailor Moon is finally working with them.

He does think Sailor Moon owes Pao-Lin some thanks for finding a choke point that'll make it easier for her to take them out in one shot. ]

We'll run. But you need to run before the next wave comes after them.

[ Because he still thinks that Virgo probably has an army at their disposal.

But why does this feel so familiar? Why is he picturing a suited hero of white and green so stubbornly fighting without telling people what's really going on and putting his life in great risk? At least Ivan knows he trusted that hero. Sailor Moon has a ways to go to earn that trust without Rei's word alone. ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin nods. She doesn't completely trust Sailor Moon, but that doesn't mean she can't be worried for her. For Rei's sake, at least.]

Yeah. Come on, Ivan, let's go!

[She'll grab Ivan's hand or arm to pull him along. It's less that he needs the encouragement and more that Pao-Lin doesn't want him spending any more time arguing with Sailor Moon, justified as it may be. They should have all they need to make it through at this point.]

[lightthedarkness]

[She watches as the robots come and she has to save up this last bit of energy before she flies up into the air, just high enough that they're in a straight line whether they know it or not. She summons her light energy and sends another Honeymoon Therapy Kiss attack, and all of the robots are shot in one solid beam of light and go down in twitching, electrically sparking piles.

She lands back down and took a deep breath. She would likely be unable to form another attack for another 30 minutes. But it shouldn't be that bad. She looks back towards Pao-Lin's and Ivan's retreating forms, lips pressed together in a frown. She knows they aren't pleased with her, and she knows she should apologize, if they even will let her.

But now is not the time to dawdle. She can give her thank yous and I'm sorrys once the chip is safely removed and there's no risk of either of them getting tracked and captured.

She feels exhausted but she can keep going, she knows she must, in fact. Her wings spread once more and she flies over to join them and lead the rest of the way to the warehouse, assuming they even need her at this point anymore.]

[sponsorigami]

[ Ivan lets Pao-Lin drag him away, and they start running. Luckily, it doesn't seem like the warehouse isn't that far, and given that it's a warehouse, even if they aren't very familiar with the area, there are other markers guiding their way.

Once they are inside, Ivan will drop his shapeshifting and resume his own form. He's... carrying two instrument cases across his back: shamisen and cello. The cello case has a sock sticking out of it... ]

[i_am_not_cute]

[Pao-Lin eases to a stop, her breaths heavy and deep. She looks around at the vastness of the empty warehouse, its dust and grime speaking of years of neglect. It's such a far cry from living in the heart of Vista City, where energy (probably literal energy, when she thinks about it) thrums in the concrete veins of the busy streets. It had been quieter in the Virgo penthouse in the bay, but with Angel hovering among them all the time and scheduling them for events it was sometimes hard to enjoy those blessings. Not that they were real, in the end. Is this warehouse any more real, though? Is the entirety of Vista City just a construct of Blanche and Lesedi and whoever else is behind these mass kidnappings and brainwashings?

She shakes her head. One thing at a time.]

We made it...