Welcome to Gaia! ::

No matter the weather, the temperature, or even the amount of rest he managed to wrestle between coughing fits, Voltaire felt as if he might join his beloved sooner rather than later. Patience was one thing that he could manage, but the mounting tension in his lungs and the way the air still raked against his throat as he inhaled had him finding his odds rather poor for finding out information or a solution to his issue.

The place he stood now was odd to him, with odd metal structures and suspended bars that stood all within a box of chipped wood or sand. It looked like something athletic, if he had to guess, but as he took a seat on a nearby bench, he found the bright colors to be charming.

Taking slow breaths, he sagged slightly after how much he’d walked this evening. It had been farther than each night before, all while avoiding most of the inhabitants of this planet. Between his lungs and his poor opinion of the general public on his own world, he still hadn’t wanted to bump into any of the humans here, as they were called.

Leaning his head back to rest on the cold metal of the bench’s back support, he let his eyes slip closed as he tried to get a few more substantial breaths of air into his lungs. It still stung, from what he was starting to assume was damage and not the actual air quality here. What stung more, though, was an odd feeling somewhere close by, something he couldn’t quite place, but it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Hearing a voice, thought some of the words that were spoken sounded like gibberish to him, Voltaire roused slightly and cracked his eyes open. The context he could tell based on the way their voice sounded left him to assume this was… a human. While he didn’t know what the laws were on this planet, nor did he know how the process of judgement occurred here, he felt that it would make sense that if something hit him, it would be alright to react.

Snapping his fingers next to his right thigh, he sat up a bit more as he looked towards the voice and noticed the disheveled-looking individual. Asthma? The word didn’t make sense to him, and he looked at them passively as he waited to see how they’d react to his unspoken warning.

As they stepped back more, he rubbed at his face slightly as he felt the drain from using his magic. This hadn’t happened before, but then again he hadn’t used it in hundreds of years. A cough shook through him, and he hunched forward for a moment, resting his palms on his thighs to steady himself.

Whatever they were bickering over seemed rather unimportant, but he shook his head. “Waiting for someone.” And this wasn’t the someone he was waiting for. His voice came out so tiredly, and he righted himself after a few weaker coughs.

If this was an example of what humans were like, he found the species as a whole lacking. While the base part of the language seemed similar enough, there were so many words thrown in that he had no clue or context for. It was bothersome, especially if he had to talk with more of them to find out about his beloved.

Sighing again, he stood up and took a slow step towards them. He didn’t particularly do anything; he just stood, even if that seemed like a lot of effort right now. “It’s only a warning for your transgression,” he stated, even as his voice tried to waver as he spoke. The concept of talking after breathing that poison for so long felt daunting, but unfortunately that was how things worked.

“Do you know of Absoluteno?” He might as well ask, even as that hint of somber hopefulness crept in as he said his beloved’s name.

Lot? For a moment he was confused, but then he remembered his meeting with the other senshi during the rainstorm. If there were more of them, then perhaps one might know something. He doubted the short lifespan of the humans here would give him any worthwhile information.

But considering they at least asked for details to help respond to his question, he felt that perhaps this one just had a poor mouth and not a vile soul. “Voltaire, and I’m looking for my betrothed.” Crossing his arms slightly, he sighed as the hit came and they tumbled. They were loud, so very loud, but he expected that as a response to his warning.

“Long fair hair, rosy skin, and quite energetic.” Everything he wasn’t, but he still loved her presence. The energy and motivation to socialize had been something he needed to manage in bursts at first, but after everything, he missed her teasing and quips. Using his title as a lofty joke, even if it seemed to spit in the face of the structure Voltarian society was built on, had grown on him.

“You attacked first; I thought it only fair to respond.” The words came slow, metered as he tried to keep from stirring up another coughing fit; it worked for the most part, but he felt drained from the effort as well as from his attack. The bags under his eyes were permanent at this point, and he felt like they might darken before he managed to drag himself to where he’d holed up on this planet. It was further away today, considering he’d managed to make it out further. But he also hadn’t thought that something that had come to him as easy as breathing before everything had happened would leave him feeling like he was one strong breeze from passing out.

He knew he wasn’t in the best health; he felt it in every fibre of his being. But that didn’t mean he had a solution for things, and this world seemed less advanced in some ways, so he’d doubted they’d help. Of course, assuming they could even tell what to do with his physiology.

“I just need to rest, that’s all.” It wasn’t that; he knew that, but he had to focus on finding an answer about his beloved before he let himself rest more. But the fact they seemed to respond positively, or at least helpfully, left him feeling the tiniest bit of relief. One more person looking, one who knew this place more than he did; it was at least a step in the right direction, even if that direction led to heartbreak over finding out she was gone.

“I’m… not sure what you’re offering, but I’ll manage on my own. It’s been like this for a long time.” Sighing slightly, he settled back down onto the bench again to rest. The fact that they seemed to want to help, even if it might get them in trouble, was also reassuring. Maybe the spoken word on this planet was just… louder than he was used to. Still, he would remain neutral for the time being as he figured out more about them. An unfortunate thing he’d have to do, even though he loathed interacting with the public.

“I’ll remember that, Liebthenite. For now I’m going to take a moment to rest here, then I’ll be departing again. No need to stick around; I’ll head off shortly.”