vatheon | And now for something completely terrible -

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And now for something completely terrible -

Who: Katsu and Muraki
Where: Forest Quadrant
When: Late evening
Style: Action
Status: Closed
Warnings: Muraki being creepy? Also death. That too.

[Katsu was trying to relax, trying to take it easy - it was hard, with constant reminders of what he had to do, people he had to protect… but no. He needed to calm his mind, and so he finds himself out in the forest quadrant, wandering inside and looking up at the trees.]

[It's peaceful here. He's not used to this kind of quiet, though he's become more comfortable with it since arriving here. It's so different from Tokyo… but it's nice. He can breathe a little easier, taking a step away from civilization.]

[He pauses for a few minutes, just leaning against one of the larger trees and listening to the sounds of the forest all around him.]

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[ Hoboy. But then he's just fed. At his strongest. There was too much at stake here to cause another death because really... if that feed he'd witnessed on the network was anything to go by, Katsu would be missed unlike the locals who came and went.

A breath escapes him as he mentally readies a shield. ]

So I've been told... but I find their dying breaths hold the most energy I can feed from. Despair is a delicious thing to savor.

You're sick.

[He can feel that shield and puts up one of his own. He lets his energy spike even higher, the threat of something in the energy itself - something old and sentient and angry and amused.]

People like you and Kudlak... they don't think of anyone but themselves.

[He tests Muraki's shield with a Zandyne spell, wind roaring towards him, razor-sharp.]

[ Yes, yes he is and he knows it. He knows what sort of depraved animal he is but these sorts of thoughts are left in the dark of night when no one was around to bother him.

He seems defenseless until the spell hits and it shows for the briefest moment as a dome of light around him before fizzling back to invisibility. There's the smallest look of frustration on his face as it sparks though. Definitely stronger than he considered. There's a chip in his barrier, just the smallest one. ]

I can't say the name's familiar. Care to enlighten me?

[ The darkness around them seems to deepen, however as he draws a bit more from the air. ]

We have all night.

[ There's another circle forming by his feet however, this one sending out crackling bolts of darker energy in an attempt to send Katsu backward in the opposite direction should he choose to dodge them. ]

A vampire I met in Tokyo. He went on a killing spree until we stopped him. Though I do have to say, you're at least calmer than he is. He kept cackling like an idiot.

[He doesn't dodge, at least at first. The first bolt hits his shield and fizzles out completely. He does sidestep the others, left and right, until they're gone. He looks bored by the attack, and lifts a hand, fire collecting in it.]

[There's a touch of darkness in the fire, and he'll find that it has more impact than he might initially expect.]

Vampire seems to be such a crude term for what I do.

[ And there's a smirk from the direction he's headed in. Call it a little security system he's installed, the sort of small spell circle that lashes out to attempt to bind whoever comes into contact with it. Especially when they've started charging a spell.

He takes the flame but that darkness seems to only feed him further. A low chuckle escapes his lips as he activates the seals nearest Katsu with a single hand gesture. It would spark beneath his feet and crackle into more of that darker energy in an attempt to hold him down. ]

But I suppose as long as we feed from another creature, all vampires are the same to those who don't know any better.

[Crap. Katsu tries to pull against the seals, but it's no use. He takes a step and finds he can't move further. Both his magic and agility are now useless, and those are both what he relies on. He should have backed off, should have done this from a distance...]

[He struggles, even though he can't move. He pulls on the angelic energy more, realizing that he can't use the demonic energy here. It's only making him stronger. But he doesn't have enough of it. He cries out in frustration, trying to call on the part of his soul that was once so pure, when Abel and his brother had so few worries. But it's just not enough. Even being the Bel of the human world isn't enough.]

[He's frozen in place, helpless, and his heart is beating so hard he can hear it in his ears. There's nothing he can do.]

[ The demonic energy, he'd counted on but the angelic? Not in the least. It delivered an interesting sort of tang to him. But he had to hand it to Katsu, brave and foolish all at once to try and even fight back. Instilling a sense of justice was an equally foolish notion.

He approaches silently, the smirk never once leaving his lips as he gathers the boy's wrists in his hand to pin them against the tree. He wouldn't kill him outright. Not yet at least. Instead, the handle of his scalpel goes under Katsu's chin to force his gaze up. ]

I must commend you for putting up a fight. A normal human would have turned and fled but you...

[ Leaning in as that scalpel handle trails down his throat. ]

You seem to be anything but human. Or completely demon for that matter.

Edited 2012-05-14 15:55 (UTC)

[He's not used to this kind of fight. His muscles twitch as he strains to try to get away. He can't move, but he can glare back at the man. His voice tight and forced, he responds.]

I was human. Now I'm the king of demons. And the Messiah. And even if you hurt me, even if you kill me...

[He's not afraid of dying. He knows he'll come back. He's afraid for the people who will worry while he's gone.]

... That doesn't mean you'll have won anything. And you still make me sick.

[Gathering all of his courage and stubbornness, he keeps glaring at Muraki - and spits in his face.]

[ Goodness gracious but this one had bite. He draws his hand back, keeping them suspended over his head with a simple binding spell while he reaches for his handkerchief to wipe away the spittle. ]

King of the demons... interesting. Perhaps in your world.

[ Handkerchief is placed back in his pocket though as he presses the sharp of his blade to the pad of his own thumb. ]

It certainly doesn't... and it will certainly mean I'll have to go into hiding for a while again but it will be a price I'll be willing to pay.

[ Those seals around his wrists and ankles will start to sting, however... almost as if a very light electric shock is starting to run through them. ]

You'll make a very good meal, little demon king. Perhaps the best I've had in a while. Enough to replenish my energy should I need it.

[He hisses slightly at the pain, and struggles to keep his power tamed. He can't use it here, it won't do him any good.]

[But he is the king of demons -]

[And it still won't do him any good. He clenches his fists so tightly that marks start to appear on his palms. He doesn't want to be anyone's meal, he's fought long and hard and he's been through enough and he doesn't want this. It's less the fear of dying and more the fear of losing, of giving up...]

[Though somewhere deep inside him he really is afraid of dying, even if he knows he'll come back. He struggles harder, trying to not panic visibly. He doesn't want to give him the satisfaction.]

[ And it's in the fact that he's fighting so hard not to struggle that the doctor seems to enjoy this one even more. Katsu would possibly feel the effects of slow draining if he focused hard enough. It would be a creeping fatigue that bubbles from the seals and begins to make its way slowly through his body, inch by inch. Almost as if the doctor's draining him deliberately slowly if only to prolong the moment.

And the scalpel's back up again, tracing a slow shallow line down his throat. Not enough to hurt, not enough to scar. Just to draw the barest beading of blood. ]

What happened to your tongue...?

[He knows the effects of being drained - he's faced demons that could do that before - but it's never been this slow. He's starting to tire, so he forces himself to stare back up at Muraki.]

You're not worth it. Someone like you doesn't even want to try to be different, do you?

[The draw of blood makes him slightly dizzy, combined with the draining effects. He swallows and tries to ignore it as much as he can.]

[...Something wasn't right. Something really, truly was not right. At first, he had been just trying not to fall apart at realizing whose presence was lacking in the bubble once more. Trying to deal with the pain and become used to it again. It's happened so many times because of this place, so why should now be any different?

Because it was still a friend. She was still one of his best friends. He didn't even think as he pulled on the Coat again after standing, about to call up a certain blue-haired boyfriend of his when he felt something. ...Regardless, he decided to try anyway.

No answer.

There was the feeling again, too.

Not really knowing exactly where his feet were leading him, he bolted out the door without another word. Something was going on, and he hadn't even thought about calling for backup (stupid move, the voice in the back of his head thought for him). All he could focus on was something was wrong, and that familiar presence was growing fainter and no no no no no he can't lose them both the same--

He doesn't even register where he's running, or that he's pulled his hood up by the time he's almost made it to the treeline...]

Try...?

[ Another slow chuckle as he leans in to trap the smaller form against the tree. Delicious. Perfect. His system practically thrums with this newfound energy as it courses through his system. ]

There simply isn't any trying to be done, I'm afraid. When something this deep seated and ancient has become second nature.

[ A smaller smile as that scalpel traced a particular pattern over Katsu's throat. The doctor pauses in his taunting a moment to start to murmur softly, channeling a bit of that energy back. This energy begins to feel like a noose around the boy's throat; constricting, tightening. The beginnings of a spell. ]

Unfortunately. I find you might not remember very much of this when you awake.

[ There's a nuance in those words which causes the bleeding glyphs to glow. Somewhere above on the island, the moon bleeds red as the doctor raises the scalpel over his head and brings in down deep into Katsu's throat. Enough to sever his jugular, enough to silence any of his screams for the killing strike.

But the presence of another draws his attention as he dismisses the seals and allows the body to drop from his grip. ]

Ah. Riku. What a familiar sight.

Heh... I know someone like that...

[His face goes white as he struggles to breathe, to keep his horror hidden - Riku? - and all he can think of as the scalpel is raised and then plunged into his throat, through the pain, is -]

'I'm sorry.'

[And then it all goes black, as the pain and terror is too much. His body is shutting down anyway.]

[...He's there. He's there just in time to see the last strike, and-]

KATSU!

[Riku's blood runs cold as he stands there in horror, not even hearing himself thinking - his heart screaming out as he felt it. That familiar aura was fading fast, and even if it were useless, he throws up a bit of his magic in the form of a green mist falling over the other's body while starlight and darkness swirl to life in his hands. If nothing else... he wouldn't be... wouldn't be...

The boy couldn't even shake in anger, even though the emotion filled his hidden eyes- the scowl permanently settling itself on his face. If there is anything one should know about those with the power of the Keyblade, it is that they are dangerous when provoked unto anger whether they be fully trained or novices.

'Familiar...?' The thought merely flitted over the surface before being drowned out by the emotions he had so expertly drowned out and controlled in his year of fighting to defend a comatose friend, and another year of distancing himself from others here. All because he feared losing them, and now that he was too late...

Soul Eater appeared. Not Way to the Dawn, not another Keychain he may have collected since coming here, but Soul Eater. Something that fed on his darkness. And he would use it so that someone wouldn't get the chance to steal much of it for himself.

'I'm sorry, Master.'

Riku was gone, warping himself behind the doctor and using the Coat to disguise most of his energy that wasn't being expended by the blade in his hand. The eye seemed to shimmer as he twisted the grip into a reverse and slammed it down as hard as he possibly could.

Somehow, that blade didn't seem to be emitting darkness, either. Instead it glowed white, skipping the usual necessities for his limit break. After all, all he could see was bright and red.]

[ And there was that delicious darkness again. Something he'd wanted to harness in the boy for so long, coax out, perhaps even use for his own means. However, here it was directed at him. Clearly, not his plan.

The doctor barely gets a moment to twist away from the attack due to it coming in the last possible second. But it goes through. The blow cuts into him, causing him to spill forward and cough out a great amount of blood. The pain is immense, but as far as he's concerned hasn't hit any vital organs.

He needs to get out.

He needs to get out now.

Abort mission.

He wasn't expecting this.

But to panic would be a sign of weakness. With a wince, he wrenched himself from the blade, managing to press down on his coat jacket as a makeshift tourniquet as he stumbled forward. ]

You certainly haven't lost your spark.

[See, that is the thing about Keyblade wielders. Even when things go according to plan, something always seems to go awry when they're involved. Whether it be due to skill, or simply because of the moments they follow their hearts subconsciously.

This time? It is grief, loss, anger, and the sense that no matter what he tried, he can't protect the ones he loves from this.

Riku doesn't smirk as the attack strikes true, doesn't truly react to the wince or to the sudden surge and stumbling. He would dye the white that the other wore with red if he could--which he can. Shifting the hold on his blade again, allowing it to glow with both light and dark as a second of pure dark forms in his left, he spins as he strikes again. Spins and strikes with both blades, leaving physical and metaphysical damage.]

...Welcome oblivion.

[There's none of the usual snark his voice contains, none of the teasing. Nothing but the cold, dark-tainted sincerity of honest to god hatred. One does not simply mess with someone he loves in any way without facing vengeance. He can't...

He screams in frustration when the blades merge into one and he strikes up.]

[ He knows it isn't enough to stop him from moving or enough to push him away but he's going to try anyway. A barrier comes up in an attempt to get him away from the blades because he doesn't dare make it any worse than it already is.

Physical assessment isn't looking good.

Heavy bleeding, something that's definitely gonna sting for a really long time, but on the plus side he's still fully recharged. It was going to help with his recovery...

Given he could get away in the first place.

So the minute the barrier's up, he's going to summon another circle and this one's for attempting a teleport away. Should it connect, he'll have disappeared in a sudden flash of feathers. ]

[It does indeed keep the initial strikes from reaching him, and for a brief second his hood falls back as he spins, revealing a dangerous hint of anger in his eyes beyond the blank expression. There's no satisfaction in hurting others. All he ever wanted was to protect...

Protect...

He grimaces, watching the last strike go through a sudden flash of feathers instead of flesh. What just... happened?

Riku drops to the ground, second blade vanishing from existence entirely. He hadn't used that much of his own dark powers in a long time, let it out from the vast potential of his heart. He stares at the feathers falling around him, wincing. What had he...

...

He barely manages to turn around to face Katsu before everything goes black; suddenly exhausted.]

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And now for something completely terrible -

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ohai son.

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shut up, old man.

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