driftfleet | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Who: Mikleo (

nerdeology), Sorey (

monolike), Allen Walker (

save_the_souls), Zaveid (

airily), Lailah (

sansseraph), Eithan Paine (

deviances), Stefan (

stefanged), MORE TO BE ADDED
Broadcast: N/A
Action: Solrius's surface
When: forward-dated to 9/11

[Despite the destructive nature of this dastardly duo, there have been surprisingly few resident deaths as a direct result of their combined rampaging. Still, the property damage is mindboggling, and Sorey and Mikleo both have spent the past few days soaking up and sewing malevolence like there's no tomorrow. The people in their territory are terrified, homeless, helpless and hopeless. Despite the steady streams of people hunting down the boy and his dragon, no one has succeeded in killing either of them.

Sorey, more hellion than human now and growing more unstable by the hour, is beyond reason, a mass of the anger and frustration in more than ready supply by the system's inhabitants. Mikleo is nearly mindless, is no longer content to listen to orders for the sake of keeping his deteriorating partner happy. Soon, it won't be enough to just rip up trees by the roots and brutalize those coming after them.

Soon, nothing will be enough.]

(( starters inside! ))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Icicles. Fucking icicles. He's been impaled by a few of those before, back home, and he'd rather not repeat that experience, thanks.

Not like he has much choice in the matter, it's difficult to move and still stay under cover, especially when frozen water blades start spiking up all around you. Sorey's plan to separate them works - Eithan's forced out from behind Allen's cover, and that's just in time to see Stefan go flying. ]

Stefan! Fuckin' hell--!

[ But he really doesn't have the time to do anything about that, there's a sword coming at him. Fast. Sorey assumed correctly, Eithan's not really built for taking direct hits, so it's a damn good thing he's got Demonic speed on his side. He jumps back, only barely out of the way of that blow, and focuses on not getting smacked by any follow-up swings. ]

[Lailah moves out of the way of the icicles so that she doesn't get pinned like Allen. She takes a moment to note that he'll be fine breaking out on his own. The fire seraph then turns her attention to Eithan and Sorey.

There's nothing they can do about Stefan. Wind is weak to fire, but, unfortunately, she's not fast enough to counter it somehow. Lailah just prays that he'll be alright.

She doesn't have time to cast a seraphic arte, and doesn't want Eithan to get caught in one of them, either. So, the next best thing is to charge in with martial artes. Too bad both Eithan and Lailah have the worst defense in the party.

The fire seraph opens up with Flicker Flame. If she can get the full combo of Phoenix Triad (she'll say, "Go, my children!" during this), Blaze Waltz, and Phoenix Flight (which she'll say, "Bird's the word!"), it'll be good enough of a distraction in her books.]

[Eithan's pretty spry himself; the Shepherd's blow smashes through an icicle instead of his face, and when he turns again Lailah is there with artes he knows like the back of his hand. Even in the pouring rain her fire is as blisteringly hot as ever, searing the air between them as the Shepherd sidesteps and back out of her immediate range. Steam hisses up from her hands, her sleeves, the very air around her superheated with the force of her element.

Wonderful. The Shepherd drags a hand down his face, circling carefully to put Allen back in his field of view, even as he fixes his attention on Lailah and how powerful and beautiful she looks.]

Ị̝͖̯̖̺̯̎ͭͥͫ͑ͧ'̮͖̮̳͇̹̿͗̽m͌̈̊͌͂̾͘ ͐͋̈́̀sͫ̓̉̐̾ͪö͈͍̯͇̲̞́̉ͅ ͇̏͗͗ͭ͜h̜̖̦͈̘̱̱͌̽͊͌͆̍ẩ̴̳̉̓̇̌p̡͂̉ͪp̤̱̞̙̮̞͞y̫̘̦͑̐̎͘.̨͕̥̥̩̙̟ ̠̹̩̤̺ͦ̃ ̩̥̝̹̹̗̝̽ͭ̕I̸͊͊ͯͫ͆ ̸͎̞͈̗̘̩ͭ́́͌ͧ́ͅṃ̜̮̺̩͗̑̐ͯ͋͋̀ͅi͙̖̼̣̟̫͑ṣ̡̤͌̐s̶̯͙̗̼̗̥͋̀é͇͔̩ͅͅͅd̸͓̪̬͔̹ͮͭ̓ͥ ̴̤͈̜̳͖ͣ̈̇̎̏y͋̽̂̏̉̕o͓̐̃͊ͧȗ̢̗̞͍͈̞̻̆ͣ.͕ ͇ͥͤ͆ ̤̱͙̮̝͍̲͑ͩ͠I͉̝ͣ́ͬͫ̐'ͭ͑ͨͥ͛̈́v̷̳̄ͮ̃ê̳̜ͬ͑̈́́ ̖̬͙̹̘̦m̢̞͇̱i̼̝̩̫̘ͯ̑͑ͨs̶͖͖s͉͍̠̫̟͙̆̋ͬ̐͟ê͉̆́̏͑͞d͚͕͎̟͔̠̂̑̾́ͪ ͕̖́ͅyo͕͔̜̍ͥü̮͎͈̉ͧ̅͛̾͛̀,͎̝͈͈̯̀̈̌͠ ̵͓͖͚͑͒Ḻ̲̼̤͍̬̈́͛a̰̞͓̰ͯ̃̐ͮ͛̽̓į͈̮͉̄̉ḽ̗̘͚̩̜̝͑̒͌ͭͦâ̟̰͓͈͇̠͋̓̈̔ͪ̐ḥ̬̠̮̼̬̉ͤ̑̋̽̏.͍̘ͤͥͧ͘

[Seemingly apart from his own will the wind picks back up, lashing rain against the ground like a whip, wave after wave. It'll be hard to pull fire from her, but the Shepherd- he's so powerful now. There's so much malevolence. If he can just take it from her, wrench it from her for a short while he can deal with the others, drown them in boiling muck, wrap them in a tornado of fire, just kill them already then he can work on her, bring her in, in, where she belongs.

He might not remember her Name, but he knows her, and her heart, and her spirit. The Shepherd grasps the thread between their souls and yanks.]

[Lailah's flames may not be strong enough to create vermilion ore, but it's enough even with the disadvantage of her surroundings. She keeps her eyes trained on Sorey, stepping back to put more distance between them. Her distraction might have worked a little too well....

As it turns out, she's right. It works too well and now he's fixated on her. Her heart clenches at his words. Then, the rain and wind lash against her and the ground. Lailah winces as it pelts her skin and uses her fire to turn as much of it as she can into steam.

Then comes the yank. The fire seraph feels it in her soul and she stumbles forward, towards Sorey. Lailah clutches at her heart, face scrunched in pain as she fights it. It's like playing tug-of-war with her soul.]

Sorey, [his Prime Lord manages to choke out, tears and sweat mingling with the rain,] please, stop!

[Lailah doesn't want this. Not in any capacity. She struggles against it like a wild bird in a cage, digging her heels into the ground and not caring about the pain of the storm. It's nothing compared to the pain she's feeling now, pain that comes from an unwilling answer.]

LAILAH!

[Allen sees her struggling- shit, of course he'd try to target her after that distraction. He's managed to break out of the icicles, but he sees that Sorey has his eye on him as well so it's not like he could make a lunging jump for him. But he needed to do something]

[He glances over at his cape that's still forming the shield, getting an idea. He focuses to make sure only the part near Sorey reacts. So a second later, several large spikes jet out near Sorey's side- with full intention to stab him in the legs, arms or sides. Anything to stop yanking at Lailah]

Leave her alone!

Lailah!!

[ Eithan sees it, too - and he doesn't care that Sorey's attention was literally just taken off of him, he'll gladly provoke it right back onto himself if it means helping Lailah.

Allen's spikes stab at Sorey, and he gets his own idea - another explosion. Distraction. It snaps! to life in the air right in front of the Shepherd, loud and bright and hopefully disorienting enough to throw him off course. ]

[No, no it's all going wrong, all going all wrong-

The Shephard barely feels the sting of the spikes piercing his leg and side but he feels the restraint, feels himself tied down and then comes the noise and the light and he can'tcan'tc̏ͦ̅̏́͏a̺͕̩̱̳̻̙̔̂ͨ̕n͚̞̞̮̭̮̱ͭ̀ͭ̍͆̄'̄̑̐ͬ̉͂t̛̮̟͉̩̜̦̾-͖̱̪̞̞

He struggles against the spikes; blood stains his white cloak red as he jerks and thrashes, malevolence seeping up from the ground as miasma, weakening the ribbons until they shatter. He stumbles back holding his face, skin blistering and red raw from the explosion. The wind shrieks around them and the Shepherd uses it to throw his words at Lailah with all the force of a typhoon-]

I̲̠̥͙̗̻̘ͬ̒ͧ͐ͩͮ ̤ͮͤ͋̐S̮͈ͨW̗̰͈̑ͣͧ́Ô̗̘͇͖̅R̫̳̰͇Ë̯̪̘ ̩̫̺̦̖̪m͚̠͍͍̮͎̚yͩ̃s̫̖̲e͔̼͓͍͚̝l͈̼͈̙͚͎̉̾̏͋f̹̦̞̳̳̅̽ ͥͦͣ͑ͮ̅t̫͎͔̣̓͛͐̔̐̎͗ö̱̣́ ͂͗̾y̤o̝̖̘͌͛ͨ̎u͚̗̭̙̱̇̍ͅ!͊̈́ͣ͊̚

[Zaveid, Dezel, now Lailah, they're abandoning him-]

Ỉ͖͇̖͓̲͙̺͆ ͉̞͔̻̯̪͗̀̊d͚̞̺͔ͣ̃ͭͪ̒i̖͈͍̜̬̳̍ͯͭͦ̆̓ͅd̤͆ͥ̋ͥ͑̈́͐ ͓͈̝͙́͗ͫ͊̽͆̈́e̫͈̠̗̊v͕̓ḛ̳̻̲̹ͦ͊̽́ͭr̪̼͈͇̊͐͋̃̍̈͗ẙ̜̞͆͗ͯ̇t͍ͨͬ͊̽́͑͗ͅh̯̬ͩ̏ͯ̐ͨ̎i̻̥̟̪̼͕̽̆͛ͭͪͧn̦̺̆̆̃̎ͯ̚̚g͇̲̲͂̌͒̐ ͕͖̥͉͐͂̌̿ͮ̎ͅy͍̟͋̀̈́o̠̭̝̟̼̰̜̅͋̈́̉̍̆̇u̘̺̤̩̝̰̦̒ͥ̍͛͌ ̣̦̝̙̬̫̉̈̌a̘͈̮s̳̩̥̪͍͛͒ͩ̀k͇̭̪̺̙̒̈̌ͧe͔̼͖̝ͣ́ͮ̊ͮ̅͂d̺ͥ͊͂!̠͔̠̘͕ ͗̇ ̞̖̜̘̘̲̜̂͐͒̐̄̑W͖̟͓̿ͤͤ͊̋ͫ̚h̺̗͖̤̗̫͎̍ͩ̿̄y̥̝̰͓̖̦͊͂ ̙̐̊̂ͫ̏w͈͓̙̮̟̙̠̃o͇n̘̗̤̫͍͇ͪͨ'̮͕͆ͤ̏ͮͦ̎t͇̘̱̠̖̾͌ ͍̦̬̦̼̖̄ͭ̿̉̑̔y̬̞̖̚o̠u͊̋̂̔̊͌͒ ̮̼ͥ̑ͮ̽̇͂c̪͔͒͐̏o̟̮̤̺̓̆̎̀ͅm̮̱̤̿̔ͭ̍̏͆̚è̻̼͉͉̥̃̈͌̈ͪ̾ͅ ț͓̖̦͚̩̌̅̏ͫő͚̩̠͂̏̔ͧͯ̃ ͈̗͂̆ͮ̇m̱̠ͪ͛̿ĕ̙ͧͨͫͫ ̬̟̰͉͚̅ͩ͋̎͊̎w͋̓̓̈ͫ͊̚h̲̝̽̓͋e̖ͯ͒̂̋ͤͤ̽n̰͖͖ͩͬ̂ ͈̈̿̅͋I̯̪̞̬̎̏̃̄ͨ ̖̎̍n̺̪͔͙̰̮͎͑ͩȅ͇̭̫̱͗̓̆ͥ̊e̺̪̦͇͌ͣ̍͆ͥ̚d̪̻̼̯̙͔̫ͬ͗͛̇̈́ ͒̃ͨ͑̚y̝̪͉̬̪̩̿̀̚ͅö̖̘́ͯ̿u̜̮͇͍̟̻͕͌̔͂̇̄ ̩̩̪͓͙̩ͩͨ͛͒̓ͯͯm͉͈̖͖͔͊̒ͩo̩͖̒s̺̗̮̎t̹?̬̅͂́ͬͧͬ͆!̯̰͕̝̠̣͂̎ͦ̈͌ͯ

[Why won't she come? She promised to be by his side, to guide him, to watch over him, protect him and now he's hurting, he's gone wrong, nothing goes right and she's fighting against him, why, why why-

She replaced you.

Sorey's head snaps over to Allen.

A pure domain.

It's why Allen has been following he and Mikleo this entire time. ( He's tried to control you from day one. ) Why he was horrified when he saw them. ( "No one would fault you if you truly felt that way somewhere in your heart." ) He isn't a Shepherd anymore. He's a hellion. He's a Calamity.

And under Lailah's guidance- Allen is here to kill him.

Sorey grabs, pulls, steals Lailah's fire from her, wrenches out whatever he can and feeds it with wind until fire surrounds them, covers them, rains down on them and rises up. He's going to burn everything here to cinders. He's going to destroy this entire world, everything with it, including himself.]

Edited 2016-09-11 23:16 (UTC)

[It's hot. Unbearably hot. Allen has enough time to pull up his hood and guard with his arm to protect himself from the rain of fire, to protect his face and his hair. But that doesn't shield his legs from the fire rising up beneath them. He lets out a cry as the flames hit his legs, burning them. The cape immediately pulls itself out of the ground and goes back to Allen to wrap around him, out of impulse to try to shield its Accomdator from the rest of the fire.]

[The words hurt. Even if it's not really Sorey, even if it's not something he truly feels, the fact that it's said in his voice and thrown at her like daggers cut her to the core.]

That's why I'm here, Sorey.

[Lailah's words might be lost to the wind, but it's all she can do. It's all she can say until Sorey does the cruelest thing to her.

She screams like a dying thing as he rips her fire from her. The seraph falls to her knees and hugs herself, shoulders shaking. Malevolence burns her as it seeps up through the ground, but it's about as painful as a pinprick in comparison. What Sorey's doing now feels more like he's ripping her essence apart.

They're losing him, too, and that doesn't help her pain. Lailah pushes through it. She has to warn Eithan and Allen, she has to. She doesn't care about the fire. All she cares about is saving the child in front of them.]

Quickly! We're losing him!

[She has to sever the pact soon. She can't hold out like this and neither can the others if it goes on for much longer. But she can't. The pain is too much right now.]

[ Eithan may be fireproof by virtue of his element, but that only goes so far. This blazing maelstorm is intense. Suffocating. Smoldering. And it makes it all the harder to keep up, to see through the flames and the heat-born shimmers and keep his wits about him. He may not actually burn, but it's still hard to breathe. He hears the others cry out - especially Lailah. Goddess, he can hear her suffering. But it forces him to focus.

He can't pull the fire away from Allen - it isn't his fire to command - but he can try and get Sorey to redirect his attention, even if just for a moment. Just long enough for the others to regroup - or better, to act. Didn't Lailah just tell them to do this quickly? ]

Hey. You want a fire fight?

[ Time for drastic. And stupid, yes, he knows, but he doesn't care anymore. He rushes toward Sorey, straight through the flames. He even calls forth his own - a swirl of crackling and volatile fire around each hand, and when he releases them in the Shepherd's direction, it's a rolling wave of constant detonations. Fire, meet more fire, with a side of explosion. ]

[It definitely catches his attention. The ground cracks beneath their feet, mud baking under his boots. When Eithan scrambles up and throws a concussive wave at him, he redirects his attention. Twisting gales curl around the fire seconds too late; the force throws him back onto the baked earth, but the resulting flames twist up and away.

He's already on his feet by the time the air clears.

No sword. No fire. Lightning snaps overhead, thunder cracks and ice lances down from the sky indiscriminately, piercing the ground and melting almost immediately. The world's ecosystem can barely handle all the violent changes; steam rises from the ground as sharp hail pounds onto their heads. Lightning arcs ferociously as stormclouds bubble, unable to keep up with the vicious bursts of cold and hot air colliding.

The hellion wastes no time hurling himself onto Eithan. There's little left of the boy from before; no words, no emotion, just his fist, knuckles crackling with ice, wrapping up in his hair as he yanks Eithan's face down to his knee, then to the ground, slamming him against rock and hail, grinding him into the ashy muck.

The hellion looks up at Allen with just the barest glint of recognition before he tears after him next.]

Eithan!

[Sorey's on Eithan before Allen could barely react. It looks brutal, and Allen looks in horror at the scene. God, he hopes Eithan has the same resilience most vampires have. It was his fault he was here-]

[No, there's no time to worry about that. They must complete this mission. Sorey is focusing on him now, like Allen wanted. His own legs are being wrapped up by his ribbons as makeshift bandages and braces, but he doesn't trust the speed or strength of his legs.]

[But, he did have something from someone he did trust. Someone who would never let him down.]

Lailah, take care of Eithan and do the thing!

[As Sorey charges at him? He reaches into his cape. Then he jumps back as he slams a button on a strap. All of a sudden, the sound of Sokka's jetpack roars as it boasts him into a far back jump - quickly creating some distance between him and the others, landing about thirty feet away with an unsteady landing thanks to his legs. Sorey will be able to cover that distance in no time, but as long as he can stall long enough....]

You want your Seraphim, Sorey?! You're going to have deal with me first!

[ One moment, Eithan's trying to effectively play distraction. The very next moment, he totally got what he hoped for, and is tasting dirt for his trouble.

For a long moment after Sorey's assault ends, Eithan still doesn't move, dazed by how fast all of that literally just happened. He hears Allen's voice, and then some sort of... rocket blast...? He's not sure, he's only just managed to pick himself up onto his hands and knees. But when his vision does stop swimming? He sees exactly what that noise was.

That... That sure is a jetpack. Damn. ... And there he goes.

...Okay how hard did he get hit in the head?! ]

[With Sorey not trying to rip her element from her very being, Lailah gets to her feet shakily. She stumbles her way towards Eithan. As the fire seraph walks, she pulls out a piece of her paper. It glows a warm red as it floats in front of her, gently keeping pace. The paper will be a physical representation of her pact with Sorey and Mikleo as she severs it.

The fire seraph takes a deep breath, the air burning her as she does, before swiping her hand through it. The paper disintegrates along with the pact. Sorey's personal malevolence no longer infects her like it used to, though it really doesn't matter given his domain. All she has left is her pact with Zaveid, Edna, and Rose.

She's never felt so cold. Lailah shakes her head to get rid of the feeling. It isn't the time.

Now, for Eithan. A brown glyph glows faintly on the ground as she mutters her incantation. It's slower because of it being a more powerful healing arte, but he needs it more than Imbuement.]

Refresh!

[A sigil appears underneath Eithan. The power of the earth will heal him and anyone near him, and will also heal any burns he may have received. It will also rejuvenate a quarter of Eithan's energy.]

[All impulse and no mind means when the hellion sees Allen jump back using a fucking jetpack he just kind of chases after him, as predicted, instead of geeking out over something completely and totally awesome.

Allen's plan works out well for him; the hellion uses the wind to snap after him, crashing ungracefully into Allen and sending them into a tumble. He doesn't wait for either of them to get their heads back; already he's slamming an ice-encrusted fist against the side of Allen's head as hard as he can. He grabs at the ribbons around his legs, ignoring the hissing of purification as the Innocense burns through his gloves and palms, yanking Allen toward him and forming the ice on his hand into a set of claws that he uses to try and cut through the cape, through Allen's clothes, through anything he can get through. Tear him apart. If there's nothing left, Lailah has nothing left. Tear, tear, TEAR-

SNAP

The hellion stops; the ice melts from his fingers; the storm overhead quiets instantly into a drizzle; the hellion finds and loses himself in the span of a single second, blood from his own wounds mingling with Allen's as he pants there, reaches, reaches and feels absolutely nothing.

Nothing-
Empty-
nothing-]

Ah, [the hellion gasps, fingers curling into Allen's coat as he shakes and shakes.] Don't- Don't look at-

[His strength is still more than a human's thanks to hellionization, but- but he's weakened. He's weak. He's so weak, and alone, and-

Toxic
Ugly
Impure

He fumbles for a rock, for his sword, for anything- he has to- Allen can see him, he still has his eyes, the hellion has to take them away like his, don't look-]

Don't look at me-!

[Allen struggles against Sorey's attack, getting dazed by the blow to the head and some of the clawing meeting skin, cutting into him. His legs, his abdomen, his face. It hurts, it hurts so much- and he fights against it- but he has to stall. He has to stall long enough-

The storm ends, the ice melts from his hands. Sorey is clearly reacting to something. The tendrils of malevolence that was reaching for Lailah sever. This must be the pact. While Sorey hovered over him, it was his chance to pierce him through, to end this once and for all-]

["Don't look at me-!"]

[For a second, Allen's not in the field on some alien planet fighting a fallen Shepherd turned monster. He's back on Earth, staring at a fallen Exorcist turned monster, screaming at Allen not to look at him. Screaming at him not to look at him, not to look so the one they loved would never-

-Alma never became an Akuma for revenge.]

Stop!

[Sorey never became a Hellion out of hatred for being a Shepherd.

He snaps back to the present. Allen reached up to him with his clawed hand. But instead of piercing him through, he gave a strong side swipe with the dull side of his claws with all his strength, to send him flying off him.]

[ Eithan finally has the strength to stand, thanks to Lailah's healing. It takes him another second to register the whole situation, how Sorey and Allen have moved away from them. But the storms have stopped, and there's a definite change that comes with it. Must have been the pact they'd told him about, and now that it's severed...

He turns to Lailah first, gives her a nod. ]

Thanks. What about you?

[ He's not gonna ask if she's okay. Stupidest damn question right now, honestly. And they're not out of the woods yet. ]

["Don't look at me-!"

Lailah wants to sob. Instead, she just swallows and shakes her head. The tears of pain from before are drying on her cheeks.]

The pain he's been causing hasn't been physical for me. Even still...it's nothing compared to what he's doing to himself.

[The fire seraph turns to face Sorey. She's still reminded of a child, and she knows that he's struggling. It's not for lack of trying that he's succumb to malevolence. Lailah has never believed that of Sorey. He's always tried, but...this time his try has failed in a terrible way.]

Go help Allen. My flames won't be able to purify, but I can at least help you both with my seraphic artes.

[Meanwhile, she'll begin to cast Imbuement on Allen. It's not a strong heal, but it at least isn't something he can move away from like her other healing arte.]

[Allen knocks him aside like a ragdoll and that's it. Hellions have survival instincts too; they'll run sometimes, the smarter ones, hide and try to bide their time. Try to grow stronger, will scrape and crawl and try to survive as they are.]

Lailah, [the hellion calls desperately, rolling onto his hands and knees in the muck. What was his name? He had a name, but it's- it's not as important as that one. She's supposed to be here with him. Where is she?

He- he can't see her. He can't feel her. All he feels is cold slick beneath his fingers, mud sliding up between his bloodied knuckles. He kneels tight and cold in the rain, reaching up with trembling fingers to his face, feeling for features he knows should be there. He can't feel them- He can't feel anything-]

Lailah, [he weeps, searching, feeling along the ground. The man with the domain is still here. He's- he's going to kill him, he's- She should be here, or-] Dezel? Edna? Zaveid? [The hellion sucks in a breath as a name comes to him, cold and crisp as the rainwater sliding down the back of his neck,] M-Mikleo?

[He hears the crunch of boots approaching and jerks back, feeling in the mud for his sword. Everything is so dark, he can't see, can't feel anything, no fire, no warmth, just a gaping wound inside where his heart should be, an edge upon which he teeters before a fall.] S-stay away- Stay back! I'll- [-kill you sticks its claws into his throat and refuses to come out.

I don't want to do that. I don't want to-]

Stay away from me-! [the hellion screams, scrambling back from the domain.] Lailah! Help! Help me! Lailah!

[Lailah flinches when she hears Sorey call out for her, for the other seraphim. She starts walking forward when he calls her name the second time, holding back tears at the way he asks for the others...for Mikleo. It hurts so much to hear and see him like this.

She keeps walking, picking up her pace so that she's closer to Allen. Lailah can feel her heart breaking at how he wants them to stay away. It almost shatters at how he calls for her help, and she chokes back a sob. She has to be strong for him. She has to.]

Sorey....

[The seraph wants so badly to hold him close, to give her Shepherd the comfort he needs. She can't, though. She has to deny him this just for a little longer.]

I'm here, Sorey. [Lailah tries to keep her voice steady, but her sorrow and guilt bleeds through. She can't help feeling responsible.] We're going to purify you. I promise it'll be over soon. Please, let Allen help you.

[Then she can start making amends. She can start helping him heal his hurts, and then later...much later, she'll give herself a moment of privacy.]

[Everything hurts, but Allen pulls himself up to his feet, staggering as he does so. He can feel himself bleeding from his wounds, the burns ache-

There's a warm feeling around him, as Lailah's spell takes effect. It numbs some of the pain away, warms away some of the chill that all the rain brought. She was still there, still helping him, even though he's sure she feels pain from all this. Yet she keeps going...

He lifts his head to look at Sorey as he cries out. Long gone was the fearsome foe. Instead he seemed so...feeble, so lamentable. The expression on his face, even if his eyes were full of darkness...he's seen that expression before. It wasn't hatred, or malevolent. It was pain, it was fear, it was...

" As long as Sorey's safe at the end of all this, I..."]

She is helping you, Sorey. We're...

[Lailah was giving it everything she had to try to save Sorey, just as Mikleo had done. They knew it would be dangerous, that it could be very deadly- but they had an oath to fulfill, a person to protect.

"We'll save him. No matter what...we'll save Sorey. I promise."

He moved his arms in front of him, his right human arm holding onto the rest of the left. He wasn't sure what would happen....maybe the augment would block him, maybe he'd break his Innocence from trying to force such power after so long. Maybe he just won't be able to do it. But he has to try. For Lailah's sake, for Sorey, for Mikleo...for his own sake.

"We're destroyers, not saviors."

He concentrates on synchronizing with his Innocence. 83%...85%...90%...95%-

BZZZT! The augment crackles in his head, giving off painful shocks. It's enough to cause him to wince and grit his teeth, he almost lets go of his arm to grab his head-

No! He has to focus! Everyone's counting on it! Just ignore the pain and invoke what you need! 96%...98%...100%...101%-

Suddenly, there's a burst of power and light that comes from Allen is. The domain that Allen's been emitting strengthens dramatically, full of purity that smothers Sorey's malevolent domain. Allen's left arm changes, transforming into a sword as his right arm draws it out and his feet shift into the old familiar stance.

"But I want to be a destroyer that saves."]

We're here to save you!

[The worst thing about being dragged away by the fucking wind: breaking at least a dozen bones. The second worst thing: having to explain to random strangers how the crap you spring back to normal later, with full HP and only a bloodied shirt to indicate what had just happened. The least worst thing: having said random strangers pack you a bag full of thermoses (??????) to take back to the battlefield.

Scarfing down a couple of lemon gels, another blur of wind descends upon the battlefield, screeching to a halt right beside Lailah. Good, the storms have stopped, his thermos is still full (and hot!), and - and that sure is Allen standing right in front of Sorey with the biggest sword Stefan's ever seen. Is that coming out of his arm????

....

........

.............

Stefan takes one, side-long glance at Eithan, then at Lailah, before just staring down at the thermos as if it would explain everything. It doesn't.]

Edited 2016-09-12 05:28 (UTC)

[No no, it is his arm.

And as Allen strengthens himself, as he pushes past his limits and as his domain engulfs the hellion's, something comes back.

The crushing, suffocating silence of having your senses abruptly and violently cut off. The hellion freezes, kneeling there in the mud, trembling so hard that his human teeth beneath his hellion face chatter. He can feel nothing, can see nothing, hear nothing. It's almost like it was before- When was before?

the basin

When there was nothing but fear and the knowledge that today, due to his own foolishness, he would meet his end. What he remembers is this:

The smoke of a pipe.

The smell of metal and leather.

The crackle of a warm fire on a cool night.

Too big boots on too small a girl.

A swinging pendulum, keeping perfect time.

A soft breeze beneath his arms, his hands.

And small, pale hands, cool water lifted to his lips as he ducks his head and drinks.]

Please, [the hellion croaks out, unsure of what he wants. Not knowing why he begs, but knowing he needs something. End it. Kill him. Give him water.

Please.

Please.]

[He hears that plea coming from Sorey. He walks forward, closing the distance, his steps strengthened by his iron resolve.]

Sorey...

[He lifts the sword. The weight feels different from all those steel swords he's been wielding all these years as a replacement. Even though he now lacks a second arm to give him balance, it feels right. This is his sword, his true power.]

May you find salvation.

[He swings the sword down on Sorey- it cuts right into him like there's nothing there. For a moment for Sorey, it feels painful, like burning. Crosses of light appear right along where he's cutting.

But there's no actual wounds on Sorey, and the painful sensation? Starts to fade as it burns up all the malevolence in him. Consuming it entirely in it's purifying power, leaving only Sorey the human behind.]

Edited 2016-09-12 05:59 (UTC)

[Lailah waits and watches as Allen purifies Sorey. Honestly, she'll ask about the sword made out of his arm later. For now, she's way more concerned about her beloved Shepherd. She waits as the malevolence is purified from his body.

The moment he turns human and senses no residual malevolence, the fire seraph rushes forward. There's so much mud on her and her dress, but she doesn't care as she throws herself to the muddied ground again. Lailah gathers Sorey up into her arms, cradling him, resting his head under her chin. The way she holds him speaks of both wanting to comfort him and wanting to protect him.

Lailah looks up at Allen, Stefan, and Eithan.]

Thank you.

[Words can't express her heartfelt gratitude adequately, but it has to be enough. Perhaps she carries enough of it in her tone.

Then, the seraph's attention is back on Sorey. She starts casting Refresh from her position, wanting to heal some of his physical hurt and restore some of his strength.]