Breathing labored, muscles aching, I let out a sigh of relief.
Releasing the tension in my body, I flop onto my side, heaving from exertion. My entire body feels like static- even breathing brings pain. I can't keep going fight after fight like this.
I still have shit to do, though.
Digging my hands into the ground, I manage to haul myself to my feet. On the ground before me, Enshi lies. The only word I could use to describe him, is ravaged. There isn't a facet of his body that remains unbroken. Limbs contorted- jaw snapped. A mangled mess.
But he was still breathing.
I let out a shadow of a laugh. Resilient kid, that one. That was to my benefit, though. It hadn't been my intent to kill him. I had wanted to simply neutralize him, and then remove whatever factor was controlling him. The first part had just proven...rather difficult.
I'll just have to deal with it, though.
I turn my attention back to Enshi. "Now to deal with you..."
I still hadn't exactly pinned down what was influencing him- but I had a rough idea. The Great One's sludge is linked to her by some supernatural tether, as I figured out during our fight. My running theory is that the connection goes beyond the extent of pain. It was clear from the start that Enshi was under the control of some form of S.I.M.P chemical- probably transmitted through the ring that he wore. This enough was obvious. The difficult thing was figuring out how his power was amplified by this, and how he continued to be controlled after the death of the Great One. So I know what's influencing him- I just don't know how it functions.
I shake my head. That's not important right now. I just have to free him.
Crouching down to Enshi's level, I slowly reach my palm toward his hand, and gingerly, I slip the ring off his finger. Immediately, as if a mechanism is released, Enshi's eyes shoot open. He sits there for a moment, motionless, before noticing his physical state. His face drops, and his eyes slowly turn to me, glaring.
I wave. "Hi."
He lets out a faint grunt- probably an attempt at words. I have a feeling I don't want to know what he was trying to say, though. I really didn't think through how I would get him back into a functional state. I hadn't expected him to be this much of a challenge.
There was one thing that I hadn't tried, though. I wasn't sure if it would work...
"Eh, fuck it."
Reaching down toward his mouth, I ignite my hand in azure flames of Tamajutsu. Immediately, Enshi begins to writhe, his eyes wide, trying to inch away.
I shoot him a look. "I'm trying to help you, idiot. Stop fucking moving."
Reluctantly, he stops moving, wrenching his eyes shut in fear. I roll my eyes.
Drama queen.
Cautiously, I press my hand to his mouth, blue fire licking at his skin. I close my eyes, and focus on his soul. Its motions. Its fluctuations. And in a feeling I couldn't hope to describe, I send a surge of vitality through his body.
Moments pass. Nothing happens.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shoots through my hand, my eyes flashing open. Below, Enshi's teeth are locked around my palm. He drew blood, the fucker. He stares at me for a moment, eyes narrowed. Finally, he snorts, before releasing his grip.
He flexes his jaw for a bit, until he finally seems satisfied. "Heal!" He screeches. And as per the force of his Twitch, In a grotesque smattering of crunching and splattering (Holy shit that was a bar), Enshi's body slowly begins to morph and reform itself. It takes not even ten seconds before he's back on his feet.
Huh. It worked.
We sort of just sit there for a moment. Eyes staring lazily back at each other.
I turn away. "This isn't going anywhere-"
"DONT LEAVE!!"
I whip around. "What else is there for me to do, huh?"
He grits his teeth. "HOW ABOUT TELLING ME HOW THE FUCK I CAN GET HOME, DUMBASS!!"
"Oh yeah."
He rubs his temples in frustration. "Look, man. I appreciate you saving me- but that does nothing for me if I can't escape this fuckin' island." I shrug. "Dude, I don't know how to leave either."
He gapes. "Then how the fuck did you get here?!"
"Long story- anyway, I suggest we get out of this city as soon as possible."
He cocks his head to the side. "Why?"
"Look around you, dude."
In our wake, we had left devastation. All around us, destruction was plentiful. Flames and smog rolled along in waves. A layer of dust and rubble lined the earth, citizens scattering in all directions. Screams and sirens filled the air.
Enshi's face was reduced to bewilderment. "Oh...oh yeah..."
-----
Below, the land of Tenma rushed by, wind slapping against my face. The scream of electricity followed my trail, wings flapping against the draft. On my back, Enshi yells over the current. "You're looking for the lieutenant- Atticus, right?"
"Yeah!" I yell back. "Okay," He says. "From what I remember, he should be on Jichika Island." He outstretches his arm, pointing to a small island to the north. "Alright- but where are you going to go?"
"Well," He says. "This island is under the dominion of Atticus, right? So if you defeat him, escape should become much more accessible for me. Because I know for a fact that his forces are searching for me by the second. I'll just wait in hiding till you win- well IF you win." I nod. "Roger."
Shakily, he stands up on my back. I strain under the weight, but keep steady. "Hey man," He says in a shockingly genuine tone. "Don't be cringe." And with that, he steps off my back, barreling toward the ground. As he slowly fades from vision- a sonic boom shakes the air, and I hear his shrill voice.
"FUCKING FIGHTER JET!!"
That was a bit much.
------
The shore is approaching. Its bioluminescent corals and marine life shone beneath the waves- all the more gallant below the night sky. I swallow hard. This would far surpass anything I had faced before- and alone too. I steeled myself, and straightened my path. Not even two kilometers now-
Wait.
No.
Nononononono.
I could sense it.
I could sense HIM.
To the left-
Slamming into my side at speeds I couldn't hope to match, a blade lodges itself into my ribs, accompanied by the body of a man. I flail and writhe- struggling under the force driving me toward the earth. Though his face was obscured, I didn't need my eyes to know who this was.
Jigoku.
I gnash my teeth. "Needed a round two, huh-"
Turning the blade over on its side, he dislodges it- before slamming a kick into my face, hurtling me toward the ground.
In a flash, red wings scream to life from my back- catching my descent just as I would've collided with the earth. Landing almost gracefully in front of me, Jigoku outstretches his blade. The glowing elegance of the city shines against his face twisted with malice.
"How about I finish the job this time- huh, Okoramo?"
-------
The room was empty. Void of life. All life but one man. On a throne of tungsten, wires and mechanisms attached to his body. Machinery and functions lined the floor and walls.
The man presses what seems to be a headset fastened along his skull. "Come in, Phlora."
Almost instantaneously, her shrill voice responds. "THAT'S MEEEEEE!! Watcha need, boss man?!"
"Did the extraction mission go as planned?"
Phlora hesitates. "Well- depends..."
The man lets out a laugh that seems to shake the room. "Of course it wouldn't with that fucker Okoramo. I knew he'd need help, the bugger."
"Yeah," Phlora says. "Normally you don't have enough foresight or intelligence to think ahead a whole month in advance."
The man chuckles. "Wherever that kid goes, Calamity is quick to follow. I've had a feeling he was on the brink of something big for a while. He needs all the support he can get. Thanks for all your hard work, Phlora"
"No problem, Yuji."