[Earth] [O/C/V/3rd/4th/8th] Week ---: Operation Shattered Throne

[Eidolon]

OPERATION: SHATTERED THRONE
​

WARNING: Network "SIREN" compromised.
WARNING: Location "Shikaku Haretsu" compromised.
WARNING: Location "Sougi" compromised.
WARNING: Location "Tokyo Bay Complex" compromised.
WARNING: Situation level "Class III Crisis" initiated.
​

In all the reports, tests, and psychological evaluations ever written about the man, Edmund Altgeist, the term 'team player' had never been written. And this is with good cause, not simply because something caused the man to devalue the value of teamwork, but because he had never been used in a team before. And, in this ignorance, he was acting. The General had ordered him, in no uncertain terms, to crush every single prisoner that had been freed. Not a single one could slip free.

Fortunately for Kite, his sensitivity to thanoresonance and the ability to meld it was of some value here. Relying on that instinct alone, he had abandoned trying to parse out who had joined him to aid, and instead focused on the clearest means, in his own mind, of success: go out and crush every single one by himself. Any that escaped him, certainly, could be handled by the others. It was in such a way, the youth found himself propelling in skyward bounds from building to building, clearing the distance even between the skyscrapers of Tokyo's mightiest buildings.

This was but the fastest path for him to reach Hachioji, however, where the advantage of terrain was lost to him. Years of combating the demon threat had taught him he fought best in cluttered, urban environments, despite the risk to innocent life. The ability to utilize man's creations, be it building for position or car for ammunition, was a powerful factor in many of his barely successful outcomes. Going into the open, with only trees, fields, and two story houses would be a potentially crippling affair. Worse yet, he had no knowledge of the enemy, or how coordinated they were. He simply assumed they were all in collusion, and locked away for having powers as fierce, or perhaps more terrible, than his own.

It wasn't long before he found the first. Adorned still distinctly in the uniform of an international convict, and alone. This did not change Kite's thinking on the matter though, for this man was weak. A bald man in his thirties, either the life of a prisoner or natural inclination affording him a significant endowment of muscle. His eyes with sharp, clear, and full of unspent fury.

"Hey pussy, what's the matter, miss your man making a bitch of you?" The taunting salvo from the agent proved sufficient. Instead of responding with words, the post human activated his ability: and became of flame.

It was clear to Kite, however, when he caught the charging figure, who apparently relied on close combat to utilize his pyromancy, that behind the wall of heated death, flesh remained. Without a second thought, the platinum haired agent's left hand caught the escapee's throat and squeezed, while the right came in with a hammer fist to the temple. The body crumpled to the ground in heap, sound muffled by the grass upon which they stood, a streaking line of ash having been carved through it.

There was no time to waste, and two quick applications of restraints to the arms and legs were all that was done before Kite began bounding forward once more. For a moment, he thought about taking out his phone to check up with the others. For a moment, but the instinct of a hunter stalking dangerous prey was too strong.

 

[Valero]

The short-statured teenager carefully followed the moves of the agent he had been directed to follow orders from. Leaping from building to building, about half a dozen behind and to the left of Kite, Shukumei Junichi brandished his blade and kept his eyes just as sharp.

Tactical advantage wasn't the only reason he was keeping a distance between himself and the leader of the group. What he had been told of Kite was more of a warning rather than a briefing, for the man was as cold a killer as a human could be. It seemed to Shukumei that the more time he spent with the advents, the more he realised that half of them were just as, if not more brutal than most of the shinigami he once knew. With that thought in his mind, it made the world perfect for people like him, not for his personality but for his tendencies.

A strange thought that floated around his mind were the gateways to power that he held within himself. Bringing a mask to the party when he barely knew anyone there would probably gain him unnecessary judgement and he's not sure he would enjoy having allies and enemies glaring at him alike. The only other option was his shikai, and Gekijin shared personality traits similar to Kite. The effect Gekijin had on the world around him was a reflection of that personality too - it wasn't good for friends and allies but if stuff needed blowing up? Sure, he was great.

Blue-grey eyes snapped on a man down below in prisoner's clothes. He was grasping his arm, which seemed to be bleeding, and limping as fast as he could go. Probably one that escaped the powerful leader of the force's onslaught. He didn't seem to have noticed the teenager on the building above. A moment later, Shukumei jumped down from the building, open leather jacket swaying with the breeze and revealing that green t-shirt with cartoon skull logo he loved so much, until he eventually landed on the convict, hilt smashing into the side of his skull to knock him unconscious. One more hilt strike to the temple just to be on the safe side, and the teenager continued onwards, keeping his eye around the streets for anymore foes that crossed him. What a fun day this is going to be, he thought to himself, and was almost certain he heard his zanpakutou spirit snicker.

[409/409]

 

[MoonlitRain014]

The feral man in his convict's uniform seemed an unfair, overwhelming enemy against the small girl standing in front of him. Her long, straight black hair was blown slightly by a cool wind that seemed to well up all around her and her elegant lace dress looked out of place in the shattered rubble that had been the wall of the Shikaku Haretsu.

Her opponent smiled coldly, his wolf-like face splitting into a grin that revealed teeth filed to sharpened points. He was known as Die Donnerwulf for both his looks and his powers. He was going to eat this little bitch up and spit out her bones but she didn't seem to know it yet. He advanced on her, relishing the thought of tearing that petite frame limb from limb with his claws of lightning.

Emily grinned at him and shook her head, tsking softly.

"Now, now you should be a good little boy and go back to your cell. Emmy wants you to play by the rules or it just isn't fair for the other boys and girls. I guess she'll have to teach you not to misbehave, now, won't she?"

The man began to raise his arms and electrical charges filled the air but abruptly, everything stopped. He tried to take a step but his legs crumpled under him. His nervous system seemed to be disconnected from his limbs and he was paralyzed.

Emily stalked up to him and in his eyes, she was a horrific creature with gaping jaws and a prehensile tongue with a mouth attached to it and in that mouth another tongue and so on. The hardened criminal yammered in terror as a thousand different hallucinations surrounded him. All thoughts of violence fled him and he laid there unable to move as all of his most primal fears seized him, his mind in a haze of torment and terror.

"Now you get to stay like that, my dear. At least until you're safely back where you belong."

With that she flowed off smoothly, black lace trailing behind her as she went in search of another convict to corral. This was the most fun she'd had in ages.

[364/364]

 

[Eidolon]

"You win," Edmund offered to the pair of convicts he had next stumbled upon. What a shit situation. Choosing between her life, and the life of likely hundreds more. He had jumped, blindly, into two signatures, and into a situation there was no way for him to choose, or overcome, simply. One of the pair: a tall, lean fellow with shaggy hair and a shaggy growth of hair on his face, had his hand resting upon the head of a girl. She looked perhaps seven, perhaps eight years old, and was happily chewing on a bit of a bun he had obviously given her. What a fucking day for her to leave her . . . the platinum haired youth realized there, that the truth was likely worse. She hadn't left her parents.

Bowing his head and turning about as he had been instructed, Kite attempted to sense out and position where other friendly signatures might be. But he didn't have long to do it. The second of the pair cocked the hammer on a beretta m9, which was likely stolen from a fallen police or Orpheus agent, training the sites at the back of Kite's head. "Not your lucky day," he offered in what seemed a genuinely apologetic tone.

So the other one's power is to change probabilities. Damn it. l have to . . . The gun fired, and the bullet within struck the back of the surrendering agent's skull, causing him to flop to the ground in a heap. Holstering his weapon, the executioner, a Japanese man of no particularly remarkable features, turned and smiled to his compatriot. "Shall we continue our walk?"

note

Don't take these NPC's for granted. They'll react to folk showing up and trying stuff.

 

[Vincent Valen]

Elena walked down the streets, wondering how the hell this got messed up so fast. How did it go from an award ceremony for a tournament to some kind of terrorist attack and a massive prison break? Regardless, she had volunteered for containment, to quickly subdue these criminals before they caused too much damage.

She paused outside of a hardware store, a big hole in its glass window. She sensed a couple of signatures inside, and with a running start she dove inside, careful not to break the glass. For special criminals, these men sure did revert to the methods of a common burglar.

As the agent turned onto an aisle, she spotted one of them, still clad in prison clothing. He seemed to be in debate as to what weapon he was actually going to steal.

“You know there’s a two for one sale on blunt objects,” she said aloud, immediately getting his attention. The convict grabbed a sledgehammer off the rack, his decision quickly made.

He attempted to bring it down on Elena’s head, but his momentum was halted when she caught the head of the weapon in her now armored hand. She altered the weight, causing it to become too much to hold. The sledgehammer dropped, crushing the man’s foot. Elena quickly followed up with a straight punch to the head to knock him out.

A buzzing sound caused her to duck as a chainsaw swung where her head had been. Elena brought her leg up the man’s crotch, making him seize over and pain and drop the deadly tool. The agent delivered a series of blows to the man’s chest, ending with an open palm strike that sent him through the very window they broke to enter.

Elena calmly stepped out into the streets once more. She knew there were other agents on this task as well, and would assist them once they met up. If they met up.

[323]

 

[Valero]

Blue-grey eyes widened from the corner where Shukumei witnessed one of the convicts seemingly assassinate the brutal agent. The vizard didn't expect Kite to go down so easily - the man was at least four times stronger than him - but after taking a bullet to the back of the head, what else was he to assume? Snapping his head back around the corner away from the view of the two men and the little girl, Shukumei pulled out his phone and began to hit buttons. It was fortunate that they had enough time to exchange phone numbers before the assignment.

Kite is down and there are two powerful humans at large here, rendezvous at my position as soon as you can.

With a final tap of his thumb, the text was sent to the rest of the team. It should not have been difficult for the others to find his position, since he was not hiding his reiatsu and he was the only shinigami signature in the area. Unfortunately, the two strong foes might have been able to sense him too. With his back against the wall at a distance away from the dangerous pair, the vizard thought it a smart move to remain without any action until the others arrived. After all, they still had the little girl and had taken down their leader with relative ease. Palm sweating into the hilt of his zanpakutou, the arcane specialist decided to play the waiting game, despite the itch that made him want to fight, that voice in the back of his mind trying to tempt him into what he knew was unwise.

[273/682]

 

[MoonlitRain014]

In the back of Emily's mind there was something nagging at her. It was like static on a radio that had just enough form to make her wonder what was there. Concentrating on the source of the thoughts, she felt a strange roiling mass of energy, like a Death God but also like one of those evil beasts called Titans by Cerberus. She began to move toward it, unsure if she'd find another escaped prisoner or something entirely different.

She came around the corner and stopped, hiding just out of sight of the teenage boy that she'd sensed. It was surprising that he looked so young and so familiar. Wracking her memories, Emily tried to dredge up his face and eventually she realized that he was someone who'd been around Zakki. He worked for Cerberus and she didn't associate him with any of the divisions of the Corporation but she knew he was an ally.

There didn't seem to be anyone watching either physically or with mental energy so she darted across the space between them. He'd noticed her and so as she came up, she spoke quickly.

"You don't know me but I've seen you around Cerberus. I'm Zakki's sister, Emily! He may have mentioned me before. He probably called me crazy! Are you here to hunt down escaped convicts as well?"

[223/587]

 

[Valero]

At first Shukumei wasn't sure whether to be concerned or relieved that another had arrived near him. He hoped those two convicts hadn't spotted her, but she seemed careful enough and his distance away from them was far enough for them not to hear low talking. When she arrived and introduced herself, the copper-haired teen raised an eyebrow and listened. Zakki had indeed mentioned a sister previously but all this time she had been working alongside him and he had no clue? He was far too focussed on the task at hand.

"Emily? Of course!" he responded in a voice slightly quieter than usual. "He has mentioned you but I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I'm Shukumei Junichi, but I'm sure you already knew that."

Looking around the corner, the two seemed to have moved on, probably to cause havoc for other members of their team. There would be no short amount of work for the team, however, as shouts and cackles could be heard from most directions as other convicts made their way into the city.

"Yeah, I'm here to stop the massive escape, but Kite's down and if those convicts could take him down, I feel that this is going to be a little tricky."

A brief warming smile appeared on his face for just a short moment as he offered his hand and shook with Emily.

"It's nice to meet you, Emily, but I believe it's time we got on with what we came here for."

Pulling out his phone again, Shukumei opened a conference call to all other members of the team and stepped away from the wall.

"We're sitting ducks out here, it would be advisable for us all to rally together," he said and placed the phone back in his pocket. He turned his youthful face back to the young woman. "Let's capture us some convicts!"

[313/995]

 

[MoonlitRain014]

A dark grin touched Emily’s pretty face and she shook Shukumei’s hand firmly before letting go.

“Alright! Let’s go! I wanna get my hands on as many of these sleazeballs as I can. It’ll be fun for everyone.”

The one thing that she neglected to mention was that, were it not for a few twists of fate, she might well have been one of those who had broken out of the facility. As it stood, she was secretly thankful that her strange spiritual benefactor named The Void had put her on a different path.

It wasn’t clear where they’d go or if they’d even be able to meet up first of all. She was guessing that there was some kind of locator beacon inside Shuku’s mobile phone and that the team would move to whatever location they moved towards.

She turned to the Vizard again.

“Let me find us some targets. One moment.”

Closing her eyes, she began searching all of the minds in the area. Unlike a typical Advent, she was more likely to use her psychic abilities first of all and then her spiritual senses. She located some very twisted thought patterns and grabbed the ginger-haired Vizard’s sleeve.

“Follow me. I’ve got two of them on my radar.”

With that, she began to lead them through the streets of the city. Eventually she had the two of them in sight. There was a woman and a man and they were definitely escaped convicts. Laying her arm across Shuku’s chest, she said, “How do you want to play thi, kiddo?”

[261/848]

 

[Nargles]

“Ahh!” exclaimed a voice stepping out of Shikaku Haretsu. He was a scrawny looking individual, with a stereotypical bad-guy, white hair look. If it wasn’t for the boorish gray outfit given to all prison inmates, he didn’t seem like the prison type at all. The man stretched back, cracking his ‘bones’ for the first time in ages. After all he had essentially been powered down for a little over a year at this point.

“My children, my poor children!” he shouted, turning back to what appeared to be the front entrance of the Shikaku Haretsu, “Daddy’s missed you!” He announced with a excited exclamation, pointing his hand forward.

The ground started to shake. Something big was coming. The glass on the front wall shattered, dozens of prison inmates bursting out. Some of their expressions were dead, others altogether lifeless. A plume of a sickening reiatsu erupted from his body, the inmates grabbing their stomachs, ratcheting and writhing in pain. In front of the containment team’s very eyes they began to mutate, transforming into grotesque monstrosities. Half human, half animal, all under his control.

Three of the experimental subjects fused together, an imposing chimera of man, lion, snake and goat was fused. It towered over the others as the white-haired man pointed forward once again. “I’m back and boy does this feel good!” he shouted as the horde rampaged, ready to tear down everything in its path.

Read this

A large portion of the gruntish mutants are pretty easy to put down. Their advantage is numbers. The larger chimera in the center of the group is MUUUUCH more durable. Frame of reference it took a few TNK students and Arano (a while ago. First Tokyo PMs) to put it down last time. They're rampaging and heading towards anything that moves and destroying everything in their path.

 

[Valero]

The teenager's zeal was dampened when all of the convicts in sight began to morph and mutate before his very eyes. Giant tails that looked like whips, extra limbs that bore claws and teeth outgrowing the jaws that held them were all visible from Shukumei's position, not to mention the giant thing that reeked of corrupted reiatsu. Fortunately, in a way, it wasn't the same corruption that burned beneath his usually friendly demeanor - Shukumei's day could only get worse if those things gained hollow powers. Deciding to fight mutant with mutant, the vizard's hand came to his face and that familiar white began to bubble up through his pores. Liquid solidified into the shape of his demon's face, a narrow mask with a thin slit that revealed his gold and black eyes and ram horns protruding in front of him.

"Let's get this show on the road," Shukumei said and a deep gargling mimicked him word for word. With his blade ready to kill and the itch in the back of his mind present no matter how insignificant, the short-statured vizard wandered almost carelessly into the fray.

"Mitsu," he uttered and the emblem on his left wrist began to glow. The power of Hainawa leapt out and grasped the nearest foe, a man whose transformation was still ongoing though he appeared to be sprouting bat-like wings. During a state of weakness the convict - no, creature - was pulled aggressively towards the masked hybrid, who then beat down on him with his wakizashi multiple times until the hilt was stained with blood. His team's orders were to restrain the prisoners and though the motionless foe that lay before him was wounded, he would not die unless somebody else tried to kill him. Shukumei wondered how long they could continue without killing, especially if that huge monstrosity strode towards them.

[310/1,305]

 

[Vincent Valen]

She must have been deployed farther than the others, as it took Elena a while to catch up to where the action was. The agent was expecting more basic convicts, so the appearance of some kind of undead horde was a surprise. Technically she had orders to avoid killing the prisoners and focus on containment.

But you’d be surprised what you can live through, Elena thought, having already been subjected to a variety of painful attacks during the tournament. A group of the mutants came her way, and the agent was already eyeing a lamppost out of the corner of her eye. She wouldn’t be able to rip the whole thing out of the socket as it was part of the sidewalk. However, it didn’t stop her from denting it hard enough for it topple on its own.

“Speak softly and carry a big stick. Well pole but close enough,” she said to herself, grinning as she went to work, swinging for the fences.

[487]

 

[Nutella]

It was at that precise moment that a throng of furious shouts came from a crowd of agitated prisoners, recklessly shoved to the side by another burly man dressed in their usual prisoner garb. Amidst the flurry of low-level prisoners came Minoru Tsukuda, grunting from the number of nuisances in his path. Without any regard for the 'small fry' that stood between him and freedom, the tattooed man charged forward, with the feeling of invigoration washing over him with every punch he took, with every creature he shoved, and with every forward step he took.

He charged farther and farther forward, grunting like an animal let loose upon the earth. Except, no, not really. The burly man towered above the other inmates, his glorious bald crown visible standing out from the shorter, queerer creatures, his tattoos of black standing out from the flurry of greys around him. More like, his tattoos stood out the most from his savage features, for those who were not close enough feel the wrath of his boorish actions.

He was a monster, lusting for the thrill of the fight and tasting the blood on his lips. Calling him an 'animal on the loose' would have been the understatement of the year.

​

 

[MoonlitRain014]

With incredible strength and speed, the small girl in the heavy lace dress scampered up a lamp post above the fray. Now she had the advantage of height and a bit of protection.

Concentrating on the animal minds that surged around her, Emily began seeking one to command. It was a lot easier to take over the mind of a stupefied, slavering creature than it was to command a thinking, functioning human. These things were just shells containing a sort of hive mind that wasn't all that sophisticated. Eventually she got a hold of one of them and a wicked grin spread over her rich ruby lips. There was going to be some serious fun now.

With a crude command, she spun the ugly monstrosity around into the crowd, sending it into the transformed convicts to bite, tear, rend and destroy. She'd use it until it died and take control of another and another. The best way to deal with an enemy was to make it turn inwards. Of course, she had all of the standard post-human strength and speed if she wanted to call on it but this was the best way to start.

The possessed convict stumbled and fell under the weight of its brethren and she took over another one of them. She'd keep doing this until she thought of something better to do.

[227/1075]

 

[Nargles]

"Ha ha!” shouted Echidna, giddiness from the sheer chaos being unleashed. He walked through the... well... stampede of his creations, with a sense of authority. He walked up towards one of the fallen soldiers, before looking up at the massive monstrosity that seemed to be alpha of the pack. “Here boy! Wanna a treat?!”

The enormous chimera lumbered over to the convict put down by Shukumei. Grabbing the still writhing convict the alpha raised it towards one of it’s three grotesque mouths. With a sickening crunch the poor soul was engulfed in a single bite. The chimera suddenly bloated, bulking up and growing more ravenous.

“Assimilation complete!” exclaimed Echidna taking on a pleased, victory pose.

The chimera barreled forward, faster and stronger than before. It leaped into the air, a wide umbra cascading over Shukumei. The beast bodyslammed down on the man with such force that it sought to fracture the ground and obliterate all below it.

All the while, Echidna disappeared into the chaos once again.

 

[Valero]

"Not good, not good, not good!" Shukumei's two voices exclaimed as the shadow of the gargantuan creature seemed to block out the sky. With his blade placed above him as a precaution, the vizard attempted to shunpo out of the way of the bloated mass before it could crash down, but it was a lot faster than it looked, faster than Shukumei's foolhardy presumptions thought it would be.

Managing to escape the greater part of the falling monstrosity, the teenager was still struck by a thrashing arm and sent hurtling through the air, skimming across the street uncontrollably like a stone across water. Jumping back onto his feet as soon as his motion ceased - his arm was aching and he had a few grazes and scrapes but otherwise was lucky given the manner of the encounter - those gold and black eyes stared down his target.

"It's too strong," he muttered beneath his breath, then lifting his voice to a shout. "I could use some help over here!"

He hoped somebody heard, because that thing was much too powerful for him to handle alone. Gathering his energy over the distance, a small orb of red energy began to swirl in front of his mask, forces colliding and twisting to make the orb grow in size. In an instant the ball of energy stretched out wide and blasted towards the creature with the fury of a monster, ironic considering what he was fighting. It was going to be a tough day if he had to use a Cero just to stay in the fight.

[266/1,571]

 

[Nargles]

The cero hit the creature dead on, a perfectly circular hole piercing through its torso. Black blood dripped from the chimera’s wound, as seemed to freeze for a moment. Its body wrenched back upwards at a most unnatural angle, as it lowered its two grotesque hands to grab two more prisoners from either side. With a single crunch it ingested both.

Roaring outwards, flesh erupted bulbously from the wound, an enormous third arm growing outwards. With renewed strength, it began to twist and coil its body, winding itself up like a top. The sound of shattering bones, as the beast’s skeleton broke and reformed rapidly could be heard clearly.

Letting go the stored energy, it spun rapidly in a circle, rotating violently forward at an immense speed. The three arms flailed outwards with enormous strength, easily snapping the bones and bodies of the surrounding individuals into pieces. It bore down on Shukumei, ready to eliminate him completely.

 

[MoonlitRain014]

Emily could see what was about to happen if Shukumei didn’t get out of the way. She was too far away to throw her body against him and move him. For a wild moment she considered taking over his mind but that might take more time than she had. Instead, she guided the convict she had in her thrall towards the thing at a dead run.

It passed in between the Vizard and the spinning monstrosity at just the right speed to take the flesh shredding force of the thing full in the chest and blunt its advance. The pretty killer had no qualms about letting someone get shredded if it meant her and her allies wouldn’t lose the fight.

She leapt into the air and landed to the left of their assailant, easily drifting to earth. Immediately she set her mind the task of finding more convicts to throw in the the path of the thing. It was easy enough to find corrupted minds and soon another flesh-doll was shambling towards the monster, ready to be turned into raw meat.

[181/1274]

 

[K3]

Beasts and men. Men and beasts. Something between them weaved amongst the crowds, making swiftly for the great chimera and Shukumei. A man stepped before him, crooked teeth pulled back into a sneer.

Bright turquoise eyes stared with disinterest at the man, Tougen's steely-blue braid whipping about with his rapid movements. He ducked under the haymaker swing of a bit of loose pipe, and flowed past the man in a short bound, ignoring him entirely. His kosode, sleeveless and torn at the shoulders, ruffled with his skilled footwork. The sleeves of his shitage were rolled to his elbows, revealing a myriad of purplish scars along his right forearm.

Popping up next to Shukumei, the enigmatic man seemed oddly aloof. His voice remained insistently chipper as he enjoyed the berth the throng of criminals gave to the struggling Vizard. "Well, fancy meeting you here, little Vizard. Who would think such a commotion would find one such as yourself caught amidst it... bad form, I'd say."

The hulking beast swatted away the convict like so much dead weight, a broken body matching his broken mind as he sprawled away, prone, and lay still. With a bellowing roar, the beast was upon them. In another, something definitively odd occurred.

A great sensation of panic overwhelmed Shukumei's senses, his feet rooted and his hands stilled. The hollow in his mind stilled for a moment, and his head could barely find the ability to swivel to face Tougen. He moved languidly, a strange smile painted across his face. Flecks of bright rose red and deepest navy danced in his eyes, as he regarded the creature.

That same panic squeezed down on it. An instinct that demanded it to flee warred with a measure of apathy, some otherworldly presence evident in Tougen.

[ 296 / 296 ]

Notes

Ohai. Jumping in because three people have disappeared and this needs to start getting under control. Tougen's using a mixture of Terrify (Air of Fear) and Kharite's Grace. The sensations are creating a conflict of interest which could probably be likened to being paralyzed with fear. Treat it as a mental attack, can be mitigated where/when possible.

 

[Valero]

Needless to say, Shukumei was surprised when one of the inferior mutants literally threw itself at the gargantuan that faced him. Its attack was hindered, but the thing was a monstrosity and the vizard was still a prime target. Lifting his wakizashi so the tip of the blade was eye level, his mind worked frantically to find a way out.

And it came. The most unexplainable mixture of terror and soothing calm overwhelmed him and seemed not just to dwell on his mind, but in his muscles too. His legs quivered as he attempted to step forward, but he could barely lift his leg off the ground. It was just as well that another figure took his place opposite the... fallen... creature?

Shukumei had thrown a cero at that thing and it just shrugged it off as if it was nothing. That familiar voice was almost a relief, if not for the trepidation ruling his mind. Turning his head slightly to Tougen, golden eyes stared the man down and confirmed the teen's suspicions about his reiatsu level.

"We need to stop meeting like this," the vizard managed, maintaining his humour despite the situation. Nodding past Steely-hair towards Emily, Shukumei made a small gesture of appreciation. All that remained was to kill the damned thing and hoped the rest followed.

[221/1792]