[semi-open] If you're trying hard to breathe in the dark

[likethelight]

Who: Allen & others, possibly Argonaut appearances
What: Event-log and other April-related prompts. Plotting prompt stuff!
When: Throughout April
Where: Various

Content Warnings: SAD THINGS, harm and death to NPC children, mutilation, nightmare fuel mindfuckery, high corruption and beasthood.




⛧ 1. if your screams don't make a sound (wonderkind/AKUMA) ★

[ You were probably just minded your own business doing something totally normal — and then you got caught in up in Allen Walker's vortex of bad luck. Sorry. It's just a thing that happens. He doesn't even have his unlucky rabbit's foot on him! He learned better really quickly...!!

Regardless of whether you might have been haggling with a bakery over the price of day-olds, sipping tea in some little shop, or maybe this is your house that he's... about to put a hole through. So sorry — but all of a sudden part of the nearby brickwork explodes as a slender figure is bodily slammed entirely through it.

Yeah. It's that kind of day.

It does not look comfortable. And it does not look like something anyone could have gotten away with without some broken ribs, but as the dust settles the boy that was indeed used as a wrecking ball of sorts starts coughing and trying to sit up. This is just -- ugghhh...

Coming to his senses quickly though, dressed in a black and red jacket underneath what seems to be a impossibly volumous feathered white cloak that seems to be made of moonlight itself he -- blinks. And then whirls around, realizing you're there.

His left eye has bled black throughout the sclera, and the iris has shifted to glowing red rings that shift in and out like a camera lens focusing. There's a dark, corrupted sort of smoke that seems to be pooling around it as well. His expression is wide with alarm, actual fear for a moment at seeing you there, before he stumbles back up to his feet. To square his shoulders, face the hole he just was thrown through—

And rip back, shouting at you over his shoulder as he spreads a single arm out in warning. ]

RUN!

[ Because, over the edge of the rubble... there's a faint sort of here-but-not dark glow. And the world seems to desaturate, fading from color into the black and white. It doesn't feel right. It doesn't feel like you're even looking through your own eyes.

And then you hear a faint sobbing. Distant, but far too close as well. Like it's there in your own skull. Faintly.

And a figure floats into view, cresting the stone. At first, it looks like... an extremely mummified corpse. Bone dry, curled up in a fetal position. It isn't even the thing crawling up and through the hole, but that seems deem and distant right now. It's attached to it.

Because the sobbing stops as soon as you look at it, and the specter stiffens suddenly. Socketless pits for eyes turning right towards you as it realizes you see it —

—and its jaw falls open as it screams. ]



⛧ 2. if your heart just cries too loud all the time (butterflies/beasthood) ★


[ He knew this worked like a game of Russian roulette, he really did. And he doesn't even want to have to destroy any of the butterflies that have flocked to the Trench. It's fine when they stay up and away from people, but when they choose to land near populated areas...

It's not even for misjudging his own ability to purge corruption from his own body! It has limits, he knows that... too much can still be too much if it's all at once. But he has to keep trying. Better him than someone else. Or at least, thinking about that...

...it's easy to forget the actual consequences.

Maybe you were there when he destroyed the butterfly, a boy who suddenly transformed into into a white harbinger wreathed in what looks like condensed moonlight taking the shape of a huge feathered cloak and wielding a great broadsword as long and broad as he is. Maybe you just see the consequences of that — or hear the sudden howling gale.

A whirling gale of feathers, light, and tattered wings made from moonlight themselves that rips upwards from a doubled over figure. A white and gold gigantic masquerade mask floats above as well, twisting to and fro from the feathered cloak like it's unsure how to hold its shape, like it's too angry to remember its shape and cares not for what it was, but is trying to contort itself into something new. But the winged sort of cloak looks almost angelic, glowing white-gold and ethereal. It's beautiful, and somewhat terrible as well. Especially as the figure, with his hands clutching his head like it wants to split in two, would not seem to have a normal left hand but a great white and gold monstrous sort of claw instead. But it too can't seem to hold its form, splitting into glowing feathers along his arm that twist in the air.

It's like a howling monster clinging to the figure even as it also tries to rip away.

And if you're caught staring, an edge of that tattered, feathery wing-cloak rips out towards you and slashes into—and through the brickwork by your head. And that's when you might realize that even though it looks like a cloak and feathers, it cuts as sharply as any sword. ]

Stay— [ It's a boy beneath all that. A teenager, pale and ethereal himself as the feathers around him, with a dark red scar cutting through the left side of his face. And he pants and rasps it out, gritting his teeth audibly and fixing a surprisingly sharp and hard dark eye on you. A window of raw clarity in a maelstrom.

Anguished clarity, his face twisted in tragedy.

But that eye is blood red and black, and the scar surrounding it twists itself restlessly across his face like an angry, living thing. Black smoke bleeds from that left side of his face, mixing in with the white. ]

—back...

More closed prompts below! I'm trying to do more closed/planned things since I have a lot going on this month and a bunch that are sequential, but please feel free to hit me up on my plotting prompt and I'm happy to plan something and do a private prompt for us! He will be generally collecting the hope orbs, mostly for Viktor, getting fucked up with his restored memories/tether and hiding from people later in the month, and trying to purify and reverse the corruption/beasthood of any turned, especially as a result of the butterflies. So, especially if you want to get your character in on realizing even full beasthood can be reversed by exorcists and other sorts of purification abilities and you want them to be able to see the human souls still in them... 👉👈 hit me up.

Comments

[swellter]

[ Allen's laugh harkens back to the first time he made his thoughts known about the curse to both Modoriya and Iida. They laughed too thinking he was joking. He wasn't. Isn't. Thrice now, he's had the same reaction and wants to plead his case, but Allen is in such high spirits while heading toward death, he's unwilling to dampen his mood. ]

It... is. [ Hesitantly. Why doesn't anyone ever believe him? Is it... part of the curse...? ]

[ Tactics are easier to digest. Familiar with brainstorming a plan on the fly with different quirks involved against an unknown foe, he's quick to adapt to every new piece of information, even if it means using half of his quirk - he's used to it. ]

My ice is stronger anyways. I'll use my fire to maneuver, not attack.

[ What comes after is not all that unfamiliar now that he's allowed himself to have friends. These brief moments after a brainstorming session. The ones filled by better people than him who joked and smiled; promising tomorrow.

Allen does too in his own way. A bright smile, delicate like spun glass, he's afraid to respond for fear of breaking it inadvertently. So, he nods instead, stretching the moment as far as it'll go.

One. Two. Maybe three seconds before Kizu warns him of the city limits. He looks past Allen, his ice still generating beneath them at a rapid pace. He slows down, moving with more caution as they approach ground zero. ]

[likethelight]

[ Oh, no, he absolutely figures Todoroki isn't joking. His demeanor was far too frank for even a poker face. And that's honestly what made him laugh and appreciate it as he did: that it was so genuine, that ironic concern. How could he not be fond of that?

Unfortunately, it's short lived. They're arriving back at the area, and Allen's demeanor quickly sobers. The smell has returned, and this time he keeps both an eye ahead and one on Shouto as well. To take in his reaction this time and not make the same mistake as before.

To offer a quick, reassuringly firm and grounding squeeze of the hand with his one good one if it looks like his emotions might falter.

Especially when they get close enough to see the broken remains of the akuma's previous evolution, the arms that had been pulling their way from its eyeball had morphed into various staged of half-formed other, more humanoid creatures. Stacking up upon themselves like tortured monsters reaching towards the sky, frozen and statuesque, until the giant statue of a fully human woman finally peels upward and out of them. Bent backward with her arms now limp behind her like a grotesque sacrifice to the moon above --

-- and her swollen belly shattered open, empty save for smoke pouring from it. ]

It's already been born... [ It's murmured uneasily, and even someone like Allen sounds unsettled by it. He didn't know how long it might take; he'd missed that part before. But he tenses suddenly, head snapping to look towards the base of the statue's legs.

Nothing yet in sight, but not even a fraction of a second later... there's an eerie, disconnected giggling. ]

[swellter]

[ Take the high ground. Kizu commands in a tone that has him accepting her condition without quarrel when the scent of something rotten hits his nose. He breathes through his mouth, ignoring the smell and the look from his companion. ]

Kizu is staying on the ground this time.

[ He answers in turn, keeping his eyes trained ahead. When they reach the epicenter, he takes his time to slowly peer down at the carnage below, catching sight of that shattered belly amid the devastation.

He looks away within a few seconds, rattled by the sight, but keeps his quirk in check this time. He feels a comforting squeeze, returns it, but doesn't try to look down again. ]

The Akuma?

[ He focuses on their enemy instead of the corpses, focusing on what he can achieve. In answer, a tittering sound between eerie and human echoes through the air, sending him on high alert.

He lets go of Allen's hand, stepping back to a sturdier posture searching for the sound while Kizu tries to sniff it out. ]

[likethelight]

[ On high alert, Allen barely notices he let go. One of the fingers on his left hand twitches slightly, the bladed claw bouncing for a moment as his posture is like that of a dog straining on a leash. ]

Mn. [ As he speaks, a human-sized form peeks from around the legs of the statue. Like a small child might hide behind its mother's skirt before peering around it, it stares up at the two of them with wide, utterly unafraid eyes. With intelligence and childlike curiosity, and looking like a twisted, pot-bellied corrupted cherub. Glowing wings like a fairy and a series of halo-like discs above its head, it has ball-joints like a doll come to life with one male breast, one female.

Allen swallows, a strange sort of expression coming over him. Wired as much as it is suddenly quite calm. ]

Level four...

[ Beasts, in the Trench, do not so much speak as howl. Raging and crying out, they more or less rampage like wounded animals. They look and sound inhuman, and therein is one of the biggest differences between them and an akuma. Especially one this evolved.

It's intelligent and speaks perfectly well, with a thin and sing-song voice as it looks first to the thing it's been holding in its hands, then back up at Allen and Shouto.

It decides they're more interesting and drops the severed head, chewing on its pinky instead as it cocks its head to the side.

"Do you... want to play?"

The head hasn't even come to a stop before Allen leaps headlong forward and down without so much as a second look. ]

[swellter]

[ The uncanny valley between human and inhuman. Form familiar but not quite right. Alien-like. It stares and Shouto stares back, unease creeping up his spine. Almost human, but wrong. Voice musical but off-key, oscillating from one frequency to another, the tones clash, and he feels repulsed by its bastardized form. Angel-like but malformed. Insect-like wings. Halo cutting through its head.

Unholy.

His pulse picks up at the sight of the severed head in its hand, mouth stained red from... His stomach revolts at the sight and he feels such a stark aversion to it goosebumps break out on his skin. Catching himself, his hands turn to fists, fingers digging into his skin, grounding him. Righteous anger rises at the dismissive way it tosses aside its meal. Curious and child-like with blood dripping from its lips, SHouto's expression grows cold.

Allen dives in for the first attack and he swings his hand for the next. A glacier five stories high explodes from the ground within two seconds cutting off its escape. Attack began, he circles the area ready to lend aid when needed. Kizu is in his head coordinating what she sees from the ground - not the dead, she keeps that to herself. Prompts him to focus on the beast - Akuma. Level Four, Allen called it. It means nothing to him. A category system most likely. Like the Nomu. It makes sense then, but its powers remain elusive, so he watches from afar, sending out long-range attacks that won't interfere with his teammate's movements trying to suss out its abilities while he lends support. ]

[likethelight]

[ It watches the wall of ice shoot up behind it with a passive sort of disinterest, not seeming particularly perturbed and more intrigued than anything. And its attention shifts back to the other one, to Allen as he closes the gap. Exorcist. It knows that, and its eyes light up.

Allen, meanwhile, moves like someone possessed. Lightning quick and still in mid-air, he reaches with his right hand to grasp the small crown circling his other wrist. Pulling from that arm in a transformative burst of light a gleaming white and gold greatsword as long as he is tall and almost as broad. Something he takes his full weight and the speed of his descent with and slams down into the ground where the akuma was a moment ago, leveraging that advantage as much as using the unique nature of the sword to help buffer his own fall. But it sidestepped, seeming amused, as he rounds and presses in on it with a series of desperate, rage-filled blows.

Emotions, for an exorcist, need to be channeled; to be understood. Rage, despair, love, sorrow -- the emotions that make someone want to protect something else and the literal source of their power, and what can cause devastating effect and failure if their heart should falter. And Allen -- he has the deepest, if most turbulent connection of them all to that power. With a heart worn literally not on his sleeve, but by a full body armor in the form of that cloak.

The two of them weave in tight circles, Allen pressing for an opening and the akuma studying his movements as it continues to dodge easily, floating along the ground and dipping with an agility not unlike Timcanpy. Until it raises a hand finally and, clang, catches the edge of the sword easily in its hand. Like it was absolutely nothing, and, while Allen falters for a moment in trying to pull it free, spins its whole body around like an owl might its head and kicks him with a force that sends him flying backwards, hard enough it'll make him slam into one of the buildings. ]

[swellter]

[ A shield wall snaps up between the Exorcists and the Akuma, blocking Allen from view. No point in going to him. Allen's strong. Besides, it'd only give the monster two targets for the price of one attack. Cold calculation mark his thoughts, trained in tactics since he was old enough to read, Todoroki abandons his right and dips left.

I've seen them in fire before, and they only seem to enjoy it.

Good enough.

Skating up an ice ramp reaching for the sky, he shoots past it. Lets himself free fall through that arc. Calm and collected, he locks eyes with the Akuma before igniting his flames, accelerating past it. Not an attack, but an enticement. Engaging in a deadly game of tag while his teammate get his footing.

Follow me. ]

[likethelight]

[ Ah. ♥ It likes tag. Tag is fun. That one is fun.

While Allen pulls himself from the rubble he was thrown against and gets his bearings, the akuma takes off in hot pursuit of Shouto. Fast, incredibly fast on those wings. Enough to come up abreast of him without seeming to even really exert itself that much.

"Can't you go any faster?" It's smiling, like it's having a grand old time. Like a child playing with its toys.

And then it flicks its finger at him.

Just that. Just one single little flick. A ball of dark purplish-black energy sparks at it, energy crackling, and hurtles at him with the full force of an electrocuting semi truck. ]

[swellter]

[ He's faster than Inasa!

It whips past him to and fro, playing games. It smiles at him with those painted lips still red with blood and Shouto feels a deep-seated aversion to it. Tries to get away, but even at his hottest, it runs circles around him. Comes up beside him when it gets bored and has the audacity to ask him that!

It reaches out to him - Don't touch me! - and Shouto blasts it with fire, instincts taking over. The roar of the flames covers up the snap of its fingers birthing a fireball of energy that hits him full-on blasting him through his own wall of ice knocking the breath out of him. ]

[likethelight]

[ It's the unfortunate part of fighting creatures that are holy or unholy in nature: they're cheats.

But as it surveys the damage its done and seems pleased with itself, a luminous ribbon whips out and binds itself along its forearm. It makes it tug on it, curious, right before Allen slams into it blade first. With the vicious force of a small wrecking ball himself, the other end of the ribbon-like tether attached to the part of the cloak that's around his wrist. Sparks flying from where his sword drags across the hard shell of its arm as it parried at the last moment, they begin to trade blows. Each of his hits gets parried by its arms, but each time it punches or kicks him away he pulls tight on that tether and yanks himself right back up into its face.

Taking a beating, but this time making sure it can't get rid of him that easily. ]

Todoroki!

If you can hear me... [ If you're conscious. Please be alright. ] Don't worry about my movements! I'll manage!

[ Nng. It lands a hard blow to his side that staggers him even with his cloak acting as a buffer, and he's quickly put on the defensive. Bringing the flat of his sword around to bear more like a shield to block a hammering rain of quick hits. ]

Just use your ice!

[swellter]

[ A large chunk of ice breaks off from above, crashing near him and continuing on its downward trajectory, hitting the ground below and splintering in dozens of pieces. Todoroki sits up among the rubble, tossing aside smaller chunks off him and gets back to his feet just as Kizu summits his position. Moving gracefully through the debris she slams straight into him back to her perch, disappearing from view.

Teeth gritted, he looks for Allen, not questioning her reasoning. Finding him, he generates another ramp and gets moving. Clearing the rubble he can see his great sword rammed into the thing, hears him call out to him, and does as he'd told.

Holding nothing back, he sends a massive glacier down on his position. It falls down to earth like a comet, blocking out the light of the bloodmoon. The pointed end aimed straight for the handle of that sword.]

[likethelight]

[ While he gets into position, Allen uses a second ribbon to snag its foot and rip it off its feet. One opening, all they need is an opening. And so, stabbing downward, he wedges the dip of his sword into the beveled edging of the star on its potbelly. Not enough leverage or strength when this close to pierce it, but he grits his teeth and bears down to hold it. It's screaming in rage now, no longer amused. "Let go! Let go of me! Dirty, dirty!"

So when a shadow suddenly falls over them both, Allen takes a quick breath as his attention momentarily snaps upward to... ice. A glacier hanging momentarily like an island in the sky -- and coming to a tapered point above his head. And his eyes widen in understanding. Like Lenalee. Somehow, he knew to do it like Lenalee did.

But unlike Lenalee... it's big. And would crush him, but if he lets go the squirming and shrieking akuma will just toss his sword aside. So he puts his weight behind it and bears down. Gotta just hold it until the last moment then.

"Dirty, dirty, dirty Innocence! Let go of me!" ]

I won't. [ It's muttered grimly with déjà vu, locking eyes with it. But something... sparks in its. Intelligence and desperation. And it lets go as both of its arms twist into massive, organic gatling guns. Pointed directly at his face.

His eyes go wide, not even having the time to breath. ] !

[ The sound of machine gun fire echoes in the night. There's a scream, and a slender, cloaked form is thrown back (pulled back? hard to tell, for a moment it flung wide like wings). Clear of the glacier as it slams down into where the akuma was in a fragmented explosion.

But this time Allen lies still. His cloak tattered and looking far worse for wear, riddled with holes and the pale glow of it making it hard to tell if there's blood. ]

[swellter]

[ Kizu races down the slope of the mountain, coordinating with the figure at the summit to hit their target. Working in tandem with his omen, he forges new ice to shift that 'pointy end' into position, forcing him to stay at the top of the world with nothing but ice in every direction. Kizu becomes his eyes beneath the mile-long glacier forged for the sole purpose of aiding Allen's attack. He needs to trust in him. Trust that he'll 'manage' as he promised.

His hands go numb from the cold. Ice starts to creep up his arms, past his cuffs. It climbs higher. Nucleation sites start forming at his jaw and down his throat, spreading like spiderwebs, interconnecting. He needs to tap into his fire, but he can't stop.

Don't worry about my movements! I'll manage! ... Just use your ice!

Then an image slams into his head straight from his omen's eyes.

Allen. The Akuma. Gunfire from afar.

The sound rattles in his head with a familiar scream. A horrible icy shock has him surging to his feet, heart pounding in his chest, ready to abandon the mountain. Finish the mission! Kizu slams into his head before he can take off at a dead run. Boots dig into the mountain, his emotions swinging wildly from one extreme to another, disbelief forefront in his mind. Make it worth something! Then, in a more commanding tone: THREE DEGREES NORTH! NOW!

Teeth gritted against his own swirling emotions, he slams his hands back into the heart of the mountain, tears crystallizing in the corners of his eyes as the comet crashes into the earth, on target. ]

[likethelight]

[ When winter comes, everything becomes silent.

That's what it's like after that glacier hits like a frigid meteorite, pummeling into the ground with a force that smashes it to pieces. Powdered remains of it hanging briefly like snow in the air while most if it falls apart in larger fragments that crack and groan as they fracture, like glaciers giving way into the ocean. It smells fresh and clean, thin, and covers up even much of the destruction and massacre from before. Like a blanket, one that covers up even where it struck and buried the level four and Allen's sword.

But Allen is still silent too, even if it takes Shouto time to get there or find him. Flung against the corner of a building in a pile of tattered white that covers most of him, there's a dark smoke that curls off his body and cloak with a faint hissing sound. As for how he got there or seems unscathed at least from the impact -- it's a question more for his own Innocence... and Timcanpy. Who's sitting next to his ear, and very quiet himself as he leans forward to stare down at Allen's unresponsive face, and in fact might be the most noticeable thing in this landscape with his brightly golden color.

He pats Allen's cheek insistently with a small, chubby hand; where black stars have spread across his skin like measles might. _{Wake up? Wake up...} ]

[swellter]

[ Shouto stumbles on the crackling ice crumbling beneath his feet. A winter wonderland of his own creation to bury the dead. Snow covers the whole of the landscape, a few brave buildings standing against the onslaught of their combined attack. ]

Kizu! Where is he?!

[ The snow leopard tears through the snow, light on her feet in search of the priest. Behind her, Shouto searches frantically for a glimpse of black in a sea of white.

I see Tim! Kizu cries and Shouto feels his heart swell with hope. ]

Where?!

[ She lets him SEE through her eyes and despite the toll exacted on his body after that attack, he taps into his right side once more, pushing past his limits. Ice forms beneath his boots taking him across the field of fallen snow to where a glimpse of black and gold emerges from the snow. ]

Allen?!

[ He stumbles on the ice, tumbling through the white powder to reach him. He checks his breathing first, then two icy fingers on his throat to search for a heartbeat. ]

Allen! Can you hear me?!

[ He starts warming him up, tapping into his left to warm his chilled form, not too much, but enough to warm his limbs and stave off the frostbite. ]

[likethelight]

[ It's there. Shallow and racing, but his heartbeat is there. If anything, he looks and feels feverish.

There's a faint wince followed by a pained grimace when Todoroki presses his fingers to his neck, not that it hurts but it causes him to stir enough to realize how much everything hurts. Being shot is awful. Being machine gunned down is worse, even if he managed to jerk back enough it didn't hit his face, and even if those aren't real bullets to blast through flesh so much as an explosive vehicle for injecting its blood virus. It still feels like getting ripped apart. ]

I can... hear you... [ It's croaked slightly, his throat rough. Ah, he sounds worried... Damn.

But the dark stars covering his skin begin to smoke too, almost seeming to burn up at the edges. There's a faint pulse of a gentle presence and light throughout his body, similar to when he'd purged his own corruption in the catacombs, and they begin to fade. Aaa, he feels a bit better now and... warm?

He blinks his eyes open finally, trying to focus unsteadily on Shouto's face; his expression. And his eyes widen slightly, his own expression gone completely clear in surprise.

But then he also tries to stagger up into a sitting position, remembering their situation and immediately on high alert again, looking about frantically. ]

The level four...? [ Just one thing--

His left eye is still active. Still black and red, and now with a dark corruptive energy wafting off it like smoke too. ]

[swellter]

[ His heart skips a beat at the sound of his voice. Alive. HE'S ALIVE!

Quickly, pulling back, he gives him room to move. Not overwhelming him. He keeps his worry to himself, but it's in those mismatched eyes glittering still with unshed tears, remembering the sound of gunfire rocking through the air. It's the first time he's ever heard it in real life, not on TV. ]

I don't know. Kizu is on alert. [ Standing behind them, ready to shield them from an attack, while searching for the enemy. ] I haven't seen it since the ice came down.

[ He touches his cheek where those dark stars cover his skin. ] Where those the bullets you warned me about?

[likethelight]

[ It's still alive is what his instincts tell him. The chances that his sword would have stayed aligned on its own in such a way to destroy it with one blow, no matter how much force Shouto had put behind it, were very slim. But he can't see it right now; his eye is only restless and on alert.

Todoroki might try to keep his worry to himself, but Allen's gotten to know him well enough by now to notice his demeanor is slightly off. Nervous-seeming, almost. And he stills slightly when he touches his cheek, not so much because of that but in looking more closely at him now that he can focus. Eyes flickering between both of Shouto's, left and then right, then back again.

Ah. Was he...? ]

...Mn. [ He blinks again for a moment, still caught by that. ] They are.

It's alright though... [ Hesitating for a moment at first, he brings his remaining hand up and covers the other's lightly with it. His Innocence-gloved fingers curling slightly around Shouto's in a faint but reassuring way. The stars are fading quickly too, his skin returning to normal. ] Because the Innocence is part of my body, I can reverse the effects. Like with corruption.

It won't kill me like it would a human.

[swellter]

[ Having grown up alone, kept apart from his siblings, he's very protective of those few people in his life who matter to him. Inadvertently, he 'clings' to them. Sets them apart on a raised pedestal. It's why Touya means so much to him despite his reputation and the number of times he's tried to kill him. He'll never turn his back on his brother, the same way he can't turn his back on his father. Mother. It's similar to what he feels for his friends, if less intense. It's not always healthy, easily exploitable, but it's the only way he knows how to care.

Reassured by his words, his adrenaline starts to fade, no longer anxious. He nods at the explanation, calming under that gloved hand. ]

What about the Akuma? Do you sense it?

[ Kizu for all her attempts can't track the creature, even from the start. It's not from Trench and he's no Priest. He's powerless in this situation, relying on Allen to know if they're out of danger or in the eye of the storm. ]

CW: gore!

[likethelight]

[ Truth be told, he's also calmed by it. Or, reassured might be the better way to put it. Human contact has always been fleeting for him -- gentle contact from someone who genuinely cares even less so, even if that's entirely how Allen operates and gives much more freely himself. It helps breathe deep and center himself again, prepare for what he knows isn't over yet; it never is with a level four, they're too tenacious. So he lets his eyes close for a moment at that, leaning in ever so slightly and giving Shouto's hand a light, grateful squeeze where it's pressed against his cheek. "Do you sense it?"

He opens his eyes again, letting both their hands drop as he starts to get back up to his feet. His attention squarely and expectantly to where the epicenter of Shouto's glacier had dropped. ]

Yes. [ His expression schools, becoming focused again and sobered. Coldly, uneasily calm. It's buried deep, but it's still there.

Sure enough, there's a rumbling from deep underneath. Like a small earthquake of pop-pop-pops, until a small circle of snow and ice explodes upward back where the akuma had been and explosive machinegun fire can be heard. It shot its way out of the encasing ice? Yes. With pure rage.

As it flies up however, the first thing Shouto would see is... not the akuma. No, before it even appears, there's a dark, purplish sort of thing that comes out first. Raising up like a specter in the air, it seems to be a... decayed, oozing mass that's only vaguely humanoid. One wrapped in ethereal, dark black chains that extend back and tie it to the level four. Faces peel off from where biceps should be and slough off like rotten mud, bony fingers rake across what should be a face in what seems to be an existential anguish. Peeling back rotted skin and organs that fall away and reveal bone only to amass back. A decayed human in a perpetual state of rotting and recovering, its own flesh unable to even stay attached anymore.

The soul.

And it's sobbing. Deep, wracking moans that lack definition from not having a proper mouth and a jaw that hands askance, and they aren't heard aloud so much as heard directly in your skull--

Shouto's included. But it seems to go quiet for a moment as soon as he's looked at it, and stares back with deep oozing sockets where its eyes should be.

"...see me?" It's raspy. Burbling. Surprised.

"...Don't... you... still... love me?" It's hopeful. So very tentatively hopeful. It's so pitiable, but won't you still love it? Won't anyone? Even if it's so hideous. It killed, it killed what it loved. Oh, it killed you... it can never forgive itself. But you forgive it, right? That's why you can see it, isn't it? That's why... Isn't that why...

"Can't... you-- ...me?" But it doesn't seem to like that anymore. It doesn't seem to like the both of them looking at it at all, and it drops its hands down and screams at the second boy now staring at it. Existential rot and pus spat into the air.

"DON'T LOOK AT ME!" ]

[swellter]

[ Few things matter to him like human connection. Family. Friends. All those moments he missed with his siblings. The years away from his mother. Friends he was too damaged to make when he was younger. Now that he's forged his own path forward he no longer feels guilty for wanting such things. A shared bowl of noodles with his brother. A birthday celebration with his friends. Holding onto someone you care for. An offer of reassurance before facing what's to come.

They're in the eye of the storm and peace is quickly fading.

He stands with Allen, Kizu at his side. The snow leopard keeps close to him. I hear it. Shouto lets his fingers run through her fur, finding comfort the small connection. So do I... It's coming.

The ground beneath them shakes and the snowbanks erupt with gunfire, spewing white powder in every direction. A rotting corpse emerges from the rubble, wrapped in chains that lead back to the Akuma.

His fingers tighten on Kizu, her presence grounding him. Spared the knowledge of what he's seeing, Shouto looks on with only an inkling of what's happening. Ignorance keeps him from fully realizing the true horror of what stands before him.

It speaks and Kizu moves closer to him, her great bulk pressed against his leg, offering warmth and comfort in the cold. The sight is far more disturbing than the Akuma, stoking pity.

It's a distraction. Kizu warns and Shouto nods, aware. The raspy sound grows louder, grimmer. The shouts mean little to him without understanding its origins, having witnessed a more horrible sight in the alley, he remains unmoved. ]

[likethelight]

[ At first, Allen's the one who actually falters ever so slightly. Just because its cries, how its attention seemed to shift... was it talking to Todoroki as well? It seemed like that, but he has no time to really dwell on the oddity.

The akuma pulls itself out and it's listing heavily. Its belly torn open with a black, oil-like blood oozing from it. A large diagonal cut from where the sword was hammered into it but ultimately cut a deep slash instead of the bisecting pierce they'd meant it to. But the akuma is listing drunkenly from it, and despite its resilience to everything save its own dark matter and Innocence it looks dented and pummeled from Shouto's ice. One leg hangs away from its body, nearly severed entirely.

It screams at them though, in twain with the soul, and fires. Machinegun fire starts to spray wildly in their direction, peppering the ground by their feet, and Allen takes off running, his tattered and bullet-riddled cloak trailing behind him. In a strafing pattern, circling around closer to it as it focuses most of its rage on him. Exorcist. ]

I'll draw its fire! [ His body can neutralize the virus, it's fine. The corrupting additional effect... he'll deal with that later. ]

We just need to try and stop it from being able to move! [ Leverage, he needs to be able to get the leverage needed to rip through it fully.

But first... he needs his sword back. ]

[swellter]

[ Gunfire has them both racing in opposite directions. Shouto uses his ice to garner speed and Kizu runs alongside him to cover him with her great bulk from any stray bullets. Omens are immune to death, a fact that's been pounded into the pair after a year in Trench. She grows in size equal to his height and runs alongside him serving as a shield. ]

I'll focus on the damaged leg!

[ Already circling the monster from afar, Shouto shoots out his ice in a tight line of sharp ice aiming for that injured leg. ]

[likethelight]

[ It keeps one arm on each of them then, even if its aim is wild both from its deteriorating state and its rage. Attention first on one of them, and then the other, it's too frantic to avoid the ice. Becoming briefly stuck in it, it yanks repeatedly on its leg. Harder and harder -- until it spins its body around and rips it off entirely.

And it doesn't look particularly fazed by that. The soul gives a warbled sort of wail, but seems too wholly consumed in its own despair to really continue to react. But, cat. It hates that cat too. It hates the boy and his ice and that cat a lot too, so it focuses on Kizu and Shouto, bringing both barrels around to bear on them.

Shit. Allen curses silently to himself, but takes advantage of that to circle around and come in tightly from behind. Skirting around the edge of the hole it had tunneled its way from, and snapping out one of the ribbons from his cloak to bind tight to the akuma's neck, pulling taught as he uses it to propel himself forward with a leap. Right hand -- his only hand he still has -- stretched out to the side as there's a cracking sound from deep within the ice. ]

Don't forget -- [ The ice behind him cracks and splits open wide, as his sword shoots out from it like thrown spear. Spinning around once it hits the air, and snapping with its hilt into his open hand like a glove finding its fit. ]

-- that I'm the one you want to kill! [ And he brings it down hard straight onto its head, white-gold and blackish-purple energy sparking as it drags across the hard shell of its skull and begins to dig in. Traction--

Before it spins its body around like a puppet and kicks him straight up into the air. Hard. Enough to knock the breath entirely from him and high as he's light enough, especially with his cloak. ]

[swellter]

[ A long-range fighter with a cool head - no pun intended - Shouto knows exactly how to make himself a nuisance. Constant attacks barreling down on his opponents from afar often push their buttons; it annoys them. At first, they attack with precision, but the distance that separates them gives him the advantage. Later, their attacks become wilder, and that's when he barrels down on them until they snap, attacking indiscriminately; easy pickings for an attack from behind.

Focus on me.

He's bait.

Avoids the whole barrage of bullets by zig-zagging in all three dimensions. He may not have Allen's acrobatics skills, but he's got a trained gymnast's muscle mass and flexibility. Quirk and body work together to help him make those tight twists and turns and when a stray bullet catches him off guard, Kizu is there to shield him.

Omens are impossible to kill, and the duo uses that to their advantage. A reflection of her counterpart, Kizu is dauntless, intercepting the bullet with her body without losing a step.

At the same time, Allen goes in for the attack and gets slapped into the air.

Time to make yourself a nuisance.

His movements halt to a sudden stop and he shoots out attack, after attack, after attack. If there was something Endeavor taught him, it was endurance.

Ignore the Priest! ]