LOG: Tooyama/Kirihara
Characters: Tooyama Kintarou, Kirihara Akaya (Fee’s)
Location: The woods
Time: January 12th
Rating: R for blood and language
Summary: The butterfly effect is the phenomenon whereby a minor change in circumstances can cause a large change in outcome; in a mutant world, it’s just chaos without the theory. Some things, like friendship, can survive even that.
[Fee: This log was planned and started back at early December (already considering the slow pace in which we rp in general), and as my dropping and the promptly acceptance of another role player as the same character weren't taken into account when we set this, please consider it just as an alternate universe of this... alternate universe ^^]
Kintarou drifted back after Akaya blocked his last punch, wary of another energised marble that the other might throw at him. It surprised the redhead that seaweed head had blocked the hit at all but he was relieved that he had -- Kintarou was sure that that had been far stronger than he has ever hit anyone before. But he didn't mean it to be that way, he just lost control. It was Akaya’s fault if he got injured, the freshman thought. Surely Kintarou couldn’t be blamed for trying to teach Akaya a lesson of not pissing off someone as strong as him.
He skidded to a halt a good fifty feet from Akaya, parallel lines tracking where his feet slid in the snow-covered ground. As he waited for the veil of evaporate that his feet's friction with the ground made to settle down to see, he wondered if he had seriously hurt Akaya. Still, he remained in battle mode in case the other boy was just biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to ambush him.
“You shouldn’t have done that, Aka-chan!” He called as Akaya’s form reappeared. What Kintarou saw made the hair at the back of his neck stand on end.
That... That wasn’t Akaya.
The laughter that came from the smoke screen was such a chilling, cruel, sinister sound that everything else seemed to be silenced by fear; there wasn’t any other sound left, not the sound of rustling leaves caused by little animals, not the sound of batted wings. Two red lights could be seen glowing in the smoke where Akaya had been standing before the blow. The laughter became louder, resonating in the woods until it stopped all of the sudden. “You shouldn’t have done that…” Akaya’s usually bright teasing tone was replaced by a very much lower tone, more like a guttural growl than human speech.
The smoke started to dissipate, revealing the second year standing and leaning into a tree. His skin was almost completely covered in a shade of red so intense it looked like he was covered in blood, even though he only had scratches and bruises from the sparring against the redhead. His hair had become bright white at the amount of energy used, making a hard contrast with the teenage skin color. Dilated pupils gave the deathly stare an evil glint. The zone where Akaya was touching the tree for support was slowly starting to burn and disintegrate in a red glow. “You’re dead.”
A ball of glowing light went through what was left of the smoke, aimed to collide with Kintarou’s chest. That insane shrilling laughter filled the silent woods again.
“Oi, what are you --?” Kintarou didn’t even have an opportunity to block the sparking energy that hurtled toward him not a second after Akaya’s transformed body came into view. He just had time to brace himself and pool a bit of his own energy to his upper body before he got blown back in a blink of an eye and slammed into the nearest tree that rocked and showered him with sheets of snow. He unearthed himself as quickly as he could -- his instincts were telling him that the best thing to do in this situation was run... the way Akaya’s eyes glowed and the colour of his skin spelled trouble in large, glowing neon letters. However, like what his clones have been growling in the background, drowning the self-preservation chants of his instincts, this was Akaya, and there was something wrong with him.
“Aka-chan,” Kintarou breathed out as he stretched his slightly aching back. He let out a nervous laugh, hoping his friend was just kidding... only he knew that that glare meant business and it sent another cold shiver down his spine. “This ain’t funny.” He took slow strides toward the other boy, preparing himself for an attack he was sure was coming. “Snap out of it, will ya?”
The tree finally gave in into the continuous energy flow and snapped in half, falling heavily into the ground. Akaya’s smirk didn’t falter and his eyes seemed to intensify his glow before he disappeared in the new formed cloud of dust and smoke. The maniac laugh seemed to come from all over the place. “Are you scared?” The faceless voice sang lowly and it was worse than if it had it shouted it.
A shift of wind and some rustling of leaves and the devil was just behind the redhead’s back, a large ball of energy in one of his right hand. Blisters were forming in said fist; the skin not being able to endure such amount of energy at the same time. “You should be.” He growled before releasing the energy into the other’s back.
Kintarou had to blink a number of times when Akaya disappeared from the snapped tree, and the words Are you scared echoed ominously inside his head. If there was one thing Kintarou was proud of, it was that he feared nothing. Casting aside his phobia for needles, he had never been scared of anything in his life... but when he felt a swift breeze whoosh from his side to his back, his pride melted under the rapid pick up of his heartbeats and he was left gasping for air. The cold Kintarou felt when Akaya’s voice suddenly came from behind him had nothing to do with the snow that a second ago was all over him.
Kintarou realised something right then: Akaya really wanted to hurt him.
Go! Eight said simultaneously when Two and Three roared, Let us out! It would have been easy to do but he was frozen in place. All the clones screaming his name when he felt the heat on his back woke him up and he flew without thinking a particular place to land. As he drifted in the air, he looked back in time for Two and Three to block the ball of energy Akaya intended for him then fan out in opposite directions.
“Akaya!” The three of them called. “Stop this now!”
Baring his teeth with an animalistic growl of pure rage at missing his target, Akaya launched himself at the clones with a ball of energy in each hand. He threw them at the copies to distract them long enough to pick a heavy chunk of wood from a fallen tree. He started laughing again while holding it in his hands, charging it. “Why should I? I can take all of you down…” The devil sang, “…just watch me.” He whispered and broke the large branch in two pieces before throwing them at the clones, even if it missed its target, it would explode sending pointy sticks everywhere. Maybe they could poke their eyes out. He licked his lips.
Kintarou landed on the same spot Akaya had been in earlier when he transformed into this... thing. His feet touched the ground in time for him to see Akaya chuck charged pieces of branches toward his clones. Panic exploded in his guts and one thought rang in his head -- he couldn’t let his brothers get hurt. He has only had his copies for more than nine months; they have never been in any situation that has put them in danger such as this so he didn't know what would become of them. He cringed at the thought of any of his copies getting severely injured to disappear forever.
With a bellow, Kintarou let two more clones out even as he picked up the trunk of the tree Akaya had destroyed as if it was made of air. He can feel his energy dwindling steadily but adrenaline has kicked in and his reserve strength had woken up. As Five and Six made a beeline for their fellow clones, Kintarou smashed the trunk and it fragmented under his shaking fist. He then threw five spikes the size of his forearm in Akaya’s direction but he made sure that they would impale the ground between his friend and his clones. Another thing that Kintarou prided in himself was his perfect aim, Akaya should be okay. “Duck!” He yelled at his clones.
The insane laughter of seeing those redheads running for their lives and getting hurt by splitters in arms and legs wavered when he saw another two brats appearing in their field and died completely when the devil took a few steps back to avoid being hit by the spikes. The smirk was gone and was replaced by a frown and deadly glare. Five to one? “Coward…” He growled between clenched teeth, sending a large wave of kinetic energy that surely would destroyed the spikes and maybe reach the annoying menaces.
Pieces of clothes fell over the snow, the fabric no longer resisting the continuous energy charge, leaving exposed the blood-red raw skin underneath. Channelling even more energy to his hands, Akaya snickered and slowly advanced toward his prey. “Is that all you have?” He said tilting his head to one side and walking toward Kintarou. Once he could get hold of the original one, he would be able of fry him up nicely and maybe the others too if they didn’t disappear. Or maybe the other way around and make him witness that. That sounds like fun.
The clones backed away from Akaya and joined their original on either side of him, all wearing looks of horror and pain, not from the splinters that dug in their skins but from Akaya's determination to attack them. "Two, Three?" Kintarou asked without taking his eyes off of the leering being across the field from them five. "We're fine." Two replied with a wince as he extracted a particularly long piece of wood from his forearm. "Yes, don't worry, Kin-chan," Three agreed as he shrugged off his ruined jacket.
"More importantly," Four said, his eyes noting every tiny movement of Akaya. "How do we stop him?"
One, Eight called him -- it was only the second time he has called him that, the other being the day he named his clones and the others started fighting about the numbers assigned to them, and Eight had to put his foot down and acknowledge he was their leader. This meant Eight was really upset and that his mind was made up. Call the four back and let me out.
Without so much as a second thought, Kintarou tapped the shoulders of the clones closest to him and they vanished in a cloud of smoke; the other two immediately following suit. Although no wound showed on his skin, the young mutant could feel the phantom sensations of the cuts.
When Eight materialized beside him, he levelled Akaya an unwavering look of resolve. “He can’t be reasoned with, One. Look at his eyes.” He didn’t wait for a reply, however -- he knew it was all that Kintarou had been looking at for the past minute since their friend became like this. “You have to stop holding back, Kintarou. If we want to stop him from hurting us, or worse himself, the only way is to make him unconscious.”
Kintarou gulped. He knew Eight was right but he couldn’t bear to hurt a friend on purpose. “I’ll...” And the last punch he accidentally hit Akaya with turned him into this… who’s to say it won’t make things worse? “...try.”
The glow coming from Akaya’s hands intensified sending a flash of light, purple flames totally engulfing his fists. Those little red menaces were plotting to get him back into that dark void inside the kid’s head. He had been waiting in the shadows for the opening to come back after tasting the power after the incident. He had being content with the teases of freedom he got when the kid pushed his limits but the little wimp was too considerate to completely embrace his power and take over anything he wanted, too afraid of letting him to join him. Then, the kid came to this place where he strengthened the barrier separating him, leaving him inside of the cold wasteland of nothing. It was such luck the kid was stupid enough to not forfeit a fight he was bound to lose, and his body too weak from that last punch from the redhead. It was the perfect opportunity to fetch freedom again.
And the power, the power was too addicting, too exhilarating; it was everything.
He needed it.
Growling, the devil came closer. He didn’t know how many clones Tooyama could summon and that put him in disadvantage at some point. The new comer seemed to be the smartest of them though. Challenge. The devil smirked, his steps melting the snow as he walked. “Why did the others leave the party so soon? I was just getting started~” He said before launching himself at the original redhead. Go on, protect him. So I can fry you up first and let him watch…
Eight’s eyes got glued for a moment at the path of melted snow Akaya was making as he trudged toward them. When he realised that other must be making another attack, the clone moved closer to his fellow redhead. He was about to tell Kintarou his plan to subdue Akaya but he didn’t have the time to. Without warning, the second year lunged at the original one, his arms outstretched as if to grab at Kintarou’s neck.
Meanwhile, Kintarou crouched lower and braced himself -- he still didn’t want to have to hurt his friend but as Eight pointed out, they had no choice...
Lips curling in distaste, Eight dug his toes into the snow and kicked the cold stuff toward Akaya and then skidded in front of him before he got nearer to Kintarou. “Oh, no, you don’t.” Eight growled as he grabbed Akaya’s arms and, despite the burns that he was receiving, gripped him tight and pushed the other boy back down toward the ground. For a moment, none of the two moved from their locked position and Kintarou could only hold his breath and wait for what his copy would do, until Akaya smirked.
Eight knew he was in trouble.
From this distance, the redhead had a perfect view of the blood-red glowing eyes that had nothing human on them. “Gotcha~”Akaya laughed quietly into the clone’s ear. He didn’t waste any more time, this was what he had aimed for. In a swift motion, he embraced the clone with his arms and locked himself around the other, letting an enormous amount of energy flow through him and into the redhead. The sinister laugh echoed in the woods, hiding the sizzling sound of the snow evaporating around them.
Cursing himself for falling into the trap that Akaya had obviously planned all along, Eight started to wriggle out of the other’s grasp as he felt an increasing heat to his back. Kintarou on the other hand yelled Eight’s name, hoping his brother would be alright, and he bolted toward the two, and when he was about ten feet away and saw the scrunched face of his clone, he pooled his energy to his dominant arm and punched the ground.
Where his knuckles met the earth, small cracks appeared until they zigzagged outward, creating splits and craters. He repeatedly hit the ground a couple more times until the cracks spread until they reached where Akaya had taken Eight as a hostage. Kintarou lightly stepped on a solid looking patch of ground then sprang up again to land behind the other two.
As Akaya moved to keep from the cracks in the ground, he twirled around to follow where Kintarou had gone. With one last glance at their original, Eight let go and vanished, bringing with him the unbearable heat that Kintarou was now feeling on his back.
Kintarou has had enough, if Akaya could stomach inflicting pain to Eight like that, he should stop holding back. And even though the clones have started screaming again to let them out to help, he decided he’ll do it on his own.
Looking up from his spot on the ground, Akaya smirked at the figure hovering over him. Even if he was in such vulnerable position he was pretty sure Tooyama wouldn’t attack him yet. One of the biggest weakness of good people was that they always wanted to do the right thing in the most honorable way. He laughed, loud and freely and slowly rolled over so he could stand. “Spoilsport, if I had him for a little longer…” He wondered if the original one could feel the injuries he had inflicted into the clones but the devil decided it didn’t matter since he was going to experience them firsthand soon enough. He brushed the snow off his pants and shirt; the raw skin exposed itching at the contact of the cold. Taking some distance from the redhead, the devil popped his neck and shoulder relieving tension.
Akaya charged his hands again and watched with fascination how new blisters were forming on them. It was painful, yes, but bearable… his current condition numbing his sensations; when the pain would really kick in, he would be resting again and wouldn’t be the one endure it when the party was over. He looked up at his opponent once more.
“I’ll destroy you.” Akaya smiled.
“Not if I destroy you first.” Kintarou growled as he felt Eight become out of touch for several extended seconds now. He hoped it was just taking a moment for him to ‘gain consciousness’ in his head. Kintarou feared for the worst, his whole body shaking with anger and the residual pain his most tenacious replica had suffered from. If this were any other person, that smirking, taunting boy in front of him would have already been on his way to a nearby hospital or somewhere medical attention wouldn’t be able to help him. Still, however much his features and behaviour had changed, he knew that this was his friend.
No, he’s not, Kintarou! Two argued, exasperated at what they call his state of denial as supported by Seven, That may be Akaya’s body but look at him!
Kintarou visibly cringed when Four roared, Look at what happened to Eight because you wouldn’t --!
Silence, Four. Kintarou sighed in relief as their connection to Eight got restored, worried that his ‘voice’ sounded soft but thankful that the edge in this tone was still present. He was mulling over what would have happened had they lost their brother forever when Eight interrupted his thoughts. Don’t think that way, One. Just do your best for Akaya and let us out when you need us.
The redhead gritted his teeth and poised, ready for an attack. He saw how fast Akaya could be when he wanted so he calmed himself down and somehow forced his senses to heighten. He knew only one way to fight and that was to not have a plan and just improvise and right now was the time to test if this method was effective in real life. I’ll make you regret what you did to Akaya and my brothers, he thought and then out loud, waving his arms to either sides as if doing a welcoming bow, “Come at us.”
The demon watched in mild curiosity the changes in the redhead, a smug satisfied smile on his face. He took advantage of what it seemed to be the inner monologue between the other’s clones to slowly reach for the almost empty bag of marbles around his belt and measured it up by squeezing it lightly, there should be enough to cause a nice distraction. His breathing sped up, the animalistic anticipation of the fight taking over his senses. Akaya took a couple of marbles out and licked his lips again.
Wait for the perfect opening, wait for it, wait for it...
By the time the midget decided had the guts to fight for his pitiful life with that mock of invitation, Akaya was already on his way. Throwing on marble to the right and another to the left of the redhead, one right after the other, he sprang forward to punch him right through the chest; the explosion and small fragment of glass working as nice messy distraction. He could feel some of them scratching his cheeks but it was easily ignored by the sweet sensation of impact of his fist against its aimed target.
Jumping a few feet backwards to admire his work and brace himself for the counterattack he knew should be coming, Akaya chuckled amused. This was so much fun.
In spite of himself, Kintarou felt a thrill run down his spine when he saw Akaya rushing toward him. He smirked darkly, preparing himself for the fight he knew he couldn’t run away anymore. Digging a foot a step behind him, he positioned himself, ready to spring at his opponent.
However, instead of Akaya, what came at him was another of those marbles he had used on him earlier… before everything got out of hand. An explosion to his one side followed by another to his other side made Kintarou’s focus lessened enough that he didn’t have time to block another blow from Akaya. He slid backwards a few feet but recovered immediately, launching himself toward his friend, jumping several feet above him, summoned two clones who appeared mid-air alongside him, to dive bomb Akaya.
He knew summoning clones would greatly deplete his energy but he hoped this plan would work. Four’s punch missed and he jumped away from their friend, not taking chances of getting taken as hostage like Eight. Seven then risked landing behind Akaya and he triumphantly roared “Ha!” when his fist connected with Akaya’s cheek, however, with two of them out, their individual strength was less.
Dodging the first punch was quite easy. Really, attacking frontally like that against him? They were stupider than they let sh-- There was blunt pain and suddenly Akaya was on the snow after losing his balance. Feeling the coppery taste of blood after splitting open the inside of his cheek, the demon growled. He didn’t catch sight of the other clone until it was too late it seemed. From the corner of his eye, he saw Tooyama spinning in mid-air and finding a place next to the other clone and out of his range. The punch hadn’t been that strong and in a fraction of second, Akaya wondered if maybe the intelligence was split between copies because the clone that had hit him was close enough for him to reach.
Akaya recovered enough to throw himself at the clone’s legs, already releasing kinetic energy before grabbing him. He successfully threw the little menace off his feet and with a sadistic laugh, renewed his energy flow.
It didn’t last much, though, since he found himself embracing an empty space when the clone disappeared. “FUCKER!” The demon raged and got on his feet again; he managed to kick some melting snow at the remaining redheads before launching himself at them. “You’re dead!”
Kintarou hissed when he reabsorbed Seven and he felt the sting of the burn around his ankle and calves. This was really annoying him big time. With just a glance, an understanding passed between him and Four and they ran to meet Akaya from opposite directions. They were only going to last a few more minutes and they had to subdue their friend somehow. He hoped this time would work.
While Four jumped to tackle Akaya, Kintarou slid himself to kick the second year’s feet to knock him over.
Akaya knew he needed to focus his attention on, the one that couldn’t disappear once he got a hold of, so he was prepared to jump to dodge the kick aimed at his feet but those annoying sneaky cheating copies! He couldn’t turn enough to dodge the tackle and felt the air in his lungs leave him when his back hit the ground for a second time. Growling and grunting in pain he reached to grab the clone’s neck with his hand in an iron grip.“I’ll dye you red!” He snarled before squeezing tightly while releasing energy.
“Four!” Kintarou both called out and called for his clone to vanish and once again, Akaya was left grasping empty air. While Akaya was getting back on his feet, without a second thought, Kintarou grabbed the front of Akaya’s shirt, swept the second year’s feet off and used the other’s weight to throw him back to the ground. He poised, aiming another shot at his friend’s face. “This has already gone too far, Akaya!”
Feeling himself being sweep of his feet, the devil got hold of the rim of Tooyama’s jacket and pulled it to bring him down with him. As soon as he felt the other’s weight on top of him, he let a yell of joy out. He tangled himself around the other the best he could. “Game over, brat.” Akaya said before releasing a powerful wave of energy. The sinister laughter was back, this time mixed with pained whimpers caused by the continuous abuse of power over Akaya’s human body.
The power he gathered around his fist instantly dissipated as he felt himself falling along with Akaya. In a flash, he found himself being trapped by Akaya, his arms and legs immobilized by the other boy’s. If he hadn’t been summoning his clones and using a lot of energy he would have gotten himself free already. As it was, he still struggled, but then he suddenly felt heat between their bodies as Akaya glowed. Kintarou yelled in pain when the heat became too much and he felt his clothes getting singed and sticking to him, smelling burnt fabric and skin.
Shit. He was in trouble.
Tooyama’s yell of pain wasn’t the only one heard, since Akaya’s wail was loud as well. The glow engulfing both teenagers blazed a few times before dimming and then disappearing leaving only energy sparks synchronized with the demon’s hysterical laughter. Akaya kicked the ground so he could reverse their positions. Almost hyperventilating because of the adrenaline rush and the pain he was endure himself, he sat on the other’s chest, successfully trapping the redhead’s arms with his legs and weight, and placed both his hand on the other’s neck. His hands and forearms were burned raw and blood was oozing from the blisters. The second year applied some pressure with his thumbs, teasing the skin underneath. He leaned forward and laughed quietly into Tooyama’s ear.”I’ll crush you...”
With the pain getting worse and his strength at its limit, the only thing Kintarou could do was growl and futilely wriggle out of Akaya’s grasp. There were angry tears forming in his eyes, not at being helpless, not at being dominated, not at the pain but at seeing his friend enjoying hurting him. Now on his back sandwiched by snow and the blaze given off by Akaya, Kintarou felt his consciousness slowly leaving him. He couldn’t let this happen... but what else can he do?
When slick but extremely hot hands that smelled of blood wrapped around his neck, he gagged -- and now, he couldn’t even scream in agony. Where Akaya’s skin touched his, boils formed, but his whole body was feeling absolutely on fire. “Akaya...” He was able to choke out. Still he wasn’t afraid. He knew there was still a way out... there had to be... if only he could free his hands.
The absolute terror came when Akaya leaned forward to whisper in his ear. Even with the flames engulfing him, he felt cold. Only his clones’ admonitions snapped him out of his panicked state. This, like what they said, was the opening he’d needed. “Oh, yeah?” Kintarou taunted as he summoned every bit of strength left in him and with a mighty effort, he headbutted Akaya.
Not expecting the redhead to have some energy left to pull such stunt, Akaya was thrown off balance for a second; his grip losing up completely as his hands went to his head were Tooyama had hit him. “You piece of shit!” He growled and choked back a scream when he summoned energy to his damaged right hand and aimed for the other’s face.
Breathing heavily due to the effort, Kintarou just rolled away in time to avoid a blow that would have hurt like hell. Wrapping his arms across his chest as he stood up to somehow ease the pain, he roared. “You’re not Akaya!” The moment when he was being restrained by the other boy, he got a closer look at his eyes. He knew what it was like to have others inside his head. This could easily be Akaya’s other personality... He couldn’t believe it was possible for his friend to have such a sinister alternate persona but there was no other explanation why he suddenly became so wild and resolute in hurting him. “Let him out now!”
“So you finally caught up, hmm?”Akaya slowly stood up, his body slouched over and water steam coming off his skin as the snow melted over it; he was chuckling madly. “I’m the best part of him. He’s an useless wimp, we could conquer anything if he let me...” He smirked. “Maybe I should be one in charge from now on...” He laughed again. The demon could see how the fight was finally catching up with both of them, he refused to be the one defeated, he just needed to bid some time“...just like that clone of yours, the one that I fried up first...” Large energy control was too painful to endure right now and he would risk passing out because of it, he could feel it. Walking toward his prey, Akaya reached for the last couple of marbles and bit back the hiss of pain at charging them, “...he seemed smarter than you. Still stupid as fuck, though...” Feeling the marbles about to explode he throw them at the redhead.
Kintarou knew it was only a matter of time until he lost consciousness and that would be dangerous. Still, even from this distance he could see that the other boy was also reaching his own limits. “No, you’re not!” He winced with every step he took to drag himself toward the laughing form. His eyesight was getting blurred as more blood drained from him because of his injuries. Shit. We have to do something. “And don’t you dare talk about my brothers that way!” He only had to stagger sideways to dodge exploding marbles. It seemed either Akaya was losing his ability to hit his target or that Kintarou’s body was too numb now to register new injuries. With just a few feet away from the second year, he threw himself at him to grab the frayed collar of his jacket and aimed for the other’s face.
Akaya staggered a few steps backwards when Tooyama went for him; the smirk all gone and his eyes wide. He could easily tell the other was practically out of it and at the bridge of consciousness; he manage to dodge the weak punch but didn’t hit back. “W-why are you doing this?! Why you just don’t surrender?!” He shoved the redhead off, stumbling a few more steps backwards. The demon felt how one of his feet losing ground and he fought to get his balance back; he had reached the edge of the crater the redhead had punched on the ground.
Kintarou aimed another shot at Akaya’s face -- well his face but not toward Akaya himself but at his other persona -- but missed. He had the nerve to ask why he was doing this? “Get him out now!” Apparently, he was just wasting energy by punching at the air so he grabbed Akaya by the collars with both hands and headbutted him once more. “Leave him alone!”
“Stop fucki--” The devil groaned in pain when the brat hit him and yelped when he felt himself falling, the last stunt sending both of them over the edge and into the crater. “Shit!” He grunted when he hit the ground first, not enough air in his lungs to scream at the abuse of his own injuries. He could feel his body bouncing and hitting the ground again. There was a deep intense pain on the back of his skull before darkness embraced him.
He must have been more out of it that he realised because when their heads banged, he saw a burst of light behind his lids and he felt the earth move under his feet. Once again, he found himself falling, being drawn by Akaya.
They crashed into the center of the crater he had made earlier. With a pained groan, Kintarou pushed himself up and he noticed that his clothes were torn and bloodied beyond recognition, as was his skin, even as he cautiously crawled toward the other boy. Damn, Akaya did a good number on him.
He reached out and held his breath as he pressed his fingers on the inside of Akaya’s wrist, feeling for a pulse, taking care not to squish the open wounds so blood wouldn’t ooze out further. When a weak but discernible beating thrummed against his finger pads, Kintarou sighed heavily. He moved closer to the second year, and gently shook him. “Akaya...” Sure if the boy woke up and was still that nasty identity, he was in trouble but he couldn’t care less. He had to make sure that Akaya was okay.
It felt like he was floating on space. Is there a way to describe the nothing other than nothingness? Akaya felt like he was floating but there was nothing where he was floating into; he couldn’t see anything and he couldn’t even breath, he wasn’t sure he existed in the first place. It was like being asleep but without the feeling of sleeping, it was a matter of just existing. Could you exist if there wasn’t anything else to prove your existence? He felt real though, if he was actually feeling something. Then he felt it, the pull just above his navel, like when you miss a step when walking down the stairs or when you’re about to pass the first downhill of a rollercoaster. Yeah, definitely like that. So then he should feel... yes, the sudden rush of something pulling on him faster than what his self could endure and he felt himself screaming even if there wasn’t any sound and it suddenly felt like he was pulled out from the water after spending too much time holding his breath.
He had almost drowned once when he was a kid and it was exactly like it. The blinding light, the cold, the numbed pain, the feeling like his lungs were on fire and that odd sensation he was out of his body and looking from a detached point and in slow motion. He even heard his name being called. Akaya snapped his eyes open, not really seeing, and desperately gasped for breath. He wasn’t drowning, that much he realized, and tried to calm himself to reset his brain into working again.
Slowly, all his senses started to come back; he started to her his elaborated panting while everything started to get focused again. He saw glimpse of a very distinguishable mass of red hair... “Kin-chan?” He rasped in a hoarse voice, “What--?”
Stopping in mid sentence, Akaya screamed, a hopeless shrilling wail of agony. His sense of touch had returned.
Kintarou readied himself for what might come next as Akaya stirred into consciousness. His heart rate picked up but his body couldn’t feel any of the adrenaline rush; it seemed like between Akaya’s flames and his pushing himself to his limit, they managed to fry and kill all of his pain receptors. When he heard his nickname being called, he couldn’t help but laugh as relief washed over him. The good feeling was short-lived however. The next moment, his friend bawled, a continuous and high pitched cry that seeped under his cold and numb skin.
Oh, fuck. He must not have been awake when his other personality had taken over and now that he was... Kintarou shuddered -- he could only stare, as paralysed as his friend lying on the cracked earth was. In his mind flashed several victims when he had gotten out of control when he was younger. He has never seen any of them in this state, not even the sempai that he hurled across the football field... He has never seen any of them right after their accidents. He only knew that they got carted off to the infirmary or in worse situations, like that with the sempai, to the emergency room. This was all new to him. He didn’t know what to do, how to comfort Akaya or most especially to make the pain stop. He had never felt so helpless before. And this was his fault.
The pain was overwhelming and consuming and Akaya wished he was dead. For a while, he wasn’t even aware if he was still screaming or that he was starting to hyperventilate; all he knew was pain. It seemed like an eternity but shouldn’t have been long after the initial shock had passed; his mind sharply awake because of the onslaught of pain. He tried to move only to find he couldn’t; and was only after a titanic effort that he managed to rise his head a little and yelped at the look of his arms and hands. Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit He let his head fall heavily back into the ground. He wanted---no needed to throw up, so badly. Looking at Kintarou’s scared face, he swallowed back vomit to not scare him more. Akaya close shut his eyes trying to get a grip on himself to speak instead of just brokenly whimpering in pain.
Akaya forced himself to think, to remember. They were fighting about something stupid. He couldn’t remember for what anymore and things got out of control and they ended up in the woods and then he remembered Kinchan punching him and he trying to block it when everything went dark and…
He opened his eyes wide in horror. The sight that greeted him made him shiver violently and this time not for the cold or the pain. His friend was in a terrible state; clothes almost burned into pieces, raw-red spots where he had been burned, blood everywhere. The other. No, not again. The state of his arms and hands were the clear proof of how much energy he had used, probably had even tried to kill him. He knew what he was capable of better than anyone. He was him after all. My fault. He felt his eyes stinging. He tried to say he was sorry but he couldn’t even form the words and he must have looked ridiculous gaping like that and he didn’t deserved forgiveness anyway. He closed his eyes again and felt something wet running down his cheeks. He wished he was dead, indeed.
This was not something Kintarou had had any training or experience in. He had always been surrounded by his protection cheerful bubble. He had always thought of himself as an invulnerable person, removed from crippling emotions such as fear, believed that he could do all those stuff the superheroes in his manga were doing -- fighting villains, saving people -- but he had never counted on seeing this for himself: someone close to him hurting before his eyes. He wished Ryou-nii and Atsushi-nii were here to help him -- they would know what to do, he was sure -- or that he could go look for or bring Akaya to someone -- Ohtori! The clones chorused -- but it was already too much just moving or trying to move.
Kintarou dragged himself closer to Akaya, muting what would have been angry hisses as his cuts and blisters got scraped in the frozen ground, even as he tried to ignore the stream of tears running down the other’s face. He insisted that he wouldn’t cry, too. Not that he was ashamed (not immediately, at least, or maybe not even ever) but because it wouldn’t help them if he did. He gingerly took his tattered jacket off -- or what’s left of it -- and bundled it to lightly and fastidiously press onto Akaya’s larger wounds. “Oi, shut it.” He gently told his friend, as well as his clones all continuously rambling about what to do since the real Akaya had woken up.
Shut it. The words resonated inside Akaya’s head and even if it had been merely above a whisper, it silenced all the dark scenarios he had been playing in his head, trying to imagine what the fuck had happened and how they had ended like this. He gulped. Yes, he needed to get a grip on himself. This was his fault and he needed to fix it, somehow… without moving, because that wasn’t possible at this point. It wasn’t only about the pain, really. Yeah it hurt like being in fucking hell and being burned alive (which was pretty much what was actually happening), but it was about his energy reserve being burned out a while ago and he knew he was about to lose consciousness soon.
Biting the inside of his cheek, he didn’t have the guts to tell the redhead that it was making the pain worse. He deserved that pain. The second grader opened his eyes, the blood on them fading already and the green slowly reappearing, to look at his friend. No matter what, he needed to get help. If they had made enough of a scandal, someone might be curious enough to find them but they seemed to be deep in the woods and it he wasn’t really sure where they were… and it was too cold for his sempai-tachi to be taking a casual stroll in the middle of the freaking winter. Akaya concentrated to speak instead of screaming when he opened his mouth. “You okay?” Of course he isn’t, you stupid. “Can you….go… back?”
“Eh...” Kintarou winced with every small movement. “I’m okay.” He stopped dabbing his jacket onto Akaya’s wounds suddenly, hissing, when he felt sharp pains shooting up his arms. “What, do you think something like this can beat me?”
Akaya gave the redhead a look of complete incredulity at how his body reacted at the tiniest of movement. He felt a sting of guilt at the state of his friend, and tried to ignore the sting at his own pride because apparently Kintarou as right since the one in the floor was him. Not that he wanted his other self to be the winner because that would have probably meant a dead body (or several), but the bitter taste of defeat was still there. Also, that little brat was his kouhai; he was supposed to be one taking care of him and not the other way around. He chuckled and groaned at the pain that that caused. “Guess not...” Baby Tarzan was a tough badass opponent... but not undefeatable, and definitely clueless. Glad that the fabric was not making the pain unbearable anymore but worried for his friend being more injured of what he could see, Akaya he pushed once more. “Can you return?” To school, for help. “Honest.” There was no use if Kintarou fell unconscious midway. Akaya didn’t miss that the redhead didn’t answer his question about his state and shuddered at the thought of them being found too late.
With a last pained groan, Kintarou’s arms finally gave out supporting him and he dropped onto the uneven ground with a muted thud. Luckily, there weren’t sharp angles or the pain would have been worse. He landed beside Akaya and he twisted his head to look back at him with a tired smile. “I don’t think so, but I might be able to summon a clone.” He turned his eyes toward the sky, wondering how the hell they had gotten in this situation. “I just dunno if that’ll be long enough for him to find someone to help us.”
The second grader then realized they were indeed alone and that there wasn’t any of the annoying and sort of endearing little menaces. Knowing Kintarou’s fighting style, the clones were always so eager to be in the middle of the action and it was odd they weren’t there. Akaya hoped it was for pure exhaustion and not for... He shuddered again and winced at the pain the movement caused at his burns, but he couldn’t care less about them right now. “Knowing them, they’ll take ages...”Akaya forced a smile back at the redhead. “...are.... they.... okay?”
“They’re fine.” Kintarou laughed then coughed the next moment. “They’re pretty much in great shape compared to us...” Well, except Eight... who told Kintarou not to mention anything else. “They resent what you said, you know.” He adjusted where he laid, finding a good position where his back wouldn’t hurt as much, but since he didn’t move any more than a couple inches, it was kind of moot. “They say that in times like this, they wouldn’t have let anything -- not even takoyaki -- distract them.”
“Bullshit...” Akaya murmured amused, letting the breath out he didn’t know he was holding back. “Hope... some is cooking takoyaki... they’ll go faster...”He closed his eyes and swallow, his body tense in pain. Everything hurt too fucking much. He opened them again to reassure the redhead everything would be alright... somehow...“Tell them... to stop...being lazy...and go...then” He didn’t want to end as Kite-sempai’s pet’s meal or something.
I’m still alright, Kin-chan, Two said. You can let me out.
Eight spoke before Kintarou could say anything. This might not be a good idea but it might be the only way to send for help.
Kintarou let out a weak laugh and with a monumental effort, summoned Two. The moment his replica appeared out of thin air, he was flying toward the academy. “There he goes.” He yawned then gasped. “Ow...”
Akaya grunted in pain when he moved out of instinct to reach at the redhead when gasped. “What? What happened?” He asked hurriedly, trying to bite back the worry and the rage of feeling so useless. “You okay?”
“Yeah, some rock just poked my back when I moved.” At this moment, Kintarou wished nothing more than to sleep in his soft and warm bed. However, he resisted the urge to close his eyes longer than a blink. If he let his eyes relax, he will lose consciousness and his clone will disappear wherever he was. “You okay?”
The other teenager nodded slightly. They were both really beaten up; he already saw how bad the damage in his hands and arms was and he was sure the other did too, so no need for specifics, right? The burns in his upper body and legs stang too fucking much as well but at least they weren’t visible and they were his own fault anyway... Though... if he had used that amount of energy and his skin was resistant to the energy then... did he... manage to burn Kintarou more than what he could see? “You...” He gulped, “I...” Akaya took a deep breath. I’m sorry, “I’ll treat you... takoyaki... next time?”
Despite knowing it will hurt, Kintarou couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “So, all it takes for you to treat me to takoyaki is a little rough play in the snow?” He laughed again, but this time, due to feeling the tension disappear between them, he didn’t mind the sharp prickling on his sides and well everywhere else. “You are so on.” He looked at Akaya with no hint of resentment in his heavy eyes and smile. “I expect a truckload of takoyaki, okay?”
Akaya couldn’t help but to laugh shakily himself after hearing the other laughing, feeling part of the oppression that was suffocating him disappearing. He grunted because of the pain and because he knew he was going to be so broke when that happened but, after that day, Akaya thought he owe Kintarou that much at least. “Sure thing, brat...” He would try to reach to mess with the other’s hair but wailing in pain probably would kill the mood anyway. “I....bet you.. I can eat...more... than you...” He said winking before throwing a worried glance at his companion and then turning his head to look at the sky, it was getting dark...and colder, too much colder.They were getting help soon, the redhead’s clone was in his way... right?
“Y’know you can’t beat me...” Kintarou mumbled sleepily, his eyes getting heavier every passing second. Fleetingly he wished that he had a telepathic link with his clones when they were called out so he could know where Two was at the moment. He obviously hadn’t been mauled by a bear or tiger since he wasn’t back inside his head so it was safe to assume he was still on his way to the academy. “A truckload of takoyaki...“
Hmm... It was getting colder, the breeze was getting stronger, too. When had his room had this sky view? He moved to get more comfortable but he received a shock instead, going up his arms and spreading on his back so he stopped moving. He must have forgotten to put his bed in order before climbing in. Those blunt object prodding his sides must be his school supplies but he was just so tired... Damn those things. If they break, he’ll just buy them.
Sleep sounded so good at the moment but... there was something he needed to do. Urging his eyes to open he looked to his side and saw his friend. What was Akaya doing here in his room? He snickered. And he looked dirty, too. Whatever.
Oops. He must have closed his eyes longer than necessary. There goes Two, he’s back in his head and was now yelling something about being sorry for not making it. He hoped it wasn’t his bed he was talking about because they promised their Kisarazu brothers that they will take care of the bed...
He looked back at Akaya. Eh... Why was Akaya there again? It was only a few seconds before he lost consciousness, he knew. “Oi,” he called him and smiled. “Good night.” Maybe Akaya will treat him to takoyaki tomorrow. Yeah. Tomorrow. He smiled again and let the darkness engulf him.
Small white dots were starting to fall on them and Akaya felt a tickling sensation on the point of his nose as a snowflake landed on it; he frowned since it wasn’t like he could just brush it off. He turned his head to the the other when he heard him speaking, and even though he didn’t quite catch what the other was saying he couldn’t stop himself from smiling back... that was until realization sank in. “G-good night? Brat? Oi!” The anguish was already crawling inside him. Kintarou was asleep right? He couldn’t be...”Shit! Kin-chan! Wake up!”
Gathering all the strenght he didn’t quite have but summoned anyway because it was his friend lying in the cold ground, Akaya bit down his lip to avoid screaming as he crawled toward the other. He felt the coppery taste of his own blood in his mouth and gagged. “Oi! Kin-chan!” He yelled almost at the edge of hysteria but the redhead just laid there. Akaya raised one burned-raw hand and used it to shake the other as hard as he could (that was pretty weak in his current condition) while cursing his own ancestors through the very beginning of time. Too much pain, too much. He gagged again at the unbearable pain and at the idea of the worst that could happen,“Kin-chan! WAKE UP!”
“Shut up, Aka-chan and pass me some more Takoyaki...” The redhead mumbled and curled on himself a little more.
“Fuck...”Akaya collapse heavily into the ground. Alive.”Don’t sleep on me you bra---Oh fuck. Kin-chan. Kin-chan!” He resumed his efforts to wake the other up, the adrenaline already kicking in and allowing him to crawl into a kneeling position to have a better support to shake the other a little harder. “Did the clone make it?! Did he?! Kin-chan!!Kin-chan!!!” Fuckfuckfuckfuck. Akaya knew that the clone would disappear once the redhead lost consciousness to keep him out, and if he didn’t manage to reach the school for help then...
They were so fucked.
Shivering badly because of the cold, the pain, the sudden adrenaline rush and fear; Akaya slouched over Kintarous’ sleeping body. It was odd, it felt warm, maybe sort of hot...then he saw it: Kintarou’s severely burned and bloody back. Akaya looked horrified at how the fabric clung to the blackened skin and how blood was oozing out of the larger wounds; he couldn’t look away.Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit. Akaya couldn’t hold back and managed only to turn away enough to retch violently before throwing up for good this time.He raged and screamed in despair. “I’m sorry, Kin-chan, I’m so sorry...” He murmured between breaths; he was starting to hyperventilate. “I’ll get you help, okay?” The teenage said louder. Help, he needed help. How could he bring someone here?! When you have such a volatile power, you try to sneak without being noticed and keep a low profile because stupid normal people couldn’t understand-- Mutants, on the other side, tended to find him when he was enjoying his powers, creating energy fireworks and causing small explosions, flashy maybe, but how he was supposed to train other way...
The answer was as a clear as the layer of frozen water that was slowly covering them.
Flares. Something their sempai-tachi would be able to see even if they were at school and since it was almost dark now, they would glow enough to attract their attention. Even if it was only Sanada-sempai to kick his ass back and scolding him for playing on the snow again. Yes, someone will come. He needed to do it...
Akaya closed his eyes and sat there, on his knees. He took three deep breaths to calm himself just enough to clear his head, even if he knew they would be useless once he summoned energy to his destroyed nerves and burned skin. “Everything’s okay, Kin-chan. Help is coming...” He murmured and patted the redhead gently on the shoulder, leaving a red stain on the ruined jacket. Akaya grunted in pain again but he knew that that would be nothing compared to was going to feel in a moment.
Half raising a hand toward the dark clouded sky, Akaya chuckled. Three short flashes, three long flashes, three short flashes. Apparently, learning that stupid S.O.S signal years ago turned out not to be a waste of time. He didn’t know what in hell that stood for but it meant help and Kintarou needed it. His eyes went completely blood red again in an instant and then he screamed. The pain was all-consuming and suffocating but he saw how the energy was slowly forming in his fist. Akaya shot the first three small balls that exploded high in the sky, one after the other. He lost his sight when his eyes rolled to the back of his head as consciousness started to fade again. No. He needed to hold on more. He could do it, he would not be defeated by the pain and exhaustion. Maybe this was part of his road to redemption of what he had caused. Yeah, maybe. It didn’t matter though. He needed to concentrate, the ball forming on his hand needed to be big enough to be sent divided in three larger orbs. Roaring in pain he sent them high, the little crater completely lit by the glow of them.
He almost lost it again there but it wasn’t enough, it wasn’t nearly enough! An animalistic growl and a yell resonated in the woods before Akaya was completely covered by purple flames, the energy condensing and shooting high up through the sky for the last set of flashes. “It’s okay... help’s coming...” He murmured or maybe just thought he did because his throat didn't work properly anymore but it didn’t matter because they would come... they needed to come...
Akaya’s unconscious body fell limply into the ground.
The next time Kintarou opened his eyes, there were two people hovering above him, a woman with a frantic voice, fussing about him. The woman had red hair, “Kaa-san?” But why was she in the academy? Sleepily, he cast his eyes around but his vision was still blurry and everywhere ached. A man -- was it his father? but he didn’t wear funky hats -- then crouched and lifted the weight previously pressing on him. He directed his gaze toward the body and saw it was Akaya and he looked dreadful. “Aka-chan...” Seeing the state of his friend invoked memories of the events that led to them being slumped in what was now ankle-deep snow. His breathing instantly hitched and a soothing hand settled on his chest coupled by a cooing sound. “Calm down, Tooyama-kun,” she said, “You and Kirihara-kun will be all right. You’re safe, we got you.”
He stole one last look at his friend and let his eyes shut again. It was clear that they won’t have a truckload of takoyaki tomorrow like in his dream before gaining consciousness, but there still were other days after that. He will make sure that Akaya will end up running out of allowance money.
Kintarou didn’t know if it was the sound of the woman’s voice, or the soothing hand on his chest, or the mere fact that someone had come to help them but suddenly tears formed in his eyes in relief. She said they’ll be all right and he believed her.
Location: The woods
Time: January 12th
Rating: R for blood and language
Summary: The butterfly effect is the phenomenon whereby a minor change in circumstances can cause a large change in outcome; in a mutant world, it’s just chaos without the theory. Some things, like friendship, can survive even that.
[Fee: This log was planned and started back at early December (already considering the slow pace in which we rp in general), and as my dropping and the promptly acceptance of another role player as the same character weren't taken into account when we set this, please consider it just as an alternate universe of this... alternate universe ^^]
Kintarou drifted back after Akaya blocked his last punch, wary of another energised marble that the other might throw at him. It surprised the redhead that seaweed head had blocked the hit at all but he was relieved that he had -- Kintarou was sure that that had been far stronger than he has ever hit anyone before. But he didn't mean it to be that way, he just lost control. It was Akaya’s fault if he got injured, the freshman thought. Surely Kintarou couldn’t be blamed for trying to teach Akaya a lesson of not pissing off someone as strong as him.
He skidded to a halt a good fifty feet from Akaya, parallel lines tracking where his feet slid in the snow-covered ground. As he waited for the veil of evaporate that his feet's friction with the ground made to settle down to see, he wondered if he had seriously hurt Akaya. Still, he remained in battle mode in case the other boy was just biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to ambush him.
“You shouldn’t have done that, Aka-chan!” He called as Akaya’s form reappeared. What Kintarou saw made the hair at the back of his neck stand on end.
That... That wasn’t Akaya.
The laughter that came from the smoke screen was such a chilling, cruel, sinister sound that everything else seemed to be silenced by fear; there wasn’t any other sound left, not the sound of rustling leaves caused by little animals, not the sound of batted wings. Two red lights could be seen glowing in the smoke where Akaya had been standing before the blow. The laughter became louder, resonating in the woods until it stopped all of the sudden. “You shouldn’t have done that…” Akaya’s usually bright teasing tone was replaced by a very much lower tone, more like a guttural growl than human speech.
The smoke started to dissipate, revealing the second year standing and leaning into a tree. His skin was almost completely covered in a shade of red so intense it looked like he was covered in blood, even though he only had scratches and bruises from the sparring against the redhead. His hair had become bright white at the amount of energy used, making a hard contrast with the teenage skin color. Dilated pupils gave the deathly stare an evil glint. The zone where Akaya was touching the tree for support was slowly starting to burn and disintegrate in a red glow. “You’re dead.”
A ball of glowing light went through what was left of the smoke, aimed to collide with Kintarou’s chest. That insane shrilling laughter filled the silent woods again.
“Oi, what are you --?” Kintarou didn’t even have an opportunity to block the sparking energy that hurtled toward him not a second after Akaya’s transformed body came into view. He just had time to brace himself and pool a bit of his own energy to his upper body before he got blown back in a blink of an eye and slammed into the nearest tree that rocked and showered him with sheets of snow. He unearthed himself as quickly as he could -- his instincts were telling him that the best thing to do in this situation was run... the way Akaya’s eyes glowed and the colour of his skin spelled trouble in large, glowing neon letters. However, like what his clones have been growling in the background, drowning the self-preservation chants of his instincts, this was Akaya, and there was something wrong with him.
“Aka-chan,” Kintarou breathed out as he stretched his slightly aching back. He let out a nervous laugh, hoping his friend was just kidding... only he knew that that glare meant business and it sent another cold shiver down his spine. “This ain’t funny.” He took slow strides toward the other boy, preparing himself for an attack he was sure was coming. “Snap out of it, will ya?”
The tree finally gave in into the continuous energy flow and snapped in half, falling heavily into the ground. Akaya’s smirk didn’t falter and his eyes seemed to intensify his glow before he disappeared in the new formed cloud of dust and smoke. The maniac laugh seemed to come from all over the place. “Are you scared?” The faceless voice sang lowly and it was worse than if it had it shouted it.
A shift of wind and some rustling of leaves and the devil was just behind the redhead’s back, a large ball of energy in one of his right hand. Blisters were forming in said fist; the skin not being able to endure such amount of energy at the same time. “You should be.” He growled before releasing the energy into the other’s back.
Kintarou had to blink a number of times when Akaya disappeared from the snapped tree, and the words Are you scared echoed ominously inside his head. If there was one thing Kintarou was proud of, it was that he feared nothing. Casting aside his phobia for needles, he had never been scared of anything in his life... but when he felt a swift breeze whoosh from his side to his back, his pride melted under the rapid pick up of his heartbeats and he was left gasping for air. The cold Kintarou felt when Akaya’s voice suddenly came from behind him had nothing to do with the snow that a second ago was all over him.
Kintarou realised something right then: Akaya really wanted to hurt him.
Go! Eight said simultaneously when Two and Three roared, Let us out! It would have been easy to do but he was frozen in place. All the clones screaming his name when he felt the heat on his back woke him up and he flew without thinking a particular place to land. As he drifted in the air, he looked back in time for Two and Three to block the ball of energy Akaya intended for him then fan out in opposite directions.
“Akaya!” The three of them called. “Stop this now!”
Baring his teeth with an animalistic growl of pure rage at missing his target, Akaya launched himself at the clones with a ball of energy in each hand. He threw them at the copies to distract them long enough to pick a heavy chunk of wood from a fallen tree. He started laughing again while holding it in his hands, charging it. “Why should I? I can take all of you down…” The devil sang, “…just watch me.” He whispered and broke the large branch in two pieces before throwing them at the clones, even if it missed its target, it would explode sending pointy sticks everywhere. Maybe they could poke their eyes out. He licked his lips.
Kintarou landed on the same spot Akaya had been in earlier when he transformed into this... thing. His feet touched the ground in time for him to see Akaya chuck charged pieces of branches toward his clones. Panic exploded in his guts and one thought rang in his head -- he couldn’t let his brothers get hurt. He has only had his copies for more than nine months; they have never been in any situation that has put them in danger such as this so he didn't know what would become of them. He cringed at the thought of any of his copies getting severely injured to disappear forever.
With a bellow, Kintarou let two more clones out even as he picked up the trunk of the tree Akaya had destroyed as if it was made of air. He can feel his energy dwindling steadily but adrenaline has kicked in and his reserve strength had woken up. As Five and Six made a beeline for their fellow clones, Kintarou smashed the trunk and it fragmented under his shaking fist. He then threw five spikes the size of his forearm in Akaya’s direction but he made sure that they would impale the ground between his friend and his clones. Another thing that Kintarou prided in himself was his perfect aim, Akaya should be okay. “Duck!” He yelled at his clones.
The insane laughter of seeing those redheads running for their lives and getting hurt by splitters in arms and legs wavered when he saw another two brats appearing in their field and died completely when the devil took a few steps back to avoid being hit by the spikes. The smirk was gone and was replaced by a frown and deadly glare. Five to one? “Coward…” He growled between clenched teeth, sending a large wave of kinetic energy that surely would destroyed the spikes and maybe reach the annoying menaces.
Pieces of clothes fell over the snow, the fabric no longer resisting the continuous energy charge, leaving exposed the blood-red raw skin underneath. Channelling even more energy to his hands, Akaya snickered and slowly advanced toward his prey. “Is that all you have?” He said tilting his head to one side and walking toward Kintarou. Once he could get hold of the original one, he would be able of fry him up nicely and maybe the others too if they didn’t disappear. Or maybe the other way around and make him witness that. That sounds like fun.
The clones backed away from Akaya and joined their original on either side of him, all wearing looks of horror and pain, not from the splinters that dug in their skins but from Akaya's determination to attack them. "Two, Three?" Kintarou asked without taking his eyes off of the leering being across the field from them five. "We're fine." Two replied with a wince as he extracted a particularly long piece of wood from his forearm. "Yes, don't worry, Kin-chan," Three agreed as he shrugged off his ruined jacket.
"More importantly," Four said, his eyes noting every tiny movement of Akaya. "How do we stop him?"
One, Eight called him -- it was only the second time he has called him that, the other being the day he named his clones and the others started fighting about the numbers assigned to them, and Eight had to put his foot down and acknowledge he was their leader. This meant Eight was really upset and that his mind was made up. Call the four back and let me out.
Without so much as a second thought, Kintarou tapped the shoulders of the clones closest to him and they vanished in a cloud of smoke; the other two immediately following suit. Although no wound showed on his skin, the young mutant could feel the phantom sensations of the cuts.
When Eight materialized beside him, he levelled Akaya an unwavering look of resolve. “He can’t be reasoned with, One. Look at his eyes.” He didn’t wait for a reply, however -- he knew it was all that Kintarou had been looking at for the past minute since their friend became like this. “You have to stop holding back, Kintarou. If we want to stop him from hurting us, or worse himself, the only way is to make him unconscious.”
Kintarou gulped. He knew Eight was right but he couldn’t bear to hurt a friend on purpose. “I’ll...” And the last punch he accidentally hit Akaya with turned him into this… who’s to say it won’t make things worse? “...try.”
The glow coming from Akaya’s hands intensified sending a flash of light, purple flames totally engulfing his fists. Those little red menaces were plotting to get him back into that dark void inside the kid’s head. He had been waiting in the shadows for the opening to come back after tasting the power after the incident. He had being content with the teases of freedom he got when the kid pushed his limits but the little wimp was too considerate to completely embrace his power and take over anything he wanted, too afraid of letting him to join him. Then, the kid came to this place where he strengthened the barrier separating him, leaving him inside of the cold wasteland of nothing. It was such luck the kid was stupid enough to not forfeit a fight he was bound to lose, and his body too weak from that last punch from the redhead. It was the perfect opportunity to fetch freedom again.
And the power, the power was too addicting, too exhilarating; it was everything.
He needed it.
Growling, the devil came closer. He didn’t know how many clones Tooyama could summon and that put him in disadvantage at some point. The new comer seemed to be the smartest of them though. Challenge. The devil smirked, his steps melting the snow as he walked. “Why did the others leave the party so soon? I was just getting started~” He said before launching himself at the original redhead. Go on, protect him. So I can fry you up first and let him watch…
Eight’s eyes got glued for a moment at the path of melted snow Akaya was making as he trudged toward them. When he realised that other must be making another attack, the clone moved closer to his fellow redhead. He was about to tell Kintarou his plan to subdue Akaya but he didn’t have the time to. Without warning, the second year lunged at the original one, his arms outstretched as if to grab at Kintarou’s neck.
Meanwhile, Kintarou crouched lower and braced himself -- he still didn’t want to have to hurt his friend but as Eight pointed out, they had no choice...
Lips curling in distaste, Eight dug his toes into the snow and kicked the cold stuff toward Akaya and then skidded in front of him before he got nearer to Kintarou. “Oh, no, you don’t.” Eight growled as he grabbed Akaya’s arms and, despite the burns that he was receiving, gripped him tight and pushed the other boy back down toward the ground. For a moment, none of the two moved from their locked position and Kintarou could only hold his breath and wait for what his copy would do, until Akaya smirked.
Eight knew he was in trouble.
From this distance, the redhead had a perfect view of the blood-red glowing eyes that had nothing human on them. “Gotcha~”Akaya laughed quietly into the clone’s ear. He didn’t waste any more time, this was what he had aimed for. In a swift motion, he embraced the clone with his arms and locked himself around the other, letting an enormous amount of energy flow through him and into the redhead. The sinister laugh echoed in the woods, hiding the sizzling sound of the snow evaporating around them.
Cursing himself for falling into the trap that Akaya had obviously planned all along, Eight started to wriggle out of the other’s grasp as he felt an increasing heat to his back. Kintarou on the other hand yelled Eight’s name, hoping his brother would be alright, and he bolted toward the two, and when he was about ten feet away and saw the scrunched face of his clone, he pooled his energy to his dominant arm and punched the ground.
Where his knuckles met the earth, small cracks appeared until they zigzagged outward, creating splits and craters. He repeatedly hit the ground a couple more times until the cracks spread until they reached where Akaya had taken Eight as a hostage. Kintarou lightly stepped on a solid looking patch of ground then sprang up again to land behind the other two.
As Akaya moved to keep from the cracks in the ground, he twirled around to follow where Kintarou had gone. With one last glance at their original, Eight let go and vanished, bringing with him the unbearable heat that Kintarou was now feeling on his back.
Kintarou has had enough, if Akaya could stomach inflicting pain to Eight like that, he should stop holding back. And even though the clones have started screaming again to let them out to help, he decided he’ll do it on his own.
Looking up from his spot on the ground, Akaya smirked at the figure hovering over him. Even if he was in such vulnerable position he was pretty sure Tooyama wouldn’t attack him yet. One of the biggest weakness of good people was that they always wanted to do the right thing in the most honorable way. He laughed, loud and freely and slowly rolled over so he could stand. “Spoilsport, if I had him for a little longer…” He wondered if the original one could feel the injuries he had inflicted into the clones but the devil decided it didn’t matter since he was going to experience them firsthand soon enough. He brushed the snow off his pants and shirt; the raw skin exposed itching at the contact of the cold. Taking some distance from the redhead, the devil popped his neck and shoulder relieving tension.
Akaya charged his hands again and watched with fascination how new blisters were forming on them. It was painful, yes, but bearable… his current condition numbing his sensations; when the pain would really kick in, he would be resting again and wouldn’t be the one endure it when the party was over. He looked up at his opponent once more.
“I’ll destroy you.” Akaya smiled.
“Not if I destroy you first.” Kintarou growled as he felt Eight become out of touch for several extended seconds now. He hoped it was just taking a moment for him to ‘gain consciousness’ in his head. Kintarou feared for the worst, his whole body shaking with anger and the residual pain his most tenacious replica had suffered from. If this were any other person, that smirking, taunting boy in front of him would have already been on his way to a nearby hospital or somewhere medical attention wouldn’t be able to help him. Still, however much his features and behaviour had changed, he knew that this was his friend.
No, he’s not, Kintarou! Two argued, exasperated at what they call his state of denial as supported by Seven, That may be Akaya’s body but look at him!
Kintarou visibly cringed when Four roared, Look at what happened to Eight because you wouldn’t --!
Silence, Four. Kintarou sighed in relief as their connection to Eight got restored, worried that his ‘voice’ sounded soft but thankful that the edge in this tone was still present. He was mulling over what would have happened had they lost their brother forever when Eight interrupted his thoughts. Don’t think that way, One. Just do your best for Akaya and let us out when you need us.
The redhead gritted his teeth and poised, ready for an attack. He saw how fast Akaya could be when he wanted so he calmed himself down and somehow forced his senses to heighten. He knew only one way to fight and that was to not have a plan and just improvise and right now was the time to test if this method was effective in real life. I’ll make you regret what you did to Akaya and my brothers, he thought and then out loud, waving his arms to either sides as if doing a welcoming bow, “Come at us.”
The demon watched in mild curiosity the changes in the redhead, a smug satisfied smile on his face. He took advantage of what it seemed to be the inner monologue between the other’s clones to slowly reach for the almost empty bag of marbles around his belt and measured it up by squeezing it lightly, there should be enough to cause a nice distraction. His breathing sped up, the animalistic anticipation of the fight taking over his senses. Akaya took a couple of marbles out and licked his lips again.
Wait for the perfect opening, wait for it, wait for it...
By the time the midget decided had the guts to fight for his pitiful life with that mock of invitation, Akaya was already on his way. Throwing on marble to the right and another to the left of the redhead, one right after the other, he sprang forward to punch him right through the chest; the explosion and small fragment of glass working as nice messy distraction. He could feel some of them scratching his cheeks but it was easily ignored by the sweet sensation of impact of his fist against its aimed target.
Jumping a few feet backwards to admire his work and brace himself for the counterattack he knew should be coming, Akaya chuckled amused. This was so much fun.
In spite of himself, Kintarou felt a thrill run down his spine when he saw Akaya rushing toward him. He smirked darkly, preparing himself for the fight he knew he couldn’t run away anymore. Digging a foot a step behind him, he positioned himself, ready to spring at his opponent.
However, instead of Akaya, what came at him was another of those marbles he had used on him earlier… before everything got out of hand. An explosion to his one side followed by another to his other side made Kintarou’s focus lessened enough that he didn’t have time to block another blow from Akaya. He slid backwards a few feet but recovered immediately, launching himself toward his friend, jumping several feet above him, summoned two clones who appeared mid-air alongside him, to dive bomb Akaya.
He knew summoning clones would greatly deplete his energy but he hoped this plan would work. Four’s punch missed and he jumped away from their friend, not taking chances of getting taken as hostage like Eight. Seven then risked landing behind Akaya and he triumphantly roared “Ha!” when his fist connected with Akaya’s cheek, however, with two of them out, their individual strength was less.
Dodging the first punch was quite easy. Really, attacking frontally like that against him? They were stupider than they let sh-- There was blunt pain and suddenly Akaya was on the snow after losing his balance. Feeling the coppery taste of blood after splitting open the inside of his cheek, the demon growled. He didn’t catch sight of the other clone until it was too late it seemed. From the corner of his eye, he saw Tooyama spinning in mid-air and finding a place next to the other clone and out of his range. The punch hadn’t been that strong and in a fraction of second, Akaya wondered if maybe the intelligence was split between copies because the clone that had hit him was close enough for him to reach.
Akaya recovered enough to throw himself at the clone’s legs, already releasing kinetic energy before grabbing him. He successfully threw the little menace off his feet and with a sadistic laugh, renewed his energy flow.
It didn’t last much, though, since he found himself embracing an empty space when the clone disappeared. “FUCKER!” The demon raged and got on his feet again; he managed to kick some melting snow at the remaining redheads before launching himself at them. “You’re dead!”
Kintarou hissed when he reabsorbed Seven and he felt the sting of the burn around his ankle and calves. This was really annoying him big time. With just a glance, an understanding passed between him and Four and they ran to meet Akaya from opposite directions. They were only going to last a few more minutes and they had to subdue their friend somehow. He hoped this time would work.
While Four jumped to tackle Akaya, Kintarou slid himself to kick the second year’s feet to knock him over.
Akaya knew he needed to focus his attention on, the one that couldn’t disappear once he got a hold of, so he was prepared to jump to dodge the kick aimed at his feet but those annoying sneaky cheating copies! He couldn’t turn enough to dodge the tackle and felt the air in his lungs leave him when his back hit the ground for a second time. Growling and grunting in pain he reached to grab the clone’s neck with his hand in an iron grip.“I’ll dye you red!” He snarled before squeezing tightly while releasing energy.
“Four!” Kintarou both called out and called for his clone to vanish and once again, Akaya was left grasping empty air. While Akaya was getting back on his feet, without a second thought, Kintarou grabbed the front of Akaya’s shirt, swept the second year’s feet off and used the other’s weight to throw him back to the ground. He poised, aiming another shot at his friend’s face. “This has already gone too far, Akaya!”
Feeling himself being sweep of his feet, the devil got hold of the rim of Tooyama’s jacket and pulled it to bring him down with him. As soon as he felt the other’s weight on top of him, he let a yell of joy out. He tangled himself around the other the best he could. “Game over, brat.” Akaya said before releasing a powerful wave of energy. The sinister laughter was back, this time mixed with pained whimpers caused by the continuous abuse of power over Akaya’s human body.
The power he gathered around his fist instantly dissipated as he felt himself falling along with Akaya. In a flash, he found himself being trapped by Akaya, his arms and legs immobilized by the other boy’s. If he hadn’t been summoning his clones and using a lot of energy he would have gotten himself free already. As it was, he still struggled, but then he suddenly felt heat between their bodies as Akaya glowed. Kintarou yelled in pain when the heat became too much and he felt his clothes getting singed and sticking to him, smelling burnt fabric and skin.
Shit. He was in trouble.
Tooyama’s yell of pain wasn’t the only one heard, since Akaya’s wail was loud as well. The glow engulfing both teenagers blazed a few times before dimming and then disappearing leaving only energy sparks synchronized with the demon’s hysterical laughter. Akaya kicked the ground so he could reverse their positions. Almost hyperventilating because of the adrenaline rush and the pain he was endure himself, he sat on the other’s chest, successfully trapping the redhead’s arms with his legs and weight, and placed both his hand on the other’s neck. His hands and forearms were burned raw and blood was oozing from the blisters. The second year applied some pressure with his thumbs, teasing the skin underneath. He leaned forward and laughed quietly into Tooyama’s ear.”I’ll crush you...”
With the pain getting worse and his strength at its limit, the only thing Kintarou could do was growl and futilely wriggle out of Akaya’s grasp. There were angry tears forming in his eyes, not at being helpless, not at being dominated, not at the pain but at seeing his friend enjoying hurting him. Now on his back sandwiched by snow and the blaze given off by Akaya, Kintarou felt his consciousness slowly leaving him. He couldn’t let this happen... but what else can he do?
When slick but extremely hot hands that smelled of blood wrapped around his neck, he gagged -- and now, he couldn’t even scream in agony. Where Akaya’s skin touched his, boils formed, but his whole body was feeling absolutely on fire. “Akaya...” He was able to choke out. Still he wasn’t afraid. He knew there was still a way out... there had to be... if only he could free his hands.
The absolute terror came when Akaya leaned forward to whisper in his ear. Even with the flames engulfing him, he felt cold. Only his clones’ admonitions snapped him out of his panicked state. This, like what they said, was the opening he’d needed. “Oh, yeah?” Kintarou taunted as he summoned every bit of strength left in him and with a mighty effort, he headbutted Akaya.
Not expecting the redhead to have some energy left to pull such stunt, Akaya was thrown off balance for a second; his grip losing up completely as his hands went to his head were Tooyama had hit him. “You piece of shit!” He growled and choked back a scream when he summoned energy to his damaged right hand and aimed for the other’s face.
Breathing heavily due to the effort, Kintarou just rolled away in time to avoid a blow that would have hurt like hell. Wrapping his arms across his chest as he stood up to somehow ease the pain, he roared. “You’re not Akaya!” The moment when he was being restrained by the other boy, he got a closer look at his eyes. He knew what it was like to have others inside his head. This could easily be Akaya’s other personality... He couldn’t believe it was possible for his friend to have such a sinister alternate persona but there was no other explanation why he suddenly became so wild and resolute in hurting him. “Let him out now!”
“So you finally caught up, hmm?”Akaya slowly stood up, his body slouched over and water steam coming off his skin as the snow melted over it; he was chuckling madly. “I’m the best part of him. He’s an useless wimp, we could conquer anything if he let me...” He smirked. “Maybe I should be one in charge from now on...” He laughed again. The demon could see how the fight was finally catching up with both of them, he refused to be the one defeated, he just needed to bid some time“...just like that clone of yours, the one that I fried up first...” Large energy control was too painful to endure right now and he would risk passing out because of it, he could feel it. Walking toward his prey, Akaya reached for the last couple of marbles and bit back the hiss of pain at charging them, “...he seemed smarter than you. Still stupid as fuck, though...” Feeling the marbles about to explode he throw them at the redhead.
Kintarou knew it was only a matter of time until he lost consciousness and that would be dangerous. Still, even from this distance he could see that the other boy was also reaching his own limits. “No, you’re not!” He winced with every step he took to drag himself toward the laughing form. His eyesight was getting blurred as more blood drained from him because of his injuries. Shit. We have to do something. “And don’t you dare talk about my brothers that way!” He only had to stagger sideways to dodge exploding marbles. It seemed either Akaya was losing his ability to hit his target or that Kintarou’s body was too numb now to register new injuries. With just a few feet away from the second year, he threw himself at him to grab the frayed collar of his jacket and aimed for the other’s face.
Akaya staggered a few steps backwards when Tooyama went for him; the smirk all gone and his eyes wide. He could easily tell the other was practically out of it and at the bridge of consciousness; he manage to dodge the weak punch but didn’t hit back. “W-why are you doing this?! Why you just don’t surrender?!” He shoved the redhead off, stumbling a few more steps backwards. The demon felt how one of his feet losing ground and he fought to get his balance back; he had reached the edge of the crater the redhead had punched on the ground.
Kintarou aimed another shot at Akaya’s face -- well his face but not toward Akaya himself but at his other persona -- but missed. He had the nerve to ask why he was doing this? “Get him out now!” Apparently, he was just wasting energy by punching at the air so he grabbed Akaya by the collars with both hands and headbutted him once more. “Leave him alone!”
“Stop fucki--” The devil groaned in pain when the brat hit him and yelped when he felt himself falling, the last stunt sending both of them over the edge and into the crater. “Shit!” He grunted when he hit the ground first, not enough air in his lungs to scream at the abuse of his own injuries. He could feel his body bouncing and hitting the ground again. There was a deep intense pain on the back of his skull before darkness embraced him.
He must have been more out of it that he realised because when their heads banged, he saw a burst of light behind his lids and he felt the earth move under his feet. Once again, he found himself falling, being drawn by Akaya.
They crashed into the center of the crater he had made earlier. With a pained groan, Kintarou pushed himself up and he noticed that his clothes were torn and bloodied beyond recognition, as was his skin, even as he cautiously crawled toward the other boy. Damn, Akaya did a good number on him.
He reached out and held his breath as he pressed his fingers on the inside of Akaya’s wrist, feeling for a pulse, taking care not to squish the open wounds so blood wouldn’t ooze out further. When a weak but discernible beating thrummed against his finger pads, Kintarou sighed heavily. He moved closer to the second year, and gently shook him. “Akaya...” Sure if the boy woke up and was still that nasty identity, he was in trouble but he couldn’t care less. He had to make sure that Akaya was okay.
It felt like he was floating on space. Is there a way to describe the nothing other than nothingness? Akaya felt like he was floating but there was nothing where he was floating into; he couldn’t see anything and he couldn’t even breath, he wasn’t sure he existed in the first place. It was like being asleep but without the feeling of sleeping, it was a matter of just existing. Could you exist if there wasn’t anything else to prove your existence? He felt real though, if he was actually feeling something. Then he felt it, the pull just above his navel, like when you miss a step when walking down the stairs or when you’re about to pass the first downhill of a rollercoaster. Yeah, definitely like that. So then he should feel... yes, the sudden rush of something pulling on him faster than what his self could endure and he felt himself screaming even if there wasn’t any sound and it suddenly felt like he was pulled out from the water after spending too much time holding his breath.
He had almost drowned once when he was a kid and it was exactly like it. The blinding light, the cold, the numbed pain, the feeling like his lungs were on fire and that odd sensation he was out of his body and looking from a detached point and in slow motion. He even heard his name being called. Akaya snapped his eyes open, not really seeing, and desperately gasped for breath. He wasn’t drowning, that much he realized, and tried to calm himself to reset his brain into working again.
Slowly, all his senses started to come back; he started to her his elaborated panting while everything started to get focused again. He saw glimpse of a very distinguishable mass of red hair... “Kin-chan?” He rasped in a hoarse voice, “What--?”
Stopping in mid sentence, Akaya screamed, a hopeless shrilling wail of agony. His sense of touch had returned.
Kintarou readied himself for what might come next as Akaya stirred into consciousness. His heart rate picked up but his body couldn’t feel any of the adrenaline rush; it seemed like between Akaya’s flames and his pushing himself to his limit, they managed to fry and kill all of his pain receptors. When he heard his nickname being called, he couldn’t help but laugh as relief washed over him. The good feeling was short-lived however. The next moment, his friend bawled, a continuous and high pitched cry that seeped under his cold and numb skin.
Oh, fuck. He must not have been awake when his other personality had taken over and now that he was... Kintarou shuddered -- he could only stare, as paralysed as his friend lying on the cracked earth was. In his mind flashed several victims when he had gotten out of control when he was younger. He has never seen any of them in this state, not even the sempai that he hurled across the football field... He has never seen any of them right after their accidents. He only knew that they got carted off to the infirmary or in worse situations, like that with the sempai, to the emergency room. This was all new to him. He didn’t know what to do, how to comfort Akaya or most especially to make the pain stop. He had never felt so helpless before. And this was his fault.
The pain was overwhelming and consuming and Akaya wished he was dead. For a while, he wasn’t even aware if he was still screaming or that he was starting to hyperventilate; all he knew was pain. It seemed like an eternity but shouldn’t have been long after the initial shock had passed; his mind sharply awake because of the onslaught of pain. He tried to move only to find he couldn’t; and was only after a titanic effort that he managed to rise his head a little and yelped at the look of his arms and hands. Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit He let his head fall heavily back into the ground. He wanted---no needed to throw up, so badly. Looking at Kintarou’s scared face, he swallowed back vomit to not scare him more. Akaya close shut his eyes trying to get a grip on himself to speak instead of just brokenly whimpering in pain.
Akaya forced himself to think, to remember. They were fighting about something stupid. He couldn’t remember for what anymore and things got out of control and they ended up in the woods and then he remembered Kinchan punching him and he trying to block it when everything went dark and…
He opened his eyes wide in horror. The sight that greeted him made him shiver violently and this time not for the cold or the pain. His friend was in a terrible state; clothes almost burned into pieces, raw-red spots where he had been burned, blood everywhere. The other. No, not again. The state of his arms and hands were the clear proof of how much energy he had used, probably had even tried to kill him. He knew what he was capable of better than anyone. He was him after all. My fault. He felt his eyes stinging. He tried to say he was sorry but he couldn’t even form the words and he must have looked ridiculous gaping like that and he didn’t deserved forgiveness anyway. He closed his eyes again and felt something wet running down his cheeks. He wished he was dead, indeed.
This was not something Kintarou had had any training or experience in. He had always been surrounded by his protection cheerful bubble. He had always thought of himself as an invulnerable person, removed from crippling emotions such as fear, believed that he could do all those stuff the superheroes in his manga were doing -- fighting villains, saving people -- but he had never counted on seeing this for himself: someone close to him hurting before his eyes. He wished Ryou-nii and Atsushi-nii were here to help him -- they would know what to do, he was sure -- or that he could go look for or bring Akaya to someone -- Ohtori! The clones chorused -- but it was already too much just moving or trying to move.
Kintarou dragged himself closer to Akaya, muting what would have been angry hisses as his cuts and blisters got scraped in the frozen ground, even as he tried to ignore the stream of tears running down the other’s face. He insisted that he wouldn’t cry, too. Not that he was ashamed (not immediately, at least, or maybe not even ever) but because it wouldn’t help them if he did. He gingerly took his tattered jacket off -- or what’s left of it -- and bundled it to lightly and fastidiously press onto Akaya’s larger wounds. “Oi, shut it.” He gently told his friend, as well as his clones all continuously rambling about what to do since the real Akaya had woken up.
Shut it. The words resonated inside Akaya’s head and even if it had been merely above a whisper, it silenced all the dark scenarios he had been playing in his head, trying to imagine what the fuck had happened and how they had ended like this. He gulped. Yes, he needed to get a grip on himself. This was his fault and he needed to fix it, somehow… without moving, because that wasn’t possible at this point. It wasn’t only about the pain, really. Yeah it hurt like being in fucking hell and being burned alive (which was pretty much what was actually happening), but it was about his energy reserve being burned out a while ago and he knew he was about to lose consciousness soon.
Biting the inside of his cheek, he didn’t have the guts to tell the redhead that it was making the pain worse. He deserved that pain. The second grader opened his eyes, the blood on them fading already and the green slowly reappearing, to look at his friend. No matter what, he needed to get help. If they had made enough of a scandal, someone might be curious enough to find them but they seemed to be deep in the woods and it he wasn’t really sure where they were… and it was too cold for his sempai-tachi to be taking a casual stroll in the middle of the freaking winter. Akaya concentrated to speak instead of screaming when he opened his mouth. “You okay?” Of course he isn’t, you stupid. “Can you….go… back?”
“Eh...” Kintarou winced with every small movement. “I’m okay.” He stopped dabbing his jacket onto Akaya’s wounds suddenly, hissing, when he felt sharp pains shooting up his arms. “What, do you think something like this can beat me?”
Akaya gave the redhead a look of complete incredulity at how his body reacted at the tiniest of movement. He felt a sting of guilt at the state of his friend, and tried to ignore the sting at his own pride because apparently Kintarou as right since the one in the floor was him. Not that he wanted his other self to be the winner because that would have probably meant a dead body (or several), but the bitter taste of defeat was still there. Also, that little brat was his kouhai; he was supposed to be one taking care of him and not the other way around. He chuckled and groaned at the pain that that caused. “Guess not...” Baby Tarzan was a tough badass opponent... but not undefeatable, and definitely clueless. Glad that the fabric was not making the pain unbearable anymore but worried for his friend being more injured of what he could see, Akaya he pushed once more. “Can you return?” To school, for help. “Honest.” There was no use if Kintarou fell unconscious midway. Akaya didn’t miss that the redhead didn’t answer his question about his state and shuddered at the thought of them being found too late.
With a last pained groan, Kintarou’s arms finally gave out supporting him and he dropped onto the uneven ground with a muted thud. Luckily, there weren’t sharp angles or the pain would have been worse. He landed beside Akaya and he twisted his head to look back at him with a tired smile. “I don’t think so, but I might be able to summon a clone.” He turned his eyes toward the sky, wondering how the hell they had gotten in this situation. “I just dunno if that’ll be long enough for him to find someone to help us.”
The second grader then realized they were indeed alone and that there wasn’t any of the annoying and sort of endearing little menaces. Knowing Kintarou’s fighting style, the clones were always so eager to be in the middle of the action and it was odd they weren’t there. Akaya hoped it was for pure exhaustion and not for... He shuddered again and winced at the pain the movement caused at his burns, but he couldn’t care less about them right now. “Knowing them, they’ll take ages...”Akaya forced a smile back at the redhead. “...are.... they.... okay?”
“They’re fine.” Kintarou laughed then coughed the next moment. “They’re pretty much in great shape compared to us...” Well, except Eight... who told Kintarou not to mention anything else. “They resent what you said, you know.” He adjusted where he laid, finding a good position where his back wouldn’t hurt as much, but since he didn’t move any more than a couple inches, it was kind of moot. “They say that in times like this, they wouldn’t have let anything -- not even takoyaki -- distract them.”
“Bullshit...” Akaya murmured amused, letting the breath out he didn’t know he was holding back. “Hope... some is cooking takoyaki... they’ll go faster...”He closed his eyes and swallow, his body tense in pain. Everything hurt too fucking much. He opened them again to reassure the redhead everything would be alright... somehow...“Tell them... to stop...being lazy...and go...then” He didn’t want to end as Kite-sempai’s pet’s meal or something.
I’m still alright, Kin-chan, Two said. You can let me out.
Eight spoke before Kintarou could say anything. This might not be a good idea but it might be the only way to send for help.
Kintarou let out a weak laugh and with a monumental effort, summoned Two. The moment his replica appeared out of thin air, he was flying toward the academy. “There he goes.” He yawned then gasped. “Ow...”
Akaya grunted in pain when he moved out of instinct to reach at the redhead when gasped. “What? What happened?” He asked hurriedly, trying to bite back the worry and the rage of feeling so useless. “You okay?”
“Yeah, some rock just poked my back when I moved.” At this moment, Kintarou wished nothing more than to sleep in his soft and warm bed. However, he resisted the urge to close his eyes longer than a blink. If he let his eyes relax, he will lose consciousness and his clone will disappear wherever he was. “You okay?”
The other teenager nodded slightly. They were both really beaten up; he already saw how bad the damage in his hands and arms was and he was sure the other did too, so no need for specifics, right? The burns in his upper body and legs stang too fucking much as well but at least they weren’t visible and they were his own fault anyway... Though... if he had used that amount of energy and his skin was resistant to the energy then... did he... manage to burn Kintarou more than what he could see? “You...” He gulped, “I...” Akaya took a deep breath. I’m sorry, “I’ll treat you... takoyaki... next time?”
Despite knowing it will hurt, Kintarou couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “So, all it takes for you to treat me to takoyaki is a little rough play in the snow?” He laughed again, but this time, due to feeling the tension disappear between them, he didn’t mind the sharp prickling on his sides and well everywhere else. “You are so on.” He looked at Akaya with no hint of resentment in his heavy eyes and smile. “I expect a truckload of takoyaki, okay?”
Akaya couldn’t help but to laugh shakily himself after hearing the other laughing, feeling part of the oppression that was suffocating him disappearing. He grunted because of the pain and because he knew he was going to be so broke when that happened but, after that day, Akaya thought he owe Kintarou that much at least. “Sure thing, brat...” He would try to reach to mess with the other’s hair but wailing in pain probably would kill the mood anyway. “I....bet you.. I can eat...more... than you...” He said winking before throwing a worried glance at his companion and then turning his head to look at the sky, it was getting dark...and colder, too much colder.They were getting help soon, the redhead’s clone was in his way... right?
“Y’know you can’t beat me...” Kintarou mumbled sleepily, his eyes getting heavier every passing second. Fleetingly he wished that he had a telepathic link with his clones when they were called out so he could know where Two was at the moment. He obviously hadn’t been mauled by a bear or tiger since he wasn’t back inside his head so it was safe to assume he was still on his way to the academy. “A truckload of takoyaki...“
Hmm... It was getting colder, the breeze was getting stronger, too. When had his room had this sky view? He moved to get more comfortable but he received a shock instead, going up his arms and spreading on his back so he stopped moving. He must have forgotten to put his bed in order before climbing in. Those blunt object prodding his sides must be his school supplies but he was just so tired... Damn those things. If they break, he’ll just buy them.
Sleep sounded so good at the moment but... there was something he needed to do. Urging his eyes to open he looked to his side and saw his friend. What was Akaya doing here in his room? He snickered. And he looked dirty, too. Whatever.
Oops. He must have closed his eyes longer than necessary. There goes Two, he’s back in his head and was now yelling something about being sorry for not making it. He hoped it wasn’t his bed he was talking about because they promised their Kisarazu brothers that they will take care of the bed...
He looked back at Akaya. Eh... Why was Akaya there again? It was only a few seconds before he lost consciousness, he knew. “Oi,” he called him and smiled. “Good night.” Maybe Akaya will treat him to takoyaki tomorrow. Yeah. Tomorrow. He smiled again and let the darkness engulf him.
Small white dots were starting to fall on them and Akaya felt a tickling sensation on the point of his nose as a snowflake landed on it; he frowned since it wasn’t like he could just brush it off. He turned his head to the the other when he heard him speaking, and even though he didn’t quite catch what the other was saying he couldn’t stop himself from smiling back... that was until realization sank in. “G-good night? Brat? Oi!” The anguish was already crawling inside him. Kintarou was asleep right? He couldn’t be...”Shit! Kin-chan! Wake up!”
Gathering all the strenght he didn’t quite have but summoned anyway because it was his friend lying in the cold ground, Akaya bit down his lip to avoid screaming as he crawled toward the other. He felt the coppery taste of his own blood in his mouth and gagged. “Oi! Kin-chan!” He yelled almost at the edge of hysteria but the redhead just laid there. Akaya raised one burned-raw hand and used it to shake the other as hard as he could (that was pretty weak in his current condition) while cursing his own ancestors through the very beginning of time. Too much pain, too much. He gagged again at the unbearable pain and at the idea of the worst that could happen,“Kin-chan! WAKE UP!”
“Shut up, Aka-chan and pass me some more Takoyaki...” The redhead mumbled and curled on himself a little more.
“Fuck...”Akaya collapse heavily into the ground. Alive.”Don’t sleep on me you bra---Oh fuck. Kin-chan. Kin-chan!” He resumed his efforts to wake the other up, the adrenaline already kicking in and allowing him to crawl into a kneeling position to have a better support to shake the other a little harder. “Did the clone make it?! Did he?! Kin-chan!!Kin-chan!!!” Fuckfuckfuckfuck. Akaya knew that the clone would disappear once the redhead lost consciousness to keep him out, and if he didn’t manage to reach the school for help then...
They were so fucked.
Shivering badly because of the cold, the pain, the sudden adrenaline rush and fear; Akaya slouched over Kintarous’ sleeping body. It was odd, it felt warm, maybe sort of hot...then he saw it: Kintarou’s severely burned and bloody back. Akaya looked horrified at how the fabric clung to the blackened skin and how blood was oozing out of the larger wounds; he couldn’t look away.Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit. Akaya couldn’t hold back and managed only to turn away enough to retch violently before throwing up for good this time.He raged and screamed in despair. “I’m sorry, Kin-chan, I’m so sorry...” He murmured between breaths; he was starting to hyperventilate. “I’ll get you help, okay?” The teenage said louder. Help, he needed help. How could he bring someone here?! When you have such a volatile power, you try to sneak without being noticed and keep a low profile because stupid normal people couldn’t understand-- Mutants, on the other side, tended to find him when he was enjoying his powers, creating energy fireworks and causing small explosions, flashy maybe, but how he was supposed to train other way...
The answer was as a clear as the layer of frozen water that was slowly covering them.
Flares. Something their sempai-tachi would be able to see even if they were at school and since it was almost dark now, they would glow enough to attract their attention. Even if it was only Sanada-sempai to kick his ass back and scolding him for playing on the snow again. Yes, someone will come. He needed to do it...
Akaya closed his eyes and sat there, on his knees. He took three deep breaths to calm himself just enough to clear his head, even if he knew they would be useless once he summoned energy to his destroyed nerves and burned skin. “Everything’s okay, Kin-chan. Help is coming...” He murmured and patted the redhead gently on the shoulder, leaving a red stain on the ruined jacket. Akaya grunted in pain again but he knew that that would be nothing compared to was going to feel in a moment.
Half raising a hand toward the dark clouded sky, Akaya chuckled. Three short flashes, three long flashes, three short flashes. Apparently, learning that stupid S.O.S signal years ago turned out not to be a waste of time. He didn’t know what in hell that stood for but it meant help and Kintarou needed it. His eyes went completely blood red again in an instant and then he screamed. The pain was all-consuming and suffocating but he saw how the energy was slowly forming in his fist. Akaya shot the first three small balls that exploded high in the sky, one after the other. He lost his sight when his eyes rolled to the back of his head as consciousness started to fade again. No. He needed to hold on more. He could do it, he would not be defeated by the pain and exhaustion. Maybe this was part of his road to redemption of what he had caused. Yeah, maybe. It didn’t matter though. He needed to concentrate, the ball forming on his hand needed to be big enough to be sent divided in three larger orbs. Roaring in pain he sent them high, the little crater completely lit by the glow of them.
He almost lost it again there but it wasn’t enough, it wasn’t nearly enough! An animalistic growl and a yell resonated in the woods before Akaya was completely covered by purple flames, the energy condensing and shooting high up through the sky for the last set of flashes. “It’s okay... help’s coming...” He murmured or maybe just thought he did because his throat didn't work properly anymore but it didn’t matter because they would come... they needed to come...
Akaya’s unconscious body fell limply into the ground.
The next time Kintarou opened his eyes, there were two people hovering above him, a woman with a frantic voice, fussing about him. The woman had red hair, “Kaa-san?” But why was she in the academy? Sleepily, he cast his eyes around but his vision was still blurry and everywhere ached. A man -- was it his father? but he didn’t wear funky hats -- then crouched and lifted the weight previously pressing on him. He directed his gaze toward the body and saw it was Akaya and he looked dreadful. “Aka-chan...” Seeing the state of his friend invoked memories of the events that led to them being slumped in what was now ankle-deep snow. His breathing instantly hitched and a soothing hand settled on his chest coupled by a cooing sound. “Calm down, Tooyama-kun,” she said, “You and Kirihara-kun will be all right. You’re safe, we got you.”
He stole one last look at his friend and let his eyes shut again. It was clear that they won’t have a truckload of takoyaki tomorrow like in his dream before gaining consciousness, but there still were other days after that. He will make sure that Akaya will end up running out of allowance money.
Kintarou didn’t know if it was the sound of the woman’s voice, or the soothing hand on his chest, or the mere fact that someone had come to help them but suddenly tears formed in his eyes in relief. She said they’ll be all right and he believed her.