Geno felt ashamed of his brother's stupidity, or even guilty of at times. He felt that there must have been reasons why Vinny was the feral idiot he was, yet even Geno could not plumb this, and he often took to wondering if there were still pieces of their bastard father floating with them both. Was there a deeper meaning behind why his brother turned out the way he was, or was he just destined to be a stupid shit?
This was what Geno thought as, walking next to him down a hotel 2nd-floor hallway, Vinny farted and laughed like it was the funniest thing in the world. He had some odd philosophy to where the louder a man could fart, the more of a man he was; this is the type of thing that passes for depth in singular brain-celled individuals like Vinny Greco.
It was four in the morning when they came up to room 322's door.
Nodding to Geno, Vinny swiped a card in; the door opened -
- and a doomed scene met their stare ahead of Serena still on her phone, sleep hygiene as poor as ever as she shot up; Vinny groaned -
" - you gotta be fucking -"
" - Naomi!" shouted Serena; Blackburn's tentacle shot to Naomi's left arm, Avalanche's arm forming as she yanked her over -
" - huh what -"
- and the next scene was instant.
Streams of fog flew in to the wall behind, and acid corroded a section through; in to the sudden hole swept one pajama-ed woman and yanked the other to the room adjacent, thankfully empty as they rushed to the center, beds adjacent -
" - wake up!" panted Serena, streams of fog filling Naomi's nostrils with smelling salts. The woman shot up immediately, Avalanche's arm fully readied as the two stood, fifty feet separating them and their foes, Vinny already scaled up -
" - fuck." winced Serena. "How'd you - fucking find our room?!"
[Persona 5 - Blooming Villain.]
Vinny laughed ahead, teeth growing like a true gator's; "A little birdie who works here told me!" he shouted, and in the next instant -
- the floor buckled underneath the two's feet; streams of fog repaired the wood as the two jumped -
- but saw the wood being eaten away again, termites within chewing at ferocious pace within -
- and streams of fog filled the hole with asphalt as the two landed again, stepping away to the back wall, two brothers stepping up ahead.
"You - saw that, right?" winced Serena; Naomi nodded -
" - termites - maybe insects?" she whispered; ahead, Vinny started rushing towards them -
" - space first." whispered Serena. Streams of fog flew in to the wall behind, filling it with acid and clearing another exit -
- but the next scene was instant. A hundred splittlebugs appeared within the aperture and spit foam within the hole -
- and closed it back up; Vinny caught up to them behind -
- his claws cleaved Serena's back open, teeth gripping her neck with the strength of a thousand back -
" - B-Blackburn -" she gagged -
- but felt with aghast senses her fog unable to penetrate, Vinny's pores&orifices closing against her black wisps, and in the next instant -
- Avalanche's arm gripped Vinny by his neck and threw him with the strength of a thousand away -
- and clear through one wall -
- and another -
- and another -
- and another, Geno left alone ahead, fog refilling Serena's wounds as she staggered, panting as she spoke - " - can't - can't fill that guy -"
" - I can get him -" said Naomi -
- and ahead, they saw Vinny rushing back like a snake through grass, his blood still dripping down Naomi's arm, and in the next instant -
" - Reptilian!" he shouted; Naomi shrieked as his blood suddenly boiled and started to melt her arm -
" - Blackburn!" shouted Serena, streams of fog filling it with new stones -
- and a swift snap of Avalanche's fingers formed a stone casing around the blood; careful aim readied, Naomi threw it forward at Geno -
- and the keen end smashed through his right eye in a burst of blood; white&red liquid melting as he screamed. Vinny caught up to him beside -
" - T-Trophus!" gagged Geno, hand clutching his gone-eye -
- and new spittlebugs formed within the grisly socket, foam refilling the ghastly aperture, prodigal duo backing against the foamed-up wall -
" - fucking gross!" groaned Naomi, relevantly.
Streams of fog cleared a new exit; and in to another room swept the women, balcony left as they ran instead, fog refilling the hole with asphalt as they rushed to the center - but they had no time to rest.
A skittering began within the roof, and in the next instant -
- it started instantly to crumble, termites chewing with the speed of sound through the wood within, and as the rain of rubble started to fall -
- a cloud of fog flew above, repairing the ceiling with new stone, mentor whispering to her protege as they rushed out to the balcony. They saw the street and street-sign below, and in the next instant -
- a dozen jets of blood burst out of the wall towards them; underneath eleven dodged the two -
- but one hit Serena's tentacle shoulder-on; she shrieked and staggered, skin melting and flesh starting to droop like a tumor -
" - Naomi - slice it off!" she shouted -
- and a swift swipe of Avalanche amputated the boil as they dodged another red jet, Blackburn's tentacle regenerating as the two came up to the balcony's rail. Behind, they heard Vinny & Geno enter the room, and as the two leaped off -
- a centipede coiled like a lasso around Naomi's neck -
- but the next scene was instant. Stone fingers snapping, the asphalt roof turned to dust, and in the next instant -
- a rain of rubble crushed them down, sharp concrete that had survived severing the connection as the prodigal duo landed on the sidewalk, staggers as they landed. Fog repaired their blisters as they kept their rush to the road, street-sign ahead as they turned back.
"Got - got some space now." panted Serena; Naomi nodded beside, asphalt readying to bow to Avalanche's command. "Don't - have my cup, though -" she winced -
" - we got this." nodded Naomi as they backed away, two wounded brothers stepping to the balcony ahead. Vinny leaped to the wall and started climbing down, Geno's hands flashing out -
" - Trophus!" he shouted, and in the next instant -
- a line of wasps burst out of his hands and flew towards the women -
- but streams of fog filled every last insect with knives, metal slashing and blood bursting as the two stepped back to the middle lane, Vinny reaching the ground ahead. Rushing up to the street-sign, his claws gripped the pole tight -
- and ripped it clear out of the ground; he threw it towards Serena, and as her tentacle readied to block the projectile -
- it started to melt in mid-air -
- and wrapped around her like a car around a tree; breath shoved from her lungs, Vinny rushed towards her with claws readied, clearing the clearing -
- just in time for Avalanche's arm to bash his chest in; stagger back, he started his charge again, Serena still trapped and starting to choke -
- but streams of fog flew in to the melted pole, overfilling it with water; and in to a hundred shards fell the street-sign, new breath flowing in to her as Naomi blocked Vinny's swipe ahead. Streams of fog flew in to his ears -
- but he swept with the speed of a reptile back&away; the two dodged left -
- just in time to dodge a centipede lasso from Geno, ground-level now, thirty feet separating the two. Needing distance first, the women started to back away again -
- but swept with the speed of light forward as one car narrowly missed them from the right -
" - FUCKING ASSHOLE!" shouted Naomi; a stone bullet hit his back tires -
- and in to another line of parked cars crashed the fucking asshole, alarm filling the streets as the prodigal duo backed to the sidewalk. Vinny&Geno were on one end, Naomi&Serena the other, fifty feet separating them. They heard the civilian stomp out of his vehicle -
" - WHAT'S THE BIG -"
" - URASARIA!" shouted Serena, relevantly, eyes sharp ahead -
" - YOU THINK THAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO -"
" - WE HAVE LEGAL IMMUNITY, YOU FUCKING -"
" - NEXT ONE IS GOING IN YOUR FUCKING SKULL! GET THE FUCK AWAY!" shouted Naomi, and they didn't hear him again after that.
Aggression still running with no rest, Vinny started rushing towards them again, and as he cleared the clearing, Naomi stomped; a fissure split open the road -
- and dunked him right in to the acid Serena had planted underneath -
- but as he fell, the next scene was instant. A swarm of wasps shot through the pool and their stingers drilled the bottom -
- carving a drain for the acid, keeping him alive as he landed in the bath-turned-puddle. Again unbeknownst to his brother's lifesaver, claws gripping in to the road, he climbed up, blood spraying towards Naomi as he rushed towards her -
" - swear to god I'll fucking -"
" - Avalanche!" she shouted & dodged & stomped -
- and a spike of asphalt went all the way through Vinny from below; a horrific gasp erupted from him as the two swept back, geyser of blood avoiding them narrowly as a swarm of mosquitos appeared ahead. They blinked stupidly for an instant, but in the next -
- Serena realized Geno's plan then. She yanked Naomi with her as she dodged right, veering on to the road again as they ran -
" - don't kill those!" she shouted; eyes ripping behind, she saw a swarm flying with the speed of insects towards them, and as the cloud came close -
- tendrils of fog grew from her tentacle; and filled every last mosquito with sponges -
- that started instantly to melt, Vinny's blood contained within them as new blood-infused swarms kept in pursuit parked cars & one wrecked flanking them as they rushed. Naomi whispered to Serena; the punk nodded, streams of fog overfilling every gas tank they passed by, Naomi stomping and launching every car they passed by in to the air -
- and they sighed as their eyes turned back no two-ton projectiles hitting Geno, standing beside his impaled brother now. Vinny's Revenant was still active, cars landing uselessly behind the two men, eighty feet separating them from he -
- and a laugh like none other escaped them as they saw his face pale, gasoline now drenching the entire road between them -
" - let's go!" chimed Serena, giving Naomi her sleeve; a knife of stone sliced it off, and streams of fog filled it s she threw it in to the flammable pool -
- and the entire road was claimed by the enormous blaze in an instant; Geno shrieked -
- but a swift swarm of mosquitos sucked the gasoline away from him, entire street drenched in flames, hearing but not seeing the women ahead. Another swarm of mosquitos appeared around, fear&grief peaking as he felt Vinny burn to death beside -
'Don't have - fuck, fuck -' he thought, and in the next instant -
- a miniscule hole opened in the road ahead -
- and blasted a jet of gasoline in his face; he shrieked as he staggered back, desperate beetles trying to shield his face as his skull burst in to flames, path clearing in the fire ahead -
- and Serena's fog filled his nostrils in the next, knocking him unconscious and extinguishing the flames -
" - got him!" she shouted, and Naomi nodded behind. The two set as fast as they could along the road, cocoons of asphalt swallowing the spreading flames, streams of fog extinguishing the red blaze.
The two didn't speak again until they came back, one corpse & one unconscious beside.
As Serena & her extinguished the flames, Naomi heard a siren approaching: perhaps a firetruck or ambulance or police car. She bet it was a firetruck, but it never appeared, and was soon gone; yet she could muster no care about it. What would success or failure have meant here?
She asked Serena why she had knocked Geno unconscious, and Serena replied that she had assumed Naomi would want to ask about the eel tattoo. Once again it appeared that Serena assumed Naomi had not moved with the rest of time. She added that it was lucky Geno had not been immolated to a crisp like his brother Vinny, but it did not seem this way to Naomi. It just was something that the cosmos was indifferent to, just as it had been with her previous home being demolished.
Days later, Serena suggested that they go to a local arcade, and Naomi agreed to play for hiscore against Serena at a particular videogame for some time. As Serena allowed Naomi to go again, Naomi placed her hands on the buttons, whose red paint was soon weathered along the rhythms of their competitive banter, yet encased no deeper hue.
[END OF ARC: FILL IN THE BLANK]