bridgescribble | don't be afraid,

[Skirting around the traps Snowy identified, Shota checked the room for himself. He was aware of the ticking clock hanging over them as he searched for another exit, the traps a wordless reminder of what was expected of them. Of him, really. No one in their right mind would expect a young girl to have a chance against a grown man and professional hero. Even with Snowy's ice powers on her side, it was hardly a question.

With no signs of another way out, he looked at the trap that had already been triggered. It was a plan with little probability of success, but with their time running out, he had to try something other than what their captors wanted.]

I'm going to try something, stay clear of the traps and shout if anything strange happens.

[Moving carefully around the piano wire hanging from the ceiling, Shota jumped up, catching the edge of the opening and pulling himself up to peer inside. There wasn't much to see in there besides the mechanism for the trap and not much space. Still, he managed to pull himself up to plant his boots against the mechanism, back braced against the wall. A few solid kicks and it shattered, followed by the sound of something happening in the room below - another trap or-]

Lillie?

I-I'm fine! the wire just... fell. There's also, something else that opened up. Under the chair, over there.

[Snowy hadn't sniffed this one out because the chair was directly over it, which would've made a tight squeeze for her with her six tails, but Shota's kicking out the mechanism for the wire also dropped the floor out from under the chair. Were they assuming one of them would be standing on the chair to get a better vantage point for the wire trap's mechanism?]

Do you think there's something to see down there, or is it going to be a pit full of spikes or something?

[Sorry, it might sound like another joke in bad taste, but Lillie... wasn't joking, she seriously expects this sort of thing, sometimes. When she went to save her mother, she seriously tried to scatter sand across a ravine, believing a hidden bridge might appear, Indiana Jones-style. ~~Oh, she also accidentally triggered a spike trap that time, too.~~]

Edited 2023-04-04 15:54 (UTC)

[He dropped from the hollow ceiling, landing lightly to the side of the trigger. Eyes first seeking out Lillie to confirm she was unharmed before looking to see what he'd set off.

As much as talking about pits of spikes (to say nothing of invisible bridges) sounded like she watched too many movies... they were in a room filled with traps after being kidnapped and told one of them had to die. Their captors had watched too many movies. As well as being bloodthirsty cowards.]

Another trap is most likely. But if it is spikes, I might be able to find a way around them.

[And maybe it would lead somewhere. Cautiously advancing on the pit, Shota peered inside, eyes narrowing at what he saw. Instead of spikes, the pit was shallowly filled with water - with a current running through it if the sparking against the fallen chair and smell of ozone was anything to go by.]

...It's no good.

[His eyes darted over the other traps before he looked back to Lillie, jaw clenched tight. Giving up wasn't like him, but he could feel the metaphorical noose tightening. Stepping over to her, Shota dropped into a crouch before her.]

I need to ask you a favour.

No good? [Lillie frowned, looking for herself and seeing the sparks.] ... I think I...

[If it were a little electricity, like the amount Pikachu gave off when startled, it wouldn't hurt too badly, more like a static shock, really, but this... didn't look survivable, now, did it?]

... I don't. Like that tone.

[Lillie said quietly, refusing to meet Shota's gaze, but she was listening. Shoulders squaring a bit as she tried to repress any emotion, Snowy making sounding concerned and nuzzling her leg.]

[A shock, even a painful one, he'd take without hesitating, but their captors didn't want to just cause them pain. Although they were doing that as well.]

I know. [Sighing quietly, Shota watched her steel herself, hating what he was about to ask. It was a burden she shouldn't have to bear, but he had little other choice.]

I'm not giving up. But if there's no way out of here but to give them what they want, I'd be grateful if you could find a way to tell someone who can contact my colleagues and let them know what happened.

[He couldn't leave the people who'd been counting on him to wonder what had happened to him. They deserved closure at the very least, even if someone like Lillie shouldn't have to be the one to provide it.]

[He's not giving up. That's all she needed to hear, nodding.]

I understand.

Who... should I talk to?

[She wanted to ask again, how much time they had, but what was the point in that? She turned back to face him, reaching out tentatively to clutch at cloth, shying away from reaching for his sleeve, and going for the scarf instead, without expectations on how it might feel.]

[Nodding in return, Shota watched her clutch at his capture weapon. The material had an odd texture to it, tough and almost wiry. Not a normal fabric, that much was clear.]

A hero called Present Mic. If you can find a way to contact him.

[Deliberately not thinking how the news would affect Yamade, Shota nudged Lillie gently to pull her attention away from darker thoughts.]

We're not beaten yet. I'm being prepared for the worst, but that doesn't mean I think it's going to happen. We can both still get out of here.

[But they had to keep searching for a way out.]

Edited 2023-04-05 12:51 (UTC)

I’ll try.

… Eraserhead? This is metal, isn’t it?

[She tugged on it very gently, then tried to stand on tip-toe, to whisper, cupping hands around her mouth.]

The electricity has to come from somewhere, right? They need a way to operate it. We might find them if we follow it to its source. If they’re even here… or just break the current if they’re not.

Electrical wires have an electromagnetic field as long as electricity passes through them. The stronger the current, the stronger the electromagnetic field.

It’s temporary, but if you pass electricity through metal, like soft iron, you can make a temporary magnet.

Maybe we, with Snowy’s help, can trace it to the source?

[Leaning in with the tug, Shota remained impassive as Lillie shared her idea, but his heart rate picked up, beating faster with the sudden appearance of hope. He made a wordless sound of acknowledgement in return. Their captors would see what they were up to once they started, but they could maintain the element of surprise until then.

Glancing at the pit, he murmured quietly to Lillie.] Stand clear while I drop it in.

[It was fortunate that his boots had rubber soles - partly for similar scenarios to this. Having a student whose Quirk was electricity made it a necessity, and it was proving even more useful.

Pushing to his feet, he stepped closer to the pit, loosing the capture weapon from around his neck. With a flick, he sent it coiling down into the electrified water, letting the current pass through the material, magnetising it.]

[Lillie's eyes also brightened with a mixture of hope and trepidation. She balled her hands into fists, fearful for Shota's safety when he sent it in, wondering how he was ever going to insulate it to prevent shocking himself... until it became apparent he already had his own means. Both the intense electrical current around it and passing through it made for very, very strong electromagnetic fields, so even though it would ordinarily be weaker than a true magnet, it was strongly attracted.

It was now very, very easy to follow to the source. Snowy padded along on the floor, away from the hole, sensing the field herself, as well, although much more weakly... until she drew closer to a wall, froze, with ears prickeing at another sound and staring in shock. She said something which made Lillie blanch, but not elaborate.]

[Keeping the now magnetised capture weapon in hand, Shota watched Snowy track the field across the floor. Until the small creature froze by the wall. He tensed as he saw the shift in Lillie's expression and stepped closer to the wall, looking it over before he turned back to the girl.]

What does she hear?

[He kept his voice low, not wanting to further alert their captors but any idea of what he'd be facing on the other side would help in dealing with them.]

Many… people’s voices. Close. Laughing.
[Lillie said, rather breathlessly.]

…be careful.

[She had been expecting to find no one at all, maybe just controls, or perhaps one person, but multiple…]

[Taking a breath to steady herself, Lillie asked very seriously.]
Do you need us to frost it over for you or do it ourselves? She can give us all protection, too, so whatever happens won’t do any—or as much—damage. It won’t hold up forever, but…

[She’s being very vague with her words on purpose, fearing any might be heard and destroy their chance.]

[Shota's eyes narrowed at the answer, anger spiking in his chest. Finally coming face to face with their captors was going to be satisfying. If they were laughing over what they were doing, they'd likely be less prepared to defend themselves, too, which would be a needed edge if there were a lot of them.

Moving away from the wall again in preparation, he nodded at Lillie.]

That's a good idea. Even a little bit of protection will help once it happens. Keep her beside you for protection after.

[He'd do everything he could to keep them away from her but with no idea of what they'd be walking into she should have every bit of protection she could.]

[Lillie nodded. She looked to Snowy and another thought crossed her mind. Snowy stared back, then her eyes widened and her tails flicked, seeming to arrive at the same realization.
If she broke the wall down with Subzero Slammer, there’d still be the whole poem and dance… they could feint it. Face Shota to make it seem like they’re attacking him instead! Then aim at the actual target. Aurora Veil will also keep him from being hit!]

Hail, then, Aurora Veil, Snowy.

[Facing Shota, now.
Snowy frosted over the area around her (not aiming anything at Shota directly), then threw her head back and seemed to howl, as a beautiful, iridescent light glowed around them all through the cooled air. This should keep them safe from harm, diverting at least a few hits. A little extra protection. The light faded.

Then, Lillie prepared to perform the Z-Move again. Hopefully, Shota doesn’t really think she means to attack him… the Aurora Veil will redirect to from him even in the highly unlikely chance Snowy did not understand Lillie and it seemed Snowy understood the plan well!]

[Shota blinked as Lillie turned to face him, repressing a smirk a moment later as he realised her plan, the frost spreading near him without touching him. He was proud of her forethought, keeping their captors off-guard until the last moment.

Taking a half-step back, he raised an arm as if to shield himself, capture weapon still gripped tightly in readiness. He let his eyes widen, mouth opening like he planned on calling out to her but cut off as she began her... song and dance routine. It was as effective as the first time, the wall behind them bursting inwards with a shriek of metal thanks to the pair of them.

Shota was moving as soon as the ice shards hit the ground, launching himself through the narrow space and into the control room beyond. He had a bare moment to take in the space filled with large screens, a crowd of well-dressed people holding drinks and slowly turning towards the shattered hole in the wall. Then he was on the first one, full weight slamming into their chest so he could launch off and snare two more in his capture weapon, slamming them into a knot of people.

The crowd was unprepared for their captives to reach them and put up a fight, shock and panic running through the group like a current. Shota kept himself between the crowd and the gap he'd come through, but it was possible one would manage to dive through in their attempt to escape.]

Snowy leapt into Lillie's arms, as instructed, to keep her safe.

Indeed, until the final moment, their captors firmly believed Shota and Lillie had finally turned on each other as they had all desired them to do so. The cameras recording each of the rooms were very high quality, offering a range of angles, the production was almost cinematic. This was a high-budget operation. Someone clearly intended to edit these together, to profit off the deaths they had exhausted all efforts into ensuring would take place.

The well-dressed men cried out, many backing away, others giving up immediately, falling to their knees, begging, and pleading. One even shamelessly called Lillie a "nice girl" and asked her to spare him because he "has a family at home, too, you know, a wife and two kids."

Lillie was too shocked to say a thing. Could they not think of her or her family...?

Many of the suits were unprepared and unable to defend themselves, trying to bargain with Shota.

"We only paid him for the show!"
"We had nothing to do with it, we didn't capture you! It wasn't personal!"
"It was all his idea!"
"We only paid for the set!"

The man in question, the most cowardly one, had been the one to drive through the crowd, as fast as he could, without a word in his own defense, very nearly escaped, but Lillie had Snowy freeze him, quite literally, covering his body in ice so he froze, half-running, half-stumbling, on the way to the door in a ridiculous, not to mention uncomfortable, position.

He was either tight-lipped from experience or simply too cowardly to speak.

Edited 2023-04-07 11:46 (UTC)

There was going to be a lot to sort through after this. There was clearly money involved in the operation, and that meant people with power. It would take time to track down everyone who'd known about what was going on and bring them to justice - or try. To say nothing of previous victims who might have families wondering what had happened to them, families that deserved closure if they could be located. A lot of hard work to come.

But in that moment, it was easy. Shota had a target for the simmering anger that had been building, and he was more than happy to unleash it on the people who'd been happy to see a child murdered in front of them. He hoped Lillie wasn't watching as his fist cracked one man across the face mid-plea. Looming over several of them, he glared coldly. "You were all happy to watch. You're no better."

He left the rest of them bound together in a knot of bodies with his capture weapon, stalking over to the partially frozen ringleader. Sparing a glance for Lillie, making sure she wasn't close enough to hear and his body blocked her view, Shota grabbed the front of the man's suit and dragged him close so he was twisted in an even more uncomfortable position. Nose inches from the other man's, he activated his Quirk, his eyes turning a blazing red as he snarled quietly in the man's face. "First, you're going to tell me where there's a phone to call the police."

Wide eyes stared back at him, but there was no reply. Shota's hand curled around the man's frozen, twisted arm, pushing it further into the awkward position, still glaring as he kept up the pressure until the man cried out in pain and tried to escape the hold.

Lillie winced at the loud CRACK behind her, but didn't see the violence.

Lillie felt at ease upon seeing the men bound together, even if she still felt incredibly disturbed by their pleas. She listened, but couldn't understand how a heart could become so twisted. How could they beg and plead and look at her, searching for pity, when they had refused to see their humanity? How could they feel no shame? She still felt somewhat afraid of them and inched away, not wanting them to come loose. Realizing Lillie wasn't sure on her feet anymore, Snowy slipped out of her grasp, to put herself between Lillie and the bound men, growling and flaring her tails...

Overwhelmed by both the relief at her captors finally all caught, with freedom in sight, full confidence in both Snowy and Shota, and overcome by exhaustion from the onslaught of fear and adrenaline from earlier, Lillie fainted; although Snowy stood on her hind legs to push at Lillie's unsteady limbs and slow her fall, then carefully cushioned her with her six tails, so it looked more like Lillie had just lay down.

She might not remember any of this, having a tendency to dissociate.

At Shota's questioning and dragging, the man's breathing hitched in his throat, then he gasped and hissed in pain, the parts he could move (namely his feet, twisting around while the rest was incased in ice) writhing in pain.

When he forced his twisted arm further into an unnatural position, threatening to break it, his eyes snapped wide open, tears brimming in the corners.

"S—stop!"

The pathetic troupe of "benefactors" complained and swore at him speaking up, as if they expected him to nobly take the fall for all of their transgressions. It was an odd sight!

"N-no pnones. There's no phones here. No landline."

Lillie's collapse pulled Shota's attention from the ringleader. Twisting around quickly, he saw her crumple slowly, protected from impact by Snowy. She was unharmed, but the obvious show of how stressful the situation had been for her emphasised the need to get her out of there. The culprits could be handled once she was safe; they wouldn't be going anywhere.

Turning his attention back on the man whose arm he hadn't let up on, Shota ignored the plea and the protests from those behind him, expression cold as he kept pushing on the trapped limb. Finally, the man gave in, though the answer was less than ideal. He released the man's arm and stepped back, dropping his Quirk so his eyes returned to their usual black. "You'll lead us out of here. You have a way of contacting people somewhere nearby."

Even if it was a waiting driver. A man like that didn't drive himself. The most important thing was getting Lillie to safety and getting people in to unravel the operation.

Shota returned to the bound group, checking they were all secure and not going to slip free and tied the ends of his capture cloth to an exposed beam so they couldn't try and reach something to cut the bindings with either. With that handled, he stepped over to Lillie and Snowy, scooping the girl up and looking down at the fox-like creature thoughtfully. She was surprisingly intelligent and seemed to understand what was said to her...

"Can you free him? But if he tries to run, freeze him again." The last said with a warning glare at their captive.

Lillie lay limp as a doll, but at least, her sleep seemed dreamlessly peaceful.

While normally, Snowy wouldn’t claim to be able to unfreeze people, given how little she cared for this man, she nodded and, backing up a bit, ran at great speed to leap into a tackle, throwing the man to the ground and smashing the ice around him.

Hw looked, of course, horrified by the speed and strength of the little fox, and may have broken an arm and leg.

Snowy sat with a self-satisfied smile. She really did not like these men.

The man was quiet again and, gathering himself up, slowly moved to the same door he had attempted escape from earlier.

He made some sort of signal, while looking to the tree-covered, abandoned old side-road.

This building, too, was concealed, lacking a sign, with trees growing bent and crooked around it, obscuring it further.

Perhaps he had a ride, as Shota had hoped…

No, a backup plan, a flurry of bullets from both sides to scare Shota off, the man backing into the building. Shota might spy two cars waiting, mostly hidden from view.
Sorry, Eraserhead, they’re planning on giving you more trouble before truly giving in. At least, he seemed unable to risk running away, with his injuries.

Well, that worked. Shota nodded at Snowy, having no complaints over the method used to free the man. The injuries made it much easier to handle him, and he wouldn't be running anywhere.

Unfortunately, the group had the forethought to plan for their victims escaping the trap.

Following the man's gaze when he made the signal, Shota instinctively ducked back into cover. He'd been a hero long enough to know a trap when he stumbled into it, and their escape had been going too smoothly. Barely avoiding the burst of gunfire, he hunched down inside the building they'd been held captive in, gritting his teeth at the sound of bullets spraying the wall. He set Lillie down carefully, well away from the door and inched closer to peer outside.

The bullets were coming from two directions, making it harder to take out the gunmen quickly. And without his capture weapon, he was at a disadvantage. He needed something so he wouldn't get shot the second he appeared outside.

Looking down at Snowy again, he asked, "Is there some way you can stop them from seeing me?" Else he'd need to retreat and find another option. Or their ringleader would escape.

Snowy called up a hailstorm leading out into the open, cooling the air around as well as providinf cover, and another brilliantly iridescent Aurora Veil, around Shota. It might give away his location, but it’s protective!!

Snowy then nudged him and gestured to the door.

It’s safe! She seemed to say with a smile. Even if the veil faded from view, he’d be safe for a while. She mimed pouncing on and attacking invisible opponents. Fight!

It might disappear soon, so as a distraction hiding him, it would only work briefly, although the frost and ice will remain, but the bullets will diverge away or otherwise fail to hit, at least for a time!

The captive blanched at the Aurora Veil, much more bothered by it than the cover provided by Hail, but said nothing.

Shota didn't know exactly what the shimmering light that rippled over him did, but he trusted Snowy enough to know it would be helpful in some way. He nodded down at the fox-like creature's encouragement, drawing his knife and launching himself through the door, relying on the hailstorm to provide him with cover. Snowy would keep Lillie safe and stop their captive from escaping, of that he was certain. He needed to clear their escape route.

He noted the way the bullets failed to hit as he closed in on one group of gunmen, sparing a moment to be grateful for the protection. Then he was on them, kicking the weapon from one's hands and grabbing his arm, dislocating it with a pop as he threw the man into his companion. Both slammed to the ground a moment later, with Shota's full weight bearing them down, the knife slashing open the second's arm, forcing him to drop the weapon.

Kicking both guns away, Shota rolled to his feet and darted into the trees, using them as further cover as he closed on the second pair of shooters.

They knew their colleagues had been taken out and responded with a flurry of fire that ripped through the branches around him. He couldn't tell if Snowy's protection was still working or not but didn't hesitate as he hauled himself onto a branch and dropped down behind the pair. Stabbing the knife into one's shoulder, the man dropped his firearm with a shout but wrenched the blade away as he stumbled forward.

Now unarmed, Shota turned to the last one as the barrel of the gun came swinging towards him. His ears rang with the report, the bullet clipping his arm as he tackled the man to the ground, knocking the weapon away and slamming his fist into the attacker's face. Glaring furiously, he reared back and struck the man again, barely restraining himself from continuing the assault as the sudden silence hit him.

Breathing heavily, Shota took a moment to collect himself, listening to the groans of the gunmen as he slowly pushed to his feet.

They hadn’t prepared anymore than that. The concealed cars were their means of escape and the men groaning at Shota’s feet were their only protection.

The cowardly ringleader seemed like he might try, yet again, to escape, but just as Snowy was about to freeze him again, he heard that terrible silence and knew his gunmen were defeated. He crumpled to the ground in despair, giving up hope of escape.

Snowy froze his legs together again, just in case, then his arms to the floor for good measure, and cried out to Shota, a happy, little triumphant sound. She used another Aurora Veil for herself and Lillie.

Lillie stirred a bit, but hadn’t recovered yet.

Snowy sniffed around, then, padded carefully out, pointedly avoiding a patch or two of earth on the way (were there some hidden traps outside too?), to approach Shota.

She sniffed at the crumpled, broken gunmen, searched their pockets, looking distressed by some of the things they carried (sleeping pills, for one thing, although Snowy wasn’t sure of the purpose, it reminded her of Faba in a bad way), but tried to keep searching… until she found an old-fashioned cell phone with no GPS.

She could vaguely tell it was some kind of gadget, maybe a communicator, and barked up at Shota.

no subject

[sorry for the long delay, I thought I sent this!]

no worries, I feel asleep early anyway!

[aw, I guess that works out, then!]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

geez I thought I'd posted this!

[no problem!! + aaand confrontation is at hand!!!]

*action music begins*

1/2; do we need an explosion?

2/2

I think so yes!

[give us a good show, just before the final confrontation!]

yessss!

[BAM!]

don't look now Lillie, 'kay?

for better or worse, Lillie's a fainter

maybe for the better right now tbh

[oh, definitely]

no subject

no subject

no subject

[he is SO COOL, it was like a movie~]

action music begins