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Post by Kiin on Jan 29, 2019 11:39:59 GMT
Even as Valo's doppelganger vanished, the guards chasing would have no clue. Simply presuming it was merely a swift prey, they continued their chase, and their shouts and clamoring footsteps could be heard growing fainter and fainter, at a rapid rate. This allowed them to pass quickly to the other side of the building.
Blending in with the crowd due to their cloaks, Valo and Kalliope would not be spotted by any passing guards, though they could still not risk getting too close. As they passed Jilintor's home, they saw a narrow alleyway, and the man in charge of the platoon with Jilintor over his shoulder walking down it. Not far behind him were two other guards, smaller in size.
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Post by Kalliope on Jan 29, 2019 16:13:08 GMT
Kalliope was relieved to hear that Jilintor was alive, at the very least, but the pending nature of his condition filled her with a greater sense of urgency. She was more than a little worried about confronting a potentially powerful enemy with an unknown weapon, but knew they had no other choice if they were to save Jilintor.
As they stealthily tailed the enemy leader, Kalliope glanced around at the people around them, seeing that both she and Valo remained largely unbothered or unnoticed by anyone who’d give a damn about their presence. Still, she stayed on guard, and made sure to steer the two of them anyone who looked even remotely hostile. She couldn’t quite see what the guards had looked like before, but gathered that those in armor were probably not people they wanted to stand too close to.
They turned into an alley, and upon seeing men in armor not far behind the leader, Kal quickly pulled Valo back so that they were obscured by the wall. One quick look and she saw that there were only two of them, and while she knew she and Valo could easily take down two enemies in any normal situation, they were both still injured, and she had no idea how strong these people were in comparison to them. It was better to remain wary, and to not do anything too crazy.
‘Crazy’ is a bit of a vague term though, and Kal would give Valo a knowing look before she sprinted over to the guards, folding her hands up above her head before swinging them down onto the helmet of one of them. She was hoping that the ringing and vibrating of the metal would be enough to disorient the guard just long enough for Valo to incapacitate the other one. If her attack hit hard enough, she’d hoped it’d completely knock out the guard so that they didn’t waste too much time on trying to fight them. |
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Post by Valo Morei on Jan 29, 2019 20:50:28 GMT
They seemed to not draw much attention, thanks to the robes that Jilintor had provided them previously. Still, they needed to be careful as detection would endanger not only them but potentially everyone around them. The guards from before were too distracted by Valo's doppelganger, which meant they didn't have much in the way of opposition for now.
Valo was pulled back by Kalliope, and he took a glance at the two guards who trailed behind Jilintor's captive. Three against two, and the three held a hostage. It wasn't going to be easy, and one wrong move could get someone killed. He clenched his fist as he tried to think of a possible solution to this problem. Maybe continue trailing them for a bit longer?
It seemed Kalliope thought this the opportune chance to strike though, and maybe she had the better idea as their numbers were low. Valo would rush in alongside her after she made her move, charging for the other guard. He channeled his power into his hands as he leapt for the hostile, planning on slamming his feet into the back of his head, bringing him to the ground as he would land on top of him, hopefully with enough force to knock him out non-fatally. From there, Valo would form a bow and aim it at the larger armored man. If he turned around to face them, Valo would immediately fire an arrow at the man's gun in an attempt to disarm him. If that weapon was out of the way, they stood a better chance at freeing Jilintor, or even surviving against this guy. |
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Post by Kiin on Jan 30, 2019 0:13:41 GMT
Valo and Kalliope would be lucky enough to make it to the guards from behind and strike them, but though their enemies would be dazed, they would not fall be out of the fight. The first of the two whipped around and grabbed Kalliope by her wrist, before throwing a heavy palm up to her nose in an attempt to take down his aggressor. Regardless of if it landed, he would push on the woman's body, taking her back down the alleyway with superior strength.
Valo would land atop his target, but his shot would go wide as the guard fidgeted underneath him. As the arrow of energy struck the wall next to him, the man at the front turned to face both Valo and Kalliope.
"Vuumc," the man said beneath his helmet, and pointed the gun directly at Valo's chest. Once more, the air around him distorted, before a beam fired out with incredible speed. The sound rang out around the block, and if it met its target it would do so with enough force to pierce him entirely.
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Post by Kalliope on Jan 30, 2019 4:43:11 GMT
Well, her plan didn't quite go as expected. Then again, she should've known by now that any plan she considers to be a good one tends to turn out to be really terrible in the end. Lack of foresight, she supposed.
As a hand collided with her nose, Kal felt her vision go dark for a moment, and then she could smell the familiar, copper scent that told her that she either broke her nose or busted it well enough. She had no time to ponder on it though, because she'd been pushed down the alleyway with incredible force, nearly knocking the air out of her lungs. She took short, hurried breaths as she gathered herself.
Kal unsheathed a blade of bone from her forearm, slicing through her own skin in the process. She was not going to have a good time if she lost a lot of blood, though, so she had to be quick and careful as to not push herself more than she needed to. She wanted to avoid needless death, but she was afraid these guards didn't carry the same sentiment. She backed up a few steps before sprinting behind her enemy with incredible speed, bringing her arm around his front to attempt to slice his neck through the narrow space between the chest armor and his helmet, from behind. It was executed in one fluid motion, and if done correctly, it would successfully incapacitate the enemy for good.
While she was occupied, however, she could hear the leader's voice say something she couldn't recognize. She didn't see the enemy leader fire the gun, but the sound was loud enough that it was unmistakable. She was afraid to look-- afraid to see where it'd landed. She hoped, prayed, it didn't hit Valo.
os gladio: [Level 1] +1 tier to Strength. Inflicts continuous bleeding. |
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Post by Valo Morei on Jan 30, 2019 20:56:16 GMT
His target wasn't downed, and the shuffling caused Valo to miss his shot entirely. It was rather amateur of him, and he wasn't sure if he was just out of practice or if his injuries were worse than he thought as he wasn't at the top of his game by any means. The larger armored man turned and spoke, and as he rose his firearm, Valo quickly dove to the right as the trigger was pulled. The beam would hopefully fly right past him, and Valo would narrowly avoid his own death as he quickly crawled into cover, back against a wall as he panted heavily.
The distorted air and intensity of that beam was nerve-racking, and quite unlike anything he had seen back home. He didn't want to risk testing how powerful it was personally, afraid of being eviscerated in the blink of an eye. Looking around, he could see Kalliope struggling with her opponent.
"Oh no, Kal!" He called out, knowing full well if he rushed out after her he was an open target. Thankfully, he knew what to do. Channeling his power, he would form a doppelganger from his body again, further empowering himself to augment his speed to full capacity. The doppelganger and Valo would dive out of cover at the same time, with his clone moving towards the man with the gun while Valo sprinted in a blur. He would summon his bow, firing a blast of light towards the backside of Kalliope's opponent just in case to help her, before sprinting towards the man with the gun. Along the way, he would pick up every rock and piece of debris he could, flinging it with great intensity and speed towards the man's armored face and his firearm in an attempt to disarm or daze him, while the doppelganger would move in attempting to clothesline him. |
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Post by Kiin on Feb 1, 2019 2:11:49 GMT
The guard had no chance, between an arrow in his back and Kalliope moving in to cut his throat. He tried to defend, but the arrow gave Kalliope the opening she needed to put him in the ground. He fell to the ground in a heap, causing his partner to cry out in anguish. The guard Valo floored just moments ago stood to his feet and tackled him into the brick wall he was adjacent to, right after he sent his doppelganger out toward his leader. "Oui vilgehk suhcdan!" he cried, before throwing two heavy fists into Valo's stomach.
The leader let out a heavy sigh, dropping Jilintor into his forearm before tossing him harshly into the wall next to him. The strange boy let out a grunt of pain, and the man in armor stepped forward. As the doppelganger approached, he simply reached out and picked him up by the neck. If it were a doppelganger he could indeed touch and not just an illusion, it would feel its throat get crushed.
"Ed sicd pa oui dfu drah," the man said, before snapping the doppelganger's neck. He quickly discerned what the two aliens were capable of, and figured he could kill the fake and still take the two alive.
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Post by Kalliope on Feb 2, 2019 7:12:11 GMT
Kal hadn't quite realized what she'd done before it was too late, and then there was blood on her hands again-- the blood of a stranger who spoke in tongues she couldn't understand, in a world that felt surreal and almost dream-like. Something about it felt so terribly wrong, despite these people being so different, despite Kal having almost no connection to them, despite her telling herself that she was doing this for the right thing. She didn't want to kill anyone, and yet there she stood, momentarily dazed by her own actions. It was one thing to kill your own kind out of self defense, but this was a much different situation. Kal felt that she had just breached some sacred barrier in one brief, fleeting moment, and she will never be able to cross that threshold again. What's done has been done, and all she could do now is ensure she hadn't killed a man for a hopeless cause.
She hadn't had time to further contemplate her actions-- she turned to see a number of things unfold in the span of a few seconds.
Valo hadn't been shot (Kal counted her lucky stars for that one), but he was now thrown in a precarious predicament as he had been tackled into the adjacent wall. Jilintor was faring no better, having been thrown into the wall so harshly that Kal visibly flinched at the impact. The worst fate fell upon Valo's doppelganger, however, whose neck had been crushed with a petrifying amount of ease and efficiency.
Kal was afraid.
She wiped at her bloody nose with a gloved hand as she shot a glance between Jilintor and Valo, and then to the hostile leader who could probably kill her without restraint and without difficulty.
Kal ran to Jilintor, despite the closer proximity to the enemy. Valo had been in countless predicaments akin to this one, and Kal had to trust that he'd be able to deal with this on his own. Jilintor, on the other hand, was just a boy, and had sustained a far greater injury as a result of saving the lives of two strangers. Kal had resolved that the boy took precedent in this scenario, and thus devoted her strength to protecting him until the opportunity arose where she or Valo could escape and take him to safety.
She sat the boy up as best as she could, hoping to assess his injuries so that she could patch him up using whatever she had in her first aid satchel. Kal situated herself between the armored man and Jilintor, inherently defensive, and willing to get shot if it meant she might protect the boy who presumably saved her life. |
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Post by Valo Morei on Feb 4, 2019 9:46:57 GMT
Valo's eyes widened as the body of Kalliope's assailant fell to the ground dead, blood dripping from her blade. He froze in place, his intentions were only to try and hinder him long enough to save her life. He felt like any chance at peace had been shattered as they had killed one of their men, and he didn't have time to come up with a new plan before he felt something slam into him hard. He hit the wall, feeling the wind get knocked out of him, and as he struggled to come back to his senses, he saw the other guard coming for him with bloodlust and agony in his eyes. It immediately reminded him of the anger directed towards him back in New York due to his actions as Hyperion, and he found it difficult to steel himself in light of this.
As his doppelganger was grabbed, Valo's eyes widened as he felt a pressure around his neck, and as the doppelganger 'died', Valo would scream out in agony as he became immediately aware of the death through its eyes. He clutched at his neck, struggling to breathe for a moment as his body tried to cope with the sudden separation from his clone, and was unable to defend himself from the initial onslaught from his opponent. The fists would slam into his stomach hard, and Valo felt the wind once more leave his body as he coughed out blood. He grit his teeth, moving his hands out between himself and the alien as he channeled his energy once more. It would take the form of his Dragon Talon blade, shooting out towards his opponent's gut, and although it wouldn't be with piercing force, it would be enough to suddenly slam into his opponent hard and hopefully send him flying back and out of commission.
Meanwhile, Valo would look towards Kalliope and the man with the gun, falling to one knee as he used his sword to keep himself steady.
"Don't you dare touch her." Valo would call out, though whether it was out of bravery or utter foolishness he wasn't sure. He just knew he would protect her no matter what, even if it meant having to unleash the Wraith right here, right now against this foe. |
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Post by Kiin on Feb 6, 2019 15:04:55 GMT
Kalliope could make it to Jilintor, and the boy had a look of fear in his wide eyes. "Ceeanatuwuu nanashaa..!" he said softly, yet urgently, his voice breaking out with whimpers as he spoke. Jilintor sat up as Kalliope helped him, but he would not allow her to be between himself and the armored man. Instead, he shuffled along the ground, keeping himself between them instead. Continuing to mutter what seemed like pleas in his language, his one large hand came to her shoulder, and tears fell from his eyes.
Valo's maneuver was enough to send the soldier flying back into the opposite wall, his head smashing into it with greater force and likely concussing him. The man fell down in a heap, clearly out of commission. With Valo's own words that followed, however, the leader seemed unfazed. He looked between Valo and Kalliope, then down at Jilintor, and beneath his helmet, he simply began to chuckle.
"Ouin cdnikkmac yna sayhehkmacc," he said, before raising his gun and pointing it to the back of Jilintor's head. The young boy did not react, instead only continuing to plead to Kalliope. A high-pitched whirring sound could be heard, once again, followed by a sudden -
BOOM!
The leader turned his head, taken aback at the sounds of explosions behind himself. The whirring of the gun stopped as smokestacks began to rise in the air. Explosion after explosion could be heard, with short breaks between them. "Tysh ed!" the man shouted, clenching his hands into fists. He turned to look at both Valo and Kalliope, before focusing his attention on the smoke once again.
"Vundiha vyjunc oui drec desa. Bnyo E hajan caa oui ykyeh!"
with those parting words, the man turned on his heel facing the opposite end of the alley. In a strange showing, as if all the light was being sapped from the area, a pool of darkness and shadows whirled around the man. He crouched, only slightly, and then leaped high into the air, the shadows trailing behind him and enveloping his form, before he disappeared from sight.
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Post by Kalliope on Feb 7, 2019 23:56:07 GMT
All Kal wanted was to protect Jilintor, but the boy was absolutely frantic, and Kal couldn’t understand a word he was saying. He was crying— the poor boy— Kal desperately wished she knew what he was trying to tell her. Why wouldn’t he let her protect him?
Kal heard a loud slam and turned her head to see that had Valo had knocked out the other guard. One less threat to deal with. But she’d heard the whirring of the enemy leader’s gun and whipped her head back around to see that it was aimed right at Jilintor. In a futile attempt to protect the boy, she threw her arms around him and turned her body slightly to try and protect him, eyes shut in fear. She knew that it wouldn’t have made any difference if she’d tried to defend him, but she’d acted before she had another thought.
She’d been holding her breath, she realized, and time seemed to slow down around her.
She waited for the gun to go off. She waited for something.
Kal heard an explosion in the distance. And another. And another.
When she opened her eyes, the enemy leader had spoken something, and left. Just like that. Kal quietly thanked whatever caused the explosions, and took a moment to compose herself now that they were all safe, for the time being. She let go of Jilintor, and glanced all around her for anymore signs of danger. When she was satisfied that they had a moment of respite, she took off her bloodied gloves and shoved them in her satchel.
The first order of business was to make sure Jilintor was alright. He was hit by one of those blasts, and Kal couldn’t imagine that was a good thing. She quickly noticed where he’d been shot, and was filled with worry.
Right through the abdomen.
Now, Kal didn’t know alien physiology very well. As a matter of fact, she didn’t know the physiology of anything other than a human. But she knew better than anyone that deep abdominal wounds were highly fatal, and that meant that she needed to not panic, and patch him up ASAP.
He’s stayed alive for this long, so Kal hoped his people were just more impervious to these kinds of wounds than humans are. It was a silly thought, but Kal had to hope it held some kind of ground.
She quickly opened her satchel and took out a roll of gauze. Her hand then dug around for a bottle of painkillers, but found that she had none. She took a deep breath. It was fine. It’d probably be dangerous to give medicine to someone whose body may not react well to it, anyway. She had some rubbing alcohol, which could disinfect the wound, but Kal still had no idea if alcohol would be harmful or helpful to him. She couldn’t take chances.
She'd carefully bandage around the boy's midsection, taking care not to hurt him. Her hands were shaking. "You're going to be alright," she spoke, softly, "Just remain calm for me." She knew he couldn't understand her, but she hoped her voice was soothing enough to provide some sort of comfort. When she was satisfied with her work, she took his hand and lead him to press down on his wound, hard enough to help quell the bleeding, but soft enough that it wouldn't hurt him. "It's imperative that you apply pressure to the area of trauma," she tried to explain. She had to hope he got the point. He must've known enough about first aid if he'd helped Kal and Valo before, so the woman assumed Jilintor knew the rest.
When she felt that Jilintor would be alright for a moment or two, she stood up, and immediately felt a little dizzy. She placed a hand against the wall to steady herself, and saw that she was still bleeding from her arm. And on that train of thought, she realized her nose was still busted. Kal felt her bones shift awkwardly under her skin as her hand reached up to move her nose back into place, wincing at the audible snap. Then she wiped under her nose with her forearm, a bright red streak left in the wake. It wasn’t bleeding excessively, but Kal quickly felt herself grow annoyed by it now that it’d been brought to her attention. She could taste the blood on her lips and found herself mildly repulsed. Yeah, it was definitely annoying. Hopefully it’d stop bleeding soon.
When Kal was finished dealing with her own nasal mishaps, she turned her attention to Valo. One quick glance and she saw that he wasn’t bleeding from any external wounds, but she frowned as she acknowledged that he’d likely sustained a few percussive injuries.
She made her way over to him slowly, dropping to her knees in front of him to make sure he was okay.
He could’ve been worse off, realistically, but her heart still broke a bit to see him hurt.
“My apologies,” she whispered, one shaky hand going to his shoulder while the other wiped off some of the blood near his mouth. If he’d coughed up blood before, then the injuries he’d sustained affected him more internally than externally, and that was something Kal couldn’t do anything about. “I should have protected you.”
Kal then retreated her arms, looking down as her thumb pressed gently on the laceration near her wrist. She glanced at Jilintor, her eyes filled with worry.
“We need to take refuge somewhere... find a sanctuary where Jilintor can therein rest and recuperate...”
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Post by Valo Morei on Feb 9, 2019 8:03:00 GMT
Jilintor attempted to protect Kalliope from the man with the gun, despite his grave injuries. As he chuckled and lifted his gun, Valo's eyes widened and he immediately began to charge energy through his body, directing it to his hands. "DON'T YOU DARE!'
The next few seconds seemed as though they were in endless, slow motion. The man's arm raised. Valo's bow began to materalize. Kalliope moved to shield Jilintor with her own body. The arrow began to take shape, and Valo immediately took aim, all of his inhibitions completely shut off as all he could think of was protecting Kalliope.
A boom resounded before he could fire, and he looked on in shock as he saw the explosions in the distance. They seemed to disrupt his enemy as well, who turned to look back at them. The man muttered something in his language, before performing a grand leap away, covering immense distance in one fell swoop. Valo ran forward a few paces, aiming his bow up as he tried to get a clear lock on his target.
"Get back here, damn you..." He said, but it was no use. The man was too far gone, and Valo's bow would dematerialize after a few seconds as he fell to his knees. He was panting heavily, though it was less the pain in his torso that plagued him than the one in his neck. Looking towards the ground, he grit his teeth and clenched his fist, realizing in that moment just how much of his edge he had lost. It seemed the time was not yet ripe for a peaceful life, and refusal to get his strength back could once more put not only himself, but Kalliope and those around him in danger as well.
He looked up at Kalliope and Jilintor, and saw she was nursing his wounds. He looked to be in bad shape, and yet he tried really hard to protect them. Two people he knew nothing about, or if they were even worth protecting. Why? He was gambling everything for Valo and Kalliope.
In any case, Valo knew that he owed Jilintor a great debt, and he would do whatever it took to make sure he was okay.
Kalliope got up and made her way to Valo, crouching down near him as she wiped the blood from his lip. She apologized, and he shook his head with a light smile. "No, we were caught unaware... Jilintor must take priority." He said, looking back towards Jilintor. Kalliope was right, they needed to find a safe place to hide and recuperate.
"Let's get going then... the longer we dawdle here, the worse our chances become." He said, getting up slowly and making his way to Jilintor. Once he was near, Valo would crouch down and give Jilintor a reassuring smile, reaching to carry him in his arms and standing up. He didn't know where they could go exactly, but he knew the explosions in the distance would make a fair distraction for now. It was the best they'd likely get.
"If he's willing to be so kind to us, it stands to reason that maybe there are others like him. At least, we can only hope..." Valo would say, then after looking around to gauge his options, would start to walk down the alleyway they were near. Regardless of the distraction, he hoped to stay out of obvious sight as he didn't know who was a friend and who was a foe. |
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