[KSGokaiger;prose] tailspin (1)
Joe Gibken, Cid Bamick/Barizorg, Gokai crew
It's a tough fight, one not entirely unexpected, given that this is the prince's right-hand man. The rest of his crew steers clear of the battlefield; they've seen enough of his reactions to know this is personal, even if they didn't know his reasons. Joe has never let them in on what Barizorg really means to him, except Marvelous, and he has always intended to keep it that way, up to the end. They may be crew, but Joe values his privacy above everything.
It's amazing how he's managed to tire the cyborg out, inasmuch as a cyborg can feel tired. Joe can feel sweat trickling into his eyes, matting his hair underneath the helmet but he tries to keep to his goal. He repeats Yellow Lion's words in his head like a mantra, Cid is gone Cid is gone cid is gone, to give him the strength that he wanted. Needed. It's dizzying, with all the blocks and guards, attacking and deflecting, until he closes in, pivoting neatly on a heel to sneak behind the cyborg and then Barizorg's guard slips, finally.
He can shatter the skull. He's visted Jou's office more than enough times, looked at the blueprints from Zcien's computer to know that that is Barizorg's sole weakness, the soft organic mass of Cid's brain covered by a thin sheet of metal. Joe sees his target, knows he's steeled himself for this for so many days, and yet-
When he brings his sabre down, somehow he's twisted the weapon so that it's the blunted hilt that crashes down on Barizorg's head, not the sharp blade. The awkwardness of the move cuts his speed as well, no longer fast enough to kill, but it's still enough to knock the commander down. Barizorg lets out a groan of surprise but he's falling to his knees, and Joe crashes down on that hard metal back.
The dust settles, and Joe can see that the gormin and sugormin are gone, and Marvelous is looking at him. His captain's face is still masked, but Joe knows the expression Marvelous is making.
Barizorg is underneath him, still and unmoving, but he is not dead.
Joe de-transforms along with the rest. Don is the first to break the uneasy silence, timidly asking, "He...what are we going to do with him?" It feels strange to have actually subdued an alien commander without subjecting it to a final wave or two, but this isn't any typical alien commander. The rest of the crew looks to Marvelous for guidance, but instead Marvelous looks back at him, waiting for him to call the next move.
Joe bites his lip. The easiest thing will be to leave Barizorg as he is, but it will have changed nothing, and eventually, they'd have to face him again. Killing him now, however, isn't something Joe wanted to do either. Try as he might, Joe can only see Cid now, not Barizorg, and he doesn't want him to die.
"Joe."
"We're taking him with us," Joe says, and Gai predictably explodes. "What? Why? He's an alien commander, right? Why can't we just...take him down now?" Joe is intensely relieved when Ahim puts a hand on Gai's arm to still his questions, because he may just have to punch Gai himself to shut him up. But Gai's questions are valid, and the others are waiting for answers anyway, even Marvelous.
"Joe," Luka says again, with a warning lilt to her voice. She has less patience than Marvelous, and Joe finds that he can no longer run away.
"He's my friend," Joe says, almost too loudly in what he hopes is true bravado. He can see Don flinching in surprise, while Gai seems intent on whispering furiously to Ahim, probably bombarding her with questions that she cannot answer. "I want him back."
"But he's Zanygyack," Don protests softly, and Joe shoots back, "We had no choice." He looks at Marvelous, who simply walks up and grunts as he hefts Bari- Cid up. The rest of the crew still look dubious, but Marvelous is still captain, and they would never overstep his authority.
"He goes in the brig, with chains and a watchman," Marvelous says, and when Joe moves up next to him, he mutters, "I hope you know what you're doing."
Joe didn't have the heart to reply, I hope so too.
It's a tough fight, one not entirely unexpected, given that this is the prince's right-hand man. The rest of his crew steers clear of the battlefield; they've seen enough of his reactions to know this is personal, even if they didn't know his reasons. Joe has never let them in on what Barizorg really means to him, except Marvelous, and he has always intended to keep it that way, up to the end. They may be crew, but Joe values his privacy above everything.
It's amazing how he's managed to tire the cyborg out, inasmuch as a cyborg can feel tired. Joe can feel sweat trickling into his eyes, matting his hair underneath the helmet but he tries to keep to his goal. He repeats Yellow Lion's words in his head like a mantra, Cid is gone Cid is gone cid is gone, to give him the strength that he wanted. Needed. It's dizzying, with all the blocks and guards, attacking and deflecting, until he closes in, pivoting neatly on a heel to sneak behind the cyborg and then Barizorg's guard slips, finally.
He can shatter the skull. He's visted Jou's office more than enough times, looked at the blueprints from Zcien's computer to know that that is Barizorg's sole weakness, the soft organic mass of Cid's brain covered by a thin sheet of metal. Joe sees his target, knows he's steeled himself for this for so many days, and yet-
When he brings his sabre down, somehow he's twisted the weapon so that it's the blunted hilt that crashes down on Barizorg's head, not the sharp blade. The awkwardness of the move cuts his speed as well, no longer fast enough to kill, but it's still enough to knock the commander down. Barizorg lets out a groan of surprise but he's falling to his knees, and Joe crashes down on that hard metal back.
The dust settles, and Joe can see that the gormin and sugormin are gone, and Marvelous is looking at him. His captain's face is still masked, but Joe knows the expression Marvelous is making.
Barizorg is underneath him, still and unmoving, but he is not dead.
Joe de-transforms along with the rest. Don is the first to break the uneasy silence, timidly asking, "He...what are we going to do with him?" It feels strange to have actually subdued an alien commander without subjecting it to a final wave or two, but this isn't any typical alien commander. The rest of the crew looks to Marvelous for guidance, but instead Marvelous looks back at him, waiting for him to call the next move.
Joe bites his lip. The easiest thing will be to leave Barizorg as he is, but it will have changed nothing, and eventually, they'd have to face him again. Killing him now, however, isn't something Joe wanted to do either. Try as he might, Joe can only see Cid now, not Barizorg, and he doesn't want him to die.
"Joe."
"We're taking him with us," Joe says, and Gai predictably explodes. "What? Why? He's an alien commander, right? Why can't we just...take him down now?" Joe is intensely relieved when Ahim puts a hand on Gai's arm to still his questions, because he may just have to punch Gai himself to shut him up. But Gai's questions are valid, and the others are waiting for answers anyway, even Marvelous.
"Joe," Luka says again, with a warning lilt to her voice. She has less patience than Marvelous, and Joe finds that he can no longer run away.
"He's my friend," Joe says, almost too loudly in what he hopes is true bravado. He can see Don flinching in surprise, while Gai seems intent on whispering furiously to Ahim, probably bombarding her with questions that she cannot answer. "I want him back."
"But he's Zanygyack," Don protests softly, and Joe shoots back, "We had no choice." He looks at Marvelous, who simply walks up and grunts as he hefts Bari- Cid up. The rest of the crew still look dubious, but Marvelous is still captain, and they would never overstep his authority.
"He goes in the brig, with chains and a watchman," Marvelous says, and when Joe moves up next to him, he mutters, "I hope you know what you're doing."
Joe didn't have the heart to reply, I hope so too.