Violence behind your smile; Bloodlust in your eyes // [OPEN]

[suppressthedark]

Who: Ichigo's hollow (suppressthedark) and YOU.
What: Someone's out a wandering, and he's not exactly harmless. Be careful...
When: Day 141 to Day 143.
Where: Around...oh, well, everywhere! yeah. :|
Rating: pg-13 to maybe r? THERE'S GONNA BE FIGHTING, but I don't think anything really explicit.

[So. He's let everyone know he's out, in control. And although that's led to confrontations, it's also led to the promise of a few good fights-and knowing him, they're going to be bloody as hell.

Although, he'd have to find the combatants first, and that might prove...difficult. But what's wrong with wandering? He'd spent too long being cooped up-why not spread his legs a little?

And that's how he's currently prowling the streets of Asgard, not deigning to go on the rooftops at all for once, since that was something Ichigo did. And even though he still had the same coloring and bright hair Ichigo did, those blackened eyes would give him away.

Maybe you run into him by accident. Maybe you attract his attention, as risky and dangerous as that is.

Or maybe you're one of those people he's said he'll fight. No matter what, he'll see it all with that deranged, arrogant grin.]

((OOC: AGAIN, This is Ichigo's hollow, so he is going to be brutal, violent, aggressive, and pretty much kinda crazy. There's a GOOD chance he may threaten/injure your character, so please tag at your own risk! OH RIGHT and I already have it planned who's going to take him down so keep that in mind!))

Comments

[sicarius]

[When he hits the ground, the blade follows right after him, and as it goes through, Ezio makes sure it counts. Placing a knee on his chest again, he holds onto his sword and glares down at the hollow, watching him.

When the other goes to strike, it looks like he's going to move. He shifts, darts his eyes, goes to fight-

But he doesn't. An arm raises instead, quick as anything, to block that incoming strike with a metal greaver, hand instinctively wrapping around the hilt and yanking towards him, attempting to disarm him. Even if he can't, it now provides difficulty for the hollow to exactly pull away.

He's not done, however. The assassin leans in, careful not to be so close as to give the enemy the chance to bite him again, but to drive another point home.]

Give up, cavallo. It is over. Ichigo has won and you are on very little time.

[As if to shove fact right to his head, Ezio tightens his grip around the sword in Hichi's shoulder, and twists. His voice is stern, low. Not as a threat but as proof that he is the victor here.]

I warned you. You did not listen. Now let. The boy. Go.

[suppressthedark]

[He loses his grip, and the daito slips from his hand. Utterly disarmed-and he tries to grab it again, to no avail. This wasn't in his plan, and he almost panics, knowing Ezio won't attack him from this position.

Then the words and the twist of the sword hits him, and all he can feel is rage, pure and hot. No. No no no no no no no no no no NO NO NO NONONONO!!!

Something snaps, and it's visible in his eyes, in how his body is set. And instead of letting Ichigo have his body back, instead of listening for once, he moves. Away from the blade in his shoulder, ignoring the sound of flesh tearing and bone grinding against metal, until-

Until he's free, and blood splatters against the ground in a vivid red as he pulls himself up, and then goes for Ezio, the hand that hasn't been rendered useless trying to go for his throat in a blur and a wordless roar coming from him.

Echoes of a previous encounter, of when he was little more than a roving instinct being controlled by a dark void.]

[sicarius]

[This would be over quickly if the hollow were on his own, not a part of Ichigo. Ezio would simply strike his neck with the hidden blade and be done with it. But something like this isn't meant to be handled as usual. He has to be careful.

When he races for his throat, the assassin moves, skirting back and away from the animal that the hollow has become, abandoning both swords in the process. Instead, he chases after the other as he passes by, aiming to pin him from behind again. The sooner he gets him to the ground and without a chance to fight back, the better.]

[suppressthedark]

[An animal is a good name for it, as he even ignores his sword that Ezio left behind, instead just purely focused on attacking him. But this time, he manages to evade the attempted pin, although barely, the effort sending him backwards.

And he lands near the two swords that have been discarded, and a flash of inspiration comes to him, some of that rage dimming enough so he can think. Picking up Ezio's sword first, he swings it by the hilt and throws it. And in the same breath, he's grabbing his own and using his speed to get in close from a different angle. And this time, he's not holding anything back-using his power at full throttle, practically a blur as he swings his sword down.

This is going to hurt.]

[sicarius]

[If Hichi were to charge at him at the speed before, he may have just scraped by. Might have gotten away with a swipe across his side and much less damage than intended. But at 100 miles per hour, it's a hair's breadth, and suddenly the hollow is right there, in his face.

He can't dodge something that fast. No one can. Without that kind of speed for himself, he's the epitome of a sitting duck. Not even the best assassins can protect themselves from something that happens in a blink of an eye.

Ezio manages to avoid his sword, the blade skirting by his robes as he moves, but as he turns Hichi is right on top of him, and he's wide open.

The sound that comes from the connection of blade to assassin is a large resounding crack, silence loud enough to wake the dead, all eyes of the city on the two fighting. The Italian falls forward as if in a haze, unconscious, his chest plate completely broken in two, clattering to the earth as his head slams into the ground unceremoniously.

For a long moment, it looks, and feels, like the hollow has killed him. Had he not been wearing a chest plate, he would have.

Then the sharp pain that blooms in his head finally brings him back, fingers slowly curling in the dirt, senses trying to figure out how the hell he's survived, and why. It's a mess, he's a mess, and in the seconds that tick by, his body begins to recollect what it's like to wake up from a long slumber.

And it's during that moment of realizing he's alive, that all of his nerves wake up at once.

It's like hearing an animal scream in pain, the sound that comes from the assassin almost inhuman, head bent against the ground, trying to breathe for air. Every fiber of his being reels in agony, like his body is on fire, burning and burning and burning endlessly. His ears pick up the sound of something going plit plit plit, hand instinctively going for his chest, feeling the blood seep right out and onto the ground, forming a long pool that drags from his chest to his abdomen and down even further to his hip, feeling as if he is literally going to tear in two.

But he won't give up. No. Even as he lays there, clearly on the edge of being defeated, he won't.

He knows, knows, more than anything, Ichigo is fighting in there, he's trying to win, and he will. Ezio has been close to death many times, has to, as an assassin and one who deals in killing others. So naturally, when it gets difficult, he uses what he can to even the odds.

He finds his voice, finally, clenching his teeth to ignore the pain, and one of his palms collects the dirt beneath him for a very old trick that still works even now, here. The other readies itself, tense and waiting for what will happen next.]

Cavallo, sto per ucciderti. ["Horse, I am going to kill you."]

[He springs his body upwards, enclosed palm swinging in a fury, releasing the dirt straight at the hollow's face, aiming for his eyes. The other hand reaches into his pouch, pulling a smoke bomb, and hurls it towards the ground, encasing the both of them in the gray cloud and fumes. Once that's done, he places a hand on the latest wound, healing it, but not entirely. That would waste time, time he can't afford to let slip by, and it's evident by the way he grabs his fallen sword and then aims to punch the hollow, that he can't- no, won't- let this go easily.]

[suppressthedark]

[That was what he'd wanted all along, to see Ezio on the ground and bleeding before him. To realize who the one who could utterly destroy him, and not the other way around. The noise Ezio makes as he wakes up adds to it, and he's practically gloating as Ezio gathers himself.

The dirt flying into his eyes makes him snarl and step back, clawing at them to try and get the particles out. When he's finally managed to see somewhat clearly, tears streaming down, all he can see around him is smoke. And like a cornered animal, he visibly bristles, turning around rapidly to try and pinpoint wherever the hell Ezio would be coming from next-

When the punch connects, he jerks back and hisses through his teeth, lunging forward to attack with his sword again with that same frightening speed. There's only one difference, now-he's blind in the smoke, slashing at shadows.]

[sicarius]

[And shadows they are, like whispers in the dark. Ezio leads him in one direction, a sword strike against his good shoulder on one end, before moving quickly and silently to another, the hilt ramming into the back of his head. Each time, he makes sure he has enough space to move out of the dangerous speed the hollow throws at him, because he does not want to be caught in that again.

It's after another avoidance of the hollow barely hitting him, that he goes on the offensive, tailing right after him and his sword aimed clearly for his throat. But it's not all that it seems. If caught, he's just going to press it right under the hollow's throat, not slice it, and make sure this battle is over.

That way, Ichigo can finish what is left on his end. He has to win. He will. Ezio is sure of it.]

[suppressthedark]

[He was winning, and the hollow knew it. Every minute, every second the balance began to change, and Ichigo began to retake control of his body. Ever since he'd woken, and the hollow's failed attempt to run. And yet, he continued to try to attack, merely snarling as the strike cuts into his shoulder and the sword hilt slamming into his head almost makes him stumble. The pain is beginning to recede as Ichigo fights his way to the forefront and the sensations are transferred to him, and the body is refusing to listen to him completely. It's not even stopping and starting like it should, trembling from bloodloss and exhaustion, barely able to continue holding his sword. Losing, he's losing and-

And then he sees the sword, sees Ezio beside him, the edge of the blade aimed for his throat. He turns his head toward the man-and grins. He didn't know that now, not even the hollow could force the body to stop in time with his will, that no matter what, his neck will be cut against that blade.

But this will be even better than what he planned originally. He wasn't concerned about dying-in this place, death was something that was more trivial than anything else.

So he turns his head back lets his grip go, lets Ichigo win, the black quickly vanishing and leaving white and brown in it's wake. Back in control, Ichigo only has a millisecond of realizing that he's won, that the hollow is back where he should be before-

-Before the sword comes to a stop and his body keeps going, neck pressing against the blade and yielding to it, the sharp edge slitting his throat as easily as a knife sliding through butter. His body stops sharply with a convulsive shudder, and for one horrifying second it almost looks as if the sword is all that's keeping him upright. Ichigo's eyes move toward Ezio, unable to turn his head now that the connective muscles have been severed, a confused question showing plainly from them.

What...?

His body can no longer attempt to hold him up, and he falls backwards, blood spurting out in an arterial spray in front of him. Falling helplessly, and hearing laughter in his head as the hollow settles back down to dormancy, one malicious question ringing in his ears.

Happy ta have your body back, King?]

[sicarius]

[It all comes crashing down in an instant. Black and yellow eyes now white and brown, It takes him all of a millisecond to recognize that sound, and realize what's happened because of it. A slit throat is what he specializes in, has to, as an assassin. How could he not recognize it? The second Ichigo falls backwards, every nerve screams for him to do something.

No. No no no no no no this isn't happening--!

He grabs the boy as he falls, hand searching for the wound as he heals with everything he has, lowering him towards the ground. Blood won't stop coming, the assassin trying his utmost to make sure he survives. Ichigo has maybe four seconds before his body gives out, and Ezio doesn't know if he's going to make it. He doesn't know if this is how the battle ends. He doesn't. Know. And the grief and anger from that is slowly eating away at him inside.

This is more than healing a stab wound, or even a strike across a limb. This is fatal. His powers are strong, one of the strongest in Asgard, but for once he has doubts. Doubts about whether after healing himself twice, it will be enough. He can only watch, and wait.

Healing Ichigo does work, but like all powers, it comes with a cost, and the more he uses it, the more Ezio has to support himself. it gets to where he is almost completely to the ground, barely held up on his knees, eyes focused on seeing the wound seal again. He won't stop until it does. Every second passed is more energy from him, and he swears he can hear death approaching, ice cold claws to form around his neck, darkness threatening to take him-

And the wound closes. Ezio lets go, and promptly falls forward, right into the ground.

He doesn't move.]

[suppressthedark]

[There's not much Ichigo really thinks about as Ezio heals him, blood pooling under him as his gaping throat is slowly healed closed. He almost doesn't realize what's happening, his mind having stilled at being so close to death. But as the wound closes-not fully healed, just closed to the point where he won't bleed to death and can speak again-he knows that he isn't going to die.

So when Ezio hits the ground, he suddenly is afraid, because more than anyone, he knows the cost of overusing your powers. God, no. No, please, no-]

...Ezio?

[Quiet, barely more than a whisper as his vocal cords try to work properly. He coughs, tasting the oh-so-familiar taste of iron in his mouth, and tries again.]

Ezio. Ezio!

[Every time he says it and gets no answer, his fear only gets worse. He attempts to move his head, and winces from the pain that results. Of course it would be painful, but for now his fear that Ezio is dead overrides it.]

EZIO!

[Oh god. He's killed him, hasn't he? Killed from saving him from that wound, from keeping his hollow occupied long enough for him to break free. And it's his fault. It doesn't fucking matter that death isn't permanent here-he was still directly responsible for it, still his goddamned fault, and he will never forgive himself.

He hauls himself upright, in one last desperate attempt to see if Ezio is really dead or not.

And everything comes in a rush, all the pain and the wounds he's suffered. The exhausted state of his body, the stab wound alice gave him earlier on, the cuts he's suffered, the bruising, his half open shoulder, and the long cut from his shoulder to his hips, which was halfway closed from clotted blood. That wound pops open, blood-god there's so much of it-pouring down his torso.

It's too much, this pain. He'd faced so much pain before, but something like this, in his physical body...it's too damned much, and he screams, loud enough to wake the dead as he falls back down. Lying there, brain madly scrabbling to shut down before anything else traumatic happens, he tries to look at Ezio, and in the process, his eyes skirt toward Caterina lying against the building.

He'd hurt her, too. Guilt floods him, adding to the pain and the fatigue until he's more than happy to fall unconscious just to get away from it all. But before that, he tries to say something.]

...I'm sorry.

[An apology offered to them both, to whoever else his hollow had attacked and hurt, possibly even killed. Because if there was anything he knew, it was that his hollow would have gone out of his way to hurt people.

His eyes shut, and he lets himself slide into blissful oblivion, where he doesn't have to think or feel.]