EVENT #010

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam and any other megacity the Displaced happen to be in/travel to!
WHEN: May 28, 2512
WHAT: Golden-eyed monsters stream into New Amsterdam and other megacities the world over.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Violence, death, body horror, mind control, and transformation.

> EVENT #010

It starts in the middle of the night, when most everyone should be fast asleep in their beds, whether they're still taking up a cot in the safehouse or staying in their own apartment. One moment it's quiet, with most of the rest of the city having also turned in for the night, and then in the next? It isn't.

There will be mass confusion as the scope of the situation becomes clear. Monsters stream out onto the streets, thundering up the stairs of a train station, skittering out of construction sites, or climbing up the walls. Some of them fly. Others slither. Others run, loping forward with only one goal in mind: to find something to sink their teeth or claws into and to leave destruction in their wake at every turn. They are a horde, a swarm, a teeming mass of creatures that have no intention of stopping. All of them have eyes or bodies that shine gold and wherever they go, they seem to leave decay. Concrete turns black and porous where they step; plants wither and die.

There is no real preparing for an attack of this scale. New Amsterdam will awaken as the sound of these monsters crashing down on cars or bursting through storefronts or into homes forces people to run screaming from their dwellings or places of work. There is no discrimination in who these beasts might target, and no discernable pattern in where they go.

All that one can really tell is that they seem to want to spread out. They're constantly on the move, leaping from victim to victim, and they're relentless. No one knows why they've come, where they're come from, or what will make them stop. At least for now, the only option seems to be to cut down their numbers. It's time to fight the horde.

The first night will be utter chaos as everyone reacts to the monsters' sudden appearance, but by the morning hours news reports will start streaming in. This is not only happening in New Amsterdam, or wherever else a Displaced might be staying, but seemingly everywhere. Some cities seem harder hit than others, but practically every megacity is overrun with the creatures.

With no way of knowing who might have unleashed the monsters, all of these cities have essentially been turned into battlefields. Not many civilians are prepared to fight for their lives, and it will take a mobilization effort from the police, Morningstar, the Displaced, and anyone else who's willing to take up arms in order to survive.

◉ As a note, this attack starts simultaneously in multiple cities. While it's the middle of the night in New Amsterdam, the monsters will appear at other times of the day in other parts of the world depending on the timezone!

> BESTIARY

So as to not make this post overly long, we have compiled all of the monster descriptions into a Google doc here for everyone's reference!

> (NOT SO) SAFEHOUSE

For those Displaced who stay at (or spend any time in) the safehouse under the hoverbike shop or the Red Wings bar, they may become aware of the presence of the monsters sooner than others, due to the fact that at least a few of the giant mole monsters will end up burrowing up through the concrete basements to wreak havoc. The screeching noise of steel claws tearing through the floor will be sure to wake up even the deepest of sleepers.

This won't just be an occurrence on the first night of the attack, either. Unless something is done to deter them, tunnels leading straight into the safehouses will continue to be created, allowing even other types of monsters to find their way through (the smaller ones, that is). Where exactly they're coming from won't be entirely clear, though it's a safe bet to assume that they must have originated in the cave system somehow.

Suffice to say that El won't be happy about the safehouse being compromised in this way, though this isn't a possibility that ze or anyone else could have really prepared for. While ze can't do much to physically help with containing the invasion of the monsters, ze will offer whatever resources ze can—though Morningstar is going to be busy in plenty of other locations, as well, and they only have so many resources.

The Red Wings, being a Displaced-operated location, will also be in need of assistance, especially if it's meant to be a point of safety and a hub for handing out supplies. Speaking of—

> RED WINGS HQ

As things begin to deteriorate, Clarke Griffin and Stephen Strange sink their resources into Red Wings, adapting it into a base of operations for the Displaced. Clarke also called in PRESERVE to set up a checkpoint here, too, and anyone—from the Displaced to civilians—will be able to seek aid here. (Of course, Red Wings will be just one of a few locations throughout the city where they attempt to set up shop, but Red Wings may prove to be more fortified thanks to the talents of the Displaced.) Civilians will not have access to Red Wings' safehouse, however. That's still something that Clarke and Stephen want to keep under wraps, for now.

In the bar proper, there will be medical aid, supplies, and even weapons for those who can use them. During rare moments of downtime, the gang at Red Wings will also work on reconnaissance missions to find safe spots throughout the city to provide much needed protection and safety for the people of New Amsterdam. This task may be much easier said than done. Gathering intel on the monsters is a high priority, too, and for anyone who tries to capture a monster to learn more about them, the basement might be a good place to hold them. If the Displaced are going to be able to fight back, they need to know exactly what it is they're fighting.

However, the truth of the matter is that this attack happened quickly, and in the middle of the night to boot. As much as the group at Red Wings tries, resources are stretched thin, and they didn't have time to prepare as much as they wanted to. Supplies need to be rationed, bandages and stitches used for wounds that really need them, and if you're not a great shot, it might be best to let someone with more training take that gun you're eyeing.

More than anything, despite the difficulty, this is a way for the Displaced to help out as many people as they can, and a way for them to cement their humanitarian efforts and affect the population's opinion of them. The citizens of New Amsterdam are sick of this cycle of destruction, and are just waiting to be empowered. Now's the time to teach them to fight back and help them protect their city.

Red Wings' safehouse underground will be damaged by burrowing monsters as well, and will need protection. The bar itself will escape relatively unscathed.

> INVESTIGATING / GATES

Maybe the best way of dealing with the monsters isn't violence at all. Maybe there's a more strategic way to deal with this.

The monsters will be moving from city to city via the gates, just like the Displaced do. There might be a way to keep them from spreading, or at least slow them down, by shutting down the gate network. Of course, with the mag trains shutting down, getting back home could be an issue. One option is the delivery network of hover trucks. They'll still be running to get supplies from city to city, but their batteries don't run indefinitely, so these will be relatively local trips only. No getting from New Tokyo back to New Amsterdam with this method, unfortunately, and convincing a driver to let you hitch a ride might be a challenge, but it's doable.

Of course, there's also the question of where these things are coming from. Intrepid characters might be able to track them back to their nests, which are tucked away in wildly different places depending on the city. In New Amsterdam, they might be in the caves below the city. In other places, they might not be in the city proper at all, but just outside of it. It's important to keep in mind that the nests are far away from any of the action taking place elsewhere. Tracking these origin points may provide some answers, but the cost would be less involvement in the crisis taking place.

And then there's the matter of the monsters themselves. How can you fight an enemy you know nothing about? For those determined or crafty enough, capturing them might be an option, although this will take some creativity. Once these creatures are captured, they'll need to be kept contained, and kept alive. Just because they're monstrous doesn't mean they don't have to eat, after all, and some will need special environmental considerations as well, such as the mind control slugs.

What happens after that is up to the Displaced. Is dissecting them the best bet? Their internal anatomy won't be wildly different from most "normal" animals, with the exception of some creatures who have strange appendages or the like. Still, this might give the Displaced a better idea of how they operate and what their weak spots are. Sending samples to a lab is another possibility, if the Displaced can figure out how to safely store those samples. After all, the world is in a crisis, and no one is running tests at the moment.

All monsters, though, seem drawn to the blue light. When a Displaced uses a power or activates the empathy bond, the creatures will lock onto it, utterly transfixed, and if this is done enough times, that gold glow of theirs will intensify. What does it all mean? Maybe figuring that out will be a pathway to stopping their attacks.

> PITCHING IN

While all of this is going on, it certainly won't be just the Displaced who are heading out into the streets to try and stem the flow of the monster attack. These creatures are certainly not holding back, and no matter how much work might be put in, their numbers are overwhelming. Plenty of people will end up dead as a result, ripped to shreds or dragged off somewhere to be eaten. Yet, for some reason, these monsters are not as vicious toward the Displaced. They'll engage them in a fight and injure them, but they never go so far as dealing a fatal blow.

Seeing how that's not the case for the rest of the populace throughout the world, however, some groups and organizations will be rising up to do their part.

Police departments will be mobilizing in every megacity to put the monsters down, and while they are armed, it's not on the same level as the UNA. They also don't have any sort of training that's prepared them to fight monsters, but they'll still be putting their lives on the line to put a dent in the monsters' onslaught. When it comes to enforcing regular law and order, they certainly won't have the bandwidth for anything like that. Then again, most people won't be in any position to take advantage and commit crimes either, given the chaos that will be a constant everywhere.

Morningstar will also be jumping into action around the world. The New Amsterdam branch will be most likely to work alongside the Displaced and share some of their resources, particularly with those who are signed up as official agents or those who've supported them in the past. In cities like New Prague and New Beijing where the Displaced have made some contact with Morningstar before, they'll also be open to working with the Displaced. However, their resources are by no means robust. Morningstar is an organized rebel group, but they're hardly an official army in any sense of the word. They might be able to hand out a weapon here or there and they have a safehouse set up in almost every city, but beyond that, they'll mainly be getting boots on the ground to help with the fighting.

UNA soldiers who have been left without any sort of purpose or guidance will now have an opportunity to put some of that training to use. Their involvement will be much more scattered, though in some cases small groups of these soldiers who used to work in units together will reconnect in their effort to fight off the horde. However, having been cut off from the UNA in an official capacity, they won't have much in the way of gear or weapons. They're still formidable fighters, though, and now might be the perfect time to reach out and make a connection with some of them.

Mercenaries belonging to various different outfits, depending on what city they're based in, will also be joining the cause. Whether they're acting out of a basic desire to survive the attacks or if they're actually being paid by someone to go out there and risk their lives will be less clear, but they're some of the best-equipped fighters (other than the police). They also won't really find much reason to protest any of the Displaced pitching in to fight with them. The more firepower, the better, right?

A group of regulars from the New Amsterdam fighting rings will be rising up to add their fuel to the monster-fighting fire, as encouraged by Hawke and whoever else might know them well enough to reach out. Given that some of these people have illegal mods to enhance their strength or cybernetic attachments that can do impressive amounts of damage, some of them might hold their own against the monsters. Hell, some of them might even ask the Displaced to demonstrate some of their powers if they end up fighting together, as word of their abilities has become more known among their ranks. Either way, they'll be jumping into the fray with quite a bit of gusto.

PRESERVE will be involved on the other end of these efforts and will be doing their best to tend to the wounded and the dead, along with finding shelter and safe spots for people to barricade themselves from the attacks. It's not like the grand majority of civilians could stand a chance against these monsters, after all, yet not all of them can rely on their homes to be safe enough to stay in. They'll be quick to accept an offer of Displaced help, as they'll be doing their best to try and drag the recently dead to hospitals to get them put into medi-units before they're too late. Along with what's set up at Red Wings, they'll also be cobbling together other relief spots throughout the city for taking care of wounded and offering up what supplies they have (food and water, medical supplies, etc).

And what are the corporations doing in all of this? Well, suffice to say, mainly just panicking. Unsurprisingly, they're not much help during a crisis like this, with most of the super-rich opting to hide away in whatever highly secure bunkers they might have. Too bad that these bunkers might not prove so secure in the face of these attacks. Could that prove to be an opportunity if someone went looking?

> FINAL OOC NOES

Please refer to the OOC EVENT POST for all OOC info, including suggestions for directions on how to engage with the event. Given the spread out nature of this event, as well as the amount of additional details provided here, please direct all questions to our QUESTIONS thread below. This is, naturally, a huge event in terms of scale, and so we're certain there are aspects of it we haven't covered and questions that have yet to be answered. We do encourage that all of our players use the event planning post for any additional ideas and for touching base!

Please do not begin to thread out any aftermath until AUGUST 8, 2020, which is when we will put up the aftermath log and OOC post. If this date changes, we will provide a gamewide update as needed! As a note, the August calendar will be posted alongside the aftermath!

As a reminder, there is one power level up available for this event, granted for a thread of at least 5 log/action comments containing your character utilizing their power in some way during the event itself. They will need to reach the 5 comments required by SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 to be eligible. Submission will be handled on the wrap up post.

Our Activity Check will be posted AUGUST 1 at 12 AM UTC. It will run for seven days and close on AUGUST 8 at 12 AM UTC.

Have fun and fight some monsters! Or … whatever else you might do with them. 😉😏 Your secret's safe with us. 😙

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[variate]

[ there are three others that cause Ren to pull the grappling hook back, aiming to take a few shots at those that get a little too close. they're aggressive enough that the shots don't do much but momentarily deter him.

so, he switches strategies on the fly, expecting Akechi to follow suit. he leaves himself open to take the last shot at the bat monster that Akechi missed, knowing that he'll compensate. ]

We can narrow the field.

[ they need a corridor, a building entrance, or something that would force them to line up to allow a certain flexibility for the two of them. ]

There's an alley close. We need to scatter them, first.

[impede]

[The weapons that he obtained from Tempo are truly useful. The moment that Ren says that they need to clear them out, he switches gears, swapping one gun out for another that's larger and strapped to his body. He swings it up. The issue is that it's obviously more experimental in nature: while he knows how it works, it's better for this specific purpose. If he tried to be more exact, he'd probably get himself killed.

And as much as he's looking out for Ren at the moment, Akechi's interest in passing away has ... faded considerably.]

Head on, Joker. [He shifts the weapon.] I'll take care of these bastards. [And then meet him there shortly. His position is one that will allow him to turn and flee once the shot is fired.

And with a gun like this, it'll only take the one. Ah, if only he had something like this in the metaverse ...]

[variate]

[ that's not entirely what he was expecting—but when was Akechi exactly what someone was expecting? there's the barest moment of a slim pause, where Ren's looking at the gun, then up at Akechi again as he darts past him. ]

Don't make me wait long.

[ there's a skid of his boots as he ducks behind Akechi and the monsters begin to follow him into the range of the gun.

he takes a look under his hood and over his shoulder as the gun is raised because honestly? he wants to see what it can do. ]

[impede]

[Guns in this world aren't made to be noisily problematic, but they still have some kick. When Ren looks back, he'll see Akechi prepping his body for the shot, moving his arms into a better position—

And then, as the creatures swoop down, he hits them one after another. Somehow a single shot fires in five different directions, knocking the bat creatures out of the air.

Akechi, after that, trembles and nearly buckles with the force of the weapon itself. He recovers bit by bit, turning toward Joker with a serious expression on his face. That's the only way he can cope with the pain of the kickback, after all.]

[variate]

[ damn.

when it's not Akechi's usual slew of curses, he knows that there's a reason. Ren slows one step, continuing as they close in to the alley so Akechi can get behind him and he can cover him momentarily so he can catch his breath.

stalking a step away the now bloody and gutted bats, is a Leshen. Ren takes aim to hit it square in the forehead as it lets out a blood-curdling scream.

they have just a second as Ren heads into the pathway of the alley, and reloads his gun. ]

[impede]

Take point! [he snaps, falling into place behind Ren so that he can begin to recover. He's dealt with a lot in his short life. He's even dealt with this level of unsteadiness, but he knows what he needs to get over it. His slender arms bend as he leans into the wall, using them as leverage.]

Keep an eye out, [he directs.] That call is for more. They'll be here shortly.

[variate]

[ Ren does so without question, his motions to cover Akechi in agreement of the call. the ammunition slips into place from his red gloves. on closer inspection, he's singed around the edges, a little bruised from other altercations that he had been in before he met up with Akechi. he wears them well.

he falls back around the corner. it gives him some cover and hides him partially in the shadow for a first (semi-surprise) attack. it's quiet for a moment, and he can barely hear the two of them breathing.

the gun may be quieter, but he knows as soon as he fires, he'll give away their position. ]

[impede]

[Behind him, Akechi works through the aches and pains in his system. Such a weapon would be useful if they could optimize its recoil, but he doesn't have any means to do it. He can tell that the armored UNA soldiers were meant to utilize it. Why else would he be developed that way?

But no matter now.

He swaps its positioning, switching to a rapid-fire pistol with a scope that should do less arm to himself.

Rather than using Ren as cover, he steps into place at his right. Given their respective dexterities, it makes sense to take this position.] I'll take the right. You give the cue on when to start firing.

[variate]

[ while he's concerned, he doesn't let it show. Akechi wouldn't want it to show. later, it will. later, when they're together and there's room to breathe, no matter the variety of crotchety expression Akechi makes at him.

the sound comes before they can see them. high-pitched shrieks of frantic movements of a number of monsters moving toward them. Ren trains the gun that he's holding. ]

Take out as many as you can. If they start to come from behind, you take the back.

[ the alley is narrow, and they can force the monsters to come at them in smaller numbers.

it's still a gamble, because they'll have to take all of them out, regardless.

even as they get closer, he stays quiet.

they come closer, and closer, and he steels his expression. it's not until their almost on them that he gives the cue. ]

Showtime.

[ and starts firing. ]

[impede]

[A lot has changed since Maruki's intervention and the months that followed. Akechi had no choice but to lay low and assert his influence where he could. Even now, he knows that his time with Shido's men could be short lived. If they somehow find a way to revert Shido's cognition, he could be in some very severe trouble. He had only escaped that by chance—chance, and awakening somewhere on the outskirts of Tokyo without remembering how he got there.

One of those changes is his discomfort with his power. Being able to induce control over someone's mind is only something that suits Maruki now, as far as he's concerned. It suits him because, at one point, it was the only way he ever felt powerful. Fighting against creatures like these, he can only see how fucking useless it truly is. What can he do, control them somewhere else? Temporarily? And how long until his power becomes futile in some way?

It sickens him. He doesn't even think to use his power.

What makes him feel more like himself is the power gained by shooting the creatures from the sky, one by one. They come down rapidly. He feels alive—knowing he has a use. A purpose. A reason that can be granted to him by his own skill and prowess.

Of course, that's a lot more ... rational than he sounds at the moment. Once he starts shooting, laughter bubbles low in his throat, taking hold of him. When the monsters come from behind, he grabs on to Joker's arm to drag him into the center, just as he turns back to take down the group heading their way.

There are so many of them. He'll get his fill before this is all over.]

[variate]

[ Ren keeps his head in the game, picking off those that come closer. there's hundreds of them—or what seems like hundreds of them. when Akechi grabs his arm he follows his lead to pull back, forcing the stream of monsters to get thinner as they head further into the alleyway. the space between them slowly closes until he presses his shoulders against Akechi's back, and he realizes they're going to need another plan.

as he reloads again, he half turns, expecting Akechi to follow in suit. ]

Switch.

[ he points the gun forward again to take the next shot. ]

There's a fire escape to your right, can you reach it?

[ it'll at least give them another angle, and keep those monsters that are low to the ground exactly where they are. ]

[impede]

[Strategically, taking the high ground may help them. But there are downsides to it, too. He can already calculate the lack of certainty for their positioning as they head up. While some monsters will remain low, others will crowd in, having been called just like they were before.]

We'll need an exit, too. I'll find one. [He shoots a shot clear over Ren's head, right before turning and springing up to grab on to the fire escape. A monster lunges up at him at the same time, trying to yank him down. It latches on, but he's quick to blast open its head with a single shot. Sure, he dangled one handed for a bit there, but he's been through worse.

He continues up, ending up on the roof so that he can run over the top while checking to see if there are more fire escapes on the other side. Good news: there are. Better news: most of the creatures haven't gathered there.

He rushes back to take out a few flying bats that elevated themselves.]

Get up here now! [He doesn't mention the exit, lest he accidentally lead the creatures over there.

They've proven intelligent at times, after all.]

[variate]

[ Akechi goes and Ren takes point, trusting him to evaluate the playing field and head back with the details. he gets ready to shoot the monster that decides to pull him down, but Akechi already has it, so Ren covers the rest as he climbs to the top of the ceiling. it's not an easy fight, keeping himself covered at both directions while the monsters close in. one gets close enough to rattle him before it goes down.

when the signal comes, he half kicks off the wall and grabs the first bar of the fire escape, doing a dramatic flip up to catch himself and pull himself up beside Akechi. behind him the next monster is ready to head up, but Ren grabs it by an ungloved hand, glowing blue. for a few moments (just a few), the monster looks confused and frozen in place at the edge of the fire escape.

Ren walks backward toward Akechi, wiping the blood at the corner of his mouth with his gloved hand. ]

How much ammunition do you have left?

[impede]

Enough. [Akechi isn't the type to go in unprepared. His time alone in the metaverse taught him that he would be a fool if he didn't have several measures of insurance. That extends to now. What he has will suit him. It helps that Cassius' funds are still flowing in even after he lost his position with Jovavich's campaign.] Assuming I don't waste any of it, that is. I already know how to help us flee, but we'll stick to where we are and only use that as back up.

[Wary, again, of the creatures and their seeming ability to learn, he doesn't turn to look to where they'll be leaving. That would be unwise.]

I assume you're well prepared? Then again, perhaps it's wrong of me to assume that.

[variate]

[ while they could stand on their own two feet and fight for a while, it would soon become exhausting without rest. there aren't healing items or a nice cup of coffee to re-invigorate them here like there was in the Metaverse. they'd have to make do with what they had. ]

I'm always prepared.

[ to some extent—but what he means is he's adaptable. there's a blade at his side, even if he'd rather keep fighting at long range. ]

Even if they're not going to stop coming.

[ the next magazine clicks into place, and he lifts to aim. ]

[impede]

There will be a lull. [Confident. Unyielding. He'd question Ren's ability to be prepared when he doesn't have the same materials available, but he won't. Akechi knows that most of his supplies right now come by way of him, and he doesn't know what he's fought up to this point.]

Keep an eye out for it. Once it comes, I'll give a signal. Follow me when it's time.

[They can't fight these creatures forever. They will need to rest, for better or worse. They have no choice.]

[variate]

[ as much as he likes running side by side with Akechi, fighting monsters and enjoying the rush that comes with it, he's aware when the odds are against them. he's not going to lose like this, especially not when there was more to do.

the monsters regain their senses and begin to crawl up the fire escape. it's easier to pick them off since there's only one (apparent) route up to the roof. ]

I've got your back.

[ if Akechi turns to take the lead, Ren will step in to make sure that he can cover their escape. ]

[impede]

[There is some dissonance within him when it comes to playing navigator. One, he lacks the skill and foresight that he had within a palace. And the other was present in both places: having to say out loud what he internalized for over two years. It's hard to consider others. To think of them as allies or partners. And yet, Ren hasn't seemed to let go.

It's still a relief that he hasn't. Not that Akechi bothers with such sentimental bullshit out loud.

Once the lull comes, he snaps "Joker!" rather loudly and turns, heading straight to the other side of the building and leaping downward with ease. He doesn't continue without the assurance of Ren right behind him, boots hitting the metal fire escape to lend them their way down.]

[variate]

[ what they did they did together. these kinds of pursuits weren't as solid if they were done alone. even when he knew about Akechi's betrayal and their intentions put them at odds, they were still teammates. he would hold on to that, even when he was forced to let go twice.

he's mid-shot when Akechi's voice rings like a hiss of alarm through the shrieks of the monsters. the last one is clipped by the shot, enough to discourage it for the moment as he follows Akechi down the side of the building. his clank against metal poles as he flips from one down to the next. anyone watching them would think either parkour or downright acrobatics, but Ren can't help himself in making it dramatic.

below them the monsters catch wind and begin to line up. ]

Hold on. [ when he catches up to him, holding onto one of the bars, he reaches out the other red-gloved hand to catch Akechi around the middle. ] If something gets close, shoot it.

[ he balances, flicking the grappling hook from his other wrist. ]

[impede]

[Of course this moron would treat him like some damsel to be swept away at some point. Akechi should have known that he'd take the time to slip it in. He growls in frustration the moment Ren's arm wraps around him, but he doesn't have a fucking choice by then. The monsters are closing in and they're wasting time. Anything beyond rapidly spit out profanity will be a waste of time.

But he's definitely too hyped up on the adrenaline of killing things to do anything but just let it happen. He might punch him once they get to their destination.

He snarls an affirmative and points his gun overhead, preparing for the trajectory before them.]

[variate]

[ whatever punch that he's going to get for this will be absolutely worth it.

Ren's already pulling him up in a rush, catching the grappling hook against metal extension on one of the buildings above them. before long they're both in the air, swinging above the monsters that were heading in their former direction.

with Akechi in one hand and the grappling hook in the other, he's left open to anything that may fly in path. he leaves that to Akechi, readying himself to deal with the changes in trajectory due to any backlash from the gunshots. he pivots around a corner of a building with his boots, a wild smile twisting over his face. it looks different without the mask, but he feels closer to what he was as Joker for the first time since they got back.

their shoes hit the ground far from the group of monsters, the grappling hook twisting like a snake, as if it were a live, extension of Ren, before retracting under his sleeve. ]

[impede]

[Any of the rush from killing these bastards leaves him because of Ren's stupid fucking antics. The moment they drop down on the ground, out of reach of the monsters, he jerks away, shoving him back. There's always a chance that the monsters could catch up, and the two of them don't have enough ammo to keep at it.

Of course, on the way to this point, he perfectly struck down the creatures on their tails. He's still a perfect shot. Ren should admire him.

But for now, he takes off, running with the expectation that Ren will follow.

Oh, he has every intention of punching him. But first things first: a safe space to slam his fist into Ren's stupid smug mouth.]

[variate]

[ the recovery is fluid, even as Akechi pushes him away and starts running. Ren follows without hesitation, tightening the gloves with a pull at his wrist.

the monsters are far behind them, and as long as they get a decent head start then they shouldn't be found. still, he's ready to grab his knife if needed.

he has four bullets left. ]

[impede]

[Whereas Ren always required assistance in getting in and out of palaces, Akechi always did it alone. Opportunities are far more apparent to him on the fly. Of course, he knows that Ren is no less capable, but he hasn't survived in the same way. With the same instincts. There is no chance that he would've gotten arrested in the same way Ren did. He counted on him going off alone, even if the rest was a ploy to trick him in return. They knew what he would count on, but they knew what Ren would do, and thus, they were able to shape it the way they needed.

Complicated. But also: true.

He twists between buildings. There's more glass on the ground when he'd like, but he finally finds an apartment complex that has its door torn off but most of its windows are intact. For now. He motions for Ren to follow him, taking the stairs up to the third floor before he stops. They're in a hallway, but away from any windows. Safe, at least for now.

He places his hand against a wall and leans against it somewhat as he tries to cool down to the best of his ability.

Don't worry. The punch is coming.]

[variate]

[ Ren was never shy about accepting assistance. he accepted Morgana's just as he accepted Akechi's when Maruki rose, but Ren had always knew where his own power had come from. he gave to people as they gave to him, tightened and strengthened those bonds.

he keeps up with Akechi without a hitch, following him this way and that without asking where they're headed. up the stairs they go, with Ren taking up the rear.

when Akechi stops he does, lingering back aground the corner so he can see if anything has followed them—nothing has. ]