Forum Thread

After he had gotten out of the danger zone, Shuto was making his way back to the headquarters, hands in the pockets of his coat, which was dancing in the wind. Calmly strolling the streets like any other week day.

His radio clipped at the belt buzzed with static, barely deciphering the words being spoken, Lumiere, the captain. Shuto listened and was about to reply as the radio then cut off.

He sighed.

There was a huge blob of darkness on the horizon, blocking out a lot of sunlight from view, it would’ve been beautiful, and cinematic, if not for the ominous silence and dimmed surroundings that brought shivers down people’s spines. Lumiere had used his ability without his Vie. Well, he no longer had one

From what he could tell, Shuto could get there in a minute or two of running, and he did, sprinting across the landscape, panting breaths and clothes flying behind him with the speed. He activated his ability for seconds at a time, one second of speed, shooting him forward then another second passed with him blacked out, before his body could hit the ground Shuto was awake again and regained his balance.

With this, he approached the border between the outside and the domain of pure nothingness.

Shuto had his ability off cool-down, five minutes to get as many people to safety as possible, he could do that, it was an order.

He reached out a hand, activating his ability and rushed inside, his body amplified to withstand the slowing ability the domain had, the immense pressure placed on a normal body nowhere to be felt.

The first people he saw were He Lei and Tao RuoDie, the vice captain and her Ames. The two on the ground, no-one else in view.

“Hey.” Shuto said quickly while heading towards them, he didn’t know the pair very well, just approach with caution and pray.

---

The darkness completely engulfed Gabriel. It felt like an invisible hand was holding him back by his throat and choking him alive, leaving barely any room for him to breath. While his feet barely touched his ground, his eyes were bloodshot, focused on is prey. His hand was nevertheless firm on his weapon.

He heard the cries belonging to man, the so-called "Knight". So he took chase.

While he steadily, through pure will, he traversed through this annoying stronghold (that he knows damn well belongs to an filthy Ames which he'll deal with later) following the pained voices. Unfortunately for some, within the darkness, it seems like every voice, every sound is magnified. Soon he senses the two presence. However his eyes is only focused on one.

What did that foolish man call her?

"—Vivi, your path ends here."

His veins pop bulge under his armor, and he fiercely plunges the sword into their direction. This blow will end it all, he knows it. It must end it. It has to.

"Begone—!"

---

Persephone O'Couna
---

Persephone's eyes snapped up at the sound of his footsteps. But the way he was turning- he was coming for her. His sword would outreach her knife, no matter what she did. But no-

He knew where she was, because he could sense her. Somehow, some way, he knew where she was.

Gritting her teeth, Persephone closed her eyes and reached out.

Then her eyes snapped open and she plunged the knife in his general direction. She felt it slip through her fingers as she stumbled back, blinking wildly.

Her knife. Where was it? It wasn't in her hand, anymore.

It was in him.

Crap.

"We're going!" she yelled, seizing the ruffian by the arm, not giving him a chance to protest, then took off running. "No time!"

---

Miyako Hiroto
---

"Um. Yeah." She stared at the boy, wide-eyed. That... wasn't supposed to happen. He was too innocent to make a prediction like that. Too young. For a second, she felt unnerved...

Then she saw the pride in his eyes and relaxed.

Just like Miko. He wanted to get something over her.

"Yep, you sure caught me," she chuckled. "Well done."

---

The moment He Lei saw Shuto, the latter was tackled to the ground “Help RuoDie pleaseeeeeeeee Shoe man?”

He Lei grabs Shuto by the shoulders, as if about to shake him violently if the answer were to be a no

“Shuto….? Oh, you’re here, did Lumiere say anything?” RuoDie tries to sit up, and glances at Shuto, looking tired, and very much like she had seen better days

Even in her weakened state, she checks Shuto for injuries, and her eyes narrow “Did you eat healthily?”

Gabriel could feel his blade so close to the arm of the woman's. So close, maybe another inch, another sliver would just do.

Yet..

"A...urg."

A groan slipped his lips, his eyes wide, his pupils contracted. An intense, sharp pain immediately hit him. Spontaneously, before he could even utter another sound. All he could see was red.

He knew this color better than anyone else. It was blood. It wasn't his prey's blood. No, it was—it was his blood. It was a shade of red that belonged to him, that escaped out of him. It was also the same shade of red that belonged to souls which were drenched in filthy sinners.

"My.. eye."

Gabriel murmured, his free hand grasping the trickling wound. Every touch to the dagger imbedded in his eye was like a thunder of pain.

"My eye..! My eye, myeye, myeyemyeyemy—"

Warm blood trickled down his armored hands, his back was hunched from the pure agony. His vision started to blur, his nerves starts to give out. However his eyes were still ultimately focused on one individual.

"You... You will regret it today–" He starts, his gaze unwavering, bloodshot. "You will regret it for the rest of your life for allowing my soul to live on! I swear by my name, Gabriel Schmidt! I promise you..!" His voice was loud. His heaving even more so. Lord could only describe how much pain he was in.

Yet the pain couldn't overshadow the pure disgust, the pure fury, the pure need for vengeance that lay in his hand.

"This mark you left me, will be the proof of your very downfall."

The next encounter, willbe their last.

---

Persephone O'Couna
---

Persephone didn't look back. What was the point in it anyway? She wouldn't see where she stuck the man. And more likely than not, his threats would end at just that. Threats. He didn't have the spine to track down someone like her.

Probably he wouldn't even survive today. And if he did, be taken from his position for such poor performance.

This wasn't really as bad as she thought.

So why was there some strange anxiety in the back of her mind? The voice of visions in her head whispering warnings?

She could deal with that when she came to it. For now... "We're going up!" she ordered. "There should be a window here. We've entered the alleyway."...probably. It did feel slightly cooler in here. Just to check, she pushed her foot forward and immediately stubbed her toe on solid brick. Ow.

---

Terrian Abel
---

Terrian nearly broke down giggling at the girl's stunned expression. The shifts in her face. The fear, the worry...

She wasn't familiar with the Lightchasers at all then. Huh. Food for thought. Maybe she really had come from up north, despite her lack of an accent.

"Don't worry," he said, a note of laughter creeping into his voice. "I'm not here to hunt you down or anything. The Lightchasers.... We're all about defying the roles the party in power has laid out for us. We don't take any of that stupid Vie and Ames stuff sitting down. We're radicals, sure, but that doesn't mean we don't have good goals."

---

Shuto’s survival instincts told him to shove the guy away, he was so close and why was He Lei grabbing his shoulders now? No one could convince him that he was a full grown adult.

Leaning as far away has humanly possible from He Lei, eyeing the two.

“Lumiere told me to grab you guys and get out. And why are you questioning my consumption of food…?”

Hesitant and confused, Shuto barely ever talked to his coworker and superior, he barely even knew their names. He also wouldn’t have thought of helping them out if not for Lumiere’s orders.

---

“He Lei. Let go of Shuto please” RuoDie requests, and He Lei complies.

“…And why are you questioning my consumption of food?” Shuto asked, understandably confused. RuoDie hesitates, as if wondering whether this was a good idea, before she pulls out a small notebook from her pockets

RuoDie knew Shuto probably didn’t know her, or her Ames very well. But as Vice Captain and resident mom, she knew quite a bit about him. About everyone on the Lightchasers, actually.

She rose to her feet and flipped through the notebook, which on closer inspection was full of neat, almost print like notes on each light chaser and what appeared to be their meals on a daily basis, as well as every sickness they had probably ever had. She thumbs the page titled Shuto Kohaku, dragging her finger across it gently before it paused on today’s date, which was currently empty.

“Just curious is all. But that aside. Let’s get out of here, as Lumiere would have said”

Shuto nods. He dusted off his precious coat off any dirty. He glanced between the two and looked around the darkness.

“Any idea where Lumiere is? I just need to get you guys and him to the carriage and we should be good to leave.”

Of course, Lumiere being a lantern that was lit, in the pitch black they were in, shouldn’t be very challenging, yet the carriage would be a different matter.

He could only hope. Shuto’s ability would run out if they didn’t hurry, and five minutes wasn’t a ton given all the searching they needed, but he supposed falling asleep just for a minute or two wouldn’t be so bad.

---

Carnelian made the very smart decision that maybe he should get out of the carriage. Seeing as half of the people had already left him there. But he also didn't want his dear Astra left behind so he unceremoniously hauled her up and threw her over his shoulder. He's rather glad she's pretty light because he's pretty sure he wouldn't be able to carry her if she was heavier.

He look down at how high they were floating, shrugged and hopped out, landing pretty gracefully on the pavement. He dusted himself off and then just decided to walk in the direction he could hear his fellow lightchasers. That was probably his best bet anyway.

---