fate_has_spoken | (no subject)

Not at the moment. Other than be a distraction for a dragon ---- the one that flew off.

Even for you, one dragon at a time is enough, hmm?

Leave it to me. I may not be able to take it down, but I can get its attention.

There is a low chance that this endeavor of ours will end in success. If I may be blunt, why would you risk it?

Oh, take your pick. The thrill of it. Revenge for a rude awakening. Perhaps I like you well enough not to leave you to risk death alone, even.

Does it matter, as long as I'm willing?

Oh, but it does -----

[Though anything else he was going to say is lost as a loud crack surrounds them. The first dragon with three heads is bearing down on them from above claws extended.]

[He raises an eyebrow as Emet-Selch starts to argue, but when the dragon finds them...]

[Tyki is confident in his ability to gauge the last moment he has to dodge -- perhaps rightfully confident, perhaps disastrously so -- and uses that moment to guess what Emet-Selch will do.]

[If Emet-selch looks like he's going to try to teleport, Tyki will try to run out of the way of those incoming claws on his own. If Emet-Selch seems like he's been taken off-guard, or if it's unclear what he'll do, Tyki will try to hook an arm around Emet-Selch to half-drag, half-shove him clear of the dragon's attack.]

[Does raising a hand to put up a shield fall in the former or latter? Well regardless, he gets the shield up whether it be just himself if Tyki has taken cover, or both of them if shoving was involved.

That saves them from the claws. However, the creature does have three heads - two which bite down at Emet-Selch and one at Tyki.]

[Tyki dodges out of the way on his own, then, because it's clear that Emet-Selch is Doing Something to presumably protect himself even before it's clear to Tyki that that something is a shield.]

[When the heads come down, he's going to hope that Emet-Selch's shield can withstand some not-so-friendly nipping, because he's not sure how he'd stop any of these heads from attacking. He tries to dodge out of the way again -- but only just. If he isn't bitten into Dragon Snacks, he wants to use the opportunity of the dragon's heads being close by and swing his hatchet at one of its eyes.]

[The hatchet will make contact with the dragon. It isn't too difficult of a task with a creature that size, however, he'll feel it scrape and slide across scales not even really making a scratch ---- the hide being to thick to pierce with Wolf Killer.]

You are not --- !

[That's the dragon currently directing all three heads towards Emet-Selch as he dodges the other two by teleporting in a haze of purple straight up in the air. He holds out his hands and both sigils are flaring --- his Ascian mark as well as the one on his neck.]

Tch!

[He can't say he's surprised that the hatchet is ineffective, but he's wracking his brain for some way he can help.]

[The space in his head where two braincells rub together knows that realistically, there's nothing useful he can do at the moment except keep an eye out in case that second dragon returns; if he tries to distract the big one, he's likely to get in Emet-Selch's way.]

[Emet-Selch draining the dragon's magic is their best bet, but wouldn't it be easier if the dragon wasn't in top shape? Emet-Selch is certainly holding his own in a way Tyki is pleasantly surprised to see, but using this much magic, this long, with both those sigils alight... Tyki is concerned that if the fight drags on, the Ascian might become like an overheated engine, or a blown circuit.]

[Part of Tyki knows he can't really help. The rest of him is still itching to play his hand, however bad, before he folds.]

[He doesn't want to waste the few bullets he has left -- he strongly suspects he won't be able to get new ones in this world -- but he pulls out his gun and aims carefully. He's staying alert for signs of the second dragon, but the focus of his gaze is on the one aiming for Emet-Selch. The eyes, again. A hatchet might not be any good, but a bullet... He's certain it won't be any use against scales, and he has no proof it will be any better against the dragon's eyes, but he's willing to spend one bullet to find out. Only if the right opportunity presents itself, though.]

[He'll be patient. If there's a clear shot at one of the dragon's eyes and Emet-Selch is out of the line of fire, Tyki will try to shoot.]

[Finding that clear shot will not be as easy as he imagined. Three dragon heads constantly strike in succession against Emet-Selch's clear shield --- weaving, the next head replacing the as soon as the former pulls back. Emet-Selch isn't staying idle either, after every few hits he teleports to a different location forcing the dragon to redirect it's attack. Bolts of darkness and spears of shadow pepper the beast gorging and scraping scales, but the damage in mostly superficial.

The dragon is still screeching at him switching to a language he can't understand. Probably one that Emet-Selch can't understand either.

But with each passing hit, thing spidery lines form on the barrier. Similarly, the scales on the great beast begin to crack and bleed. It will simply be a matter of which one breaks first.

Tyki will never find a clear shot --- not at the eye. The neck for sure, the torso and legs, but the heads are a moving to fast. That isn't to say there isn't a shot, but it is how much he is willing to risk. (Aka, tell me how much margin error Tyki is willing to tolerate and I will roll a dice to see if he hits Emet-Selch).]

[He doesn't expect it to be easy, and when he aims his gun, it's with the expectation that he might not shoot at all. He knows that firing in this circumstance has a strong chance to more harm than good, and the only good he's hoping for -- at best -- is to split the dragon's attention momentarily, so as to maybe give Emet-Selch that moment to recover.]

[When it's clear that aiming for the eyes won't work, he trains his gun on the dragon's opening wounds, looking for the gaps in the broken scales. Easier to bury a bullet if it doesn't have to pierce armor first. If there's a wound on the torso near a joint, like on a shoulder, he'd like that best. His bullet is far too small to disable such a creature, but he's banking on the idea that a needle in a spot that made for movement would be more irritating to the dragon than in more stationary parts of its body, and more likely to accomplish his goal of distraction. If no targets on joint have opened up, he'll aim for a wound on the torso. The higher it is above Emet-Selch, the better. He'd rather miss the dragon entirely than hit Emet-Selch.]

[He aims. He holds. He calls it patience, but he hesitates.]

[Tyki's wrists ache alongside a twinge in his gut. How much easier this would be with his Innocence! It's not the ease of handling a dragon -- he's not foolish enough to think that would ever be easy -- but how much easier it would be to make himself rush in with a cloud of butterflies and risk his own life with eagerness, spurred on by that old ferocious joy, regardless of the actual odds, compared to this. How much easier would it be, throwing his whole body into the fight and risking himself instead of twitching his trigger finger and risking only someone else for likely nothing.]

[He's grown soft in his time since abandoning his Innocence, but this isn't the time to grapple with that. He kicks the matter to the back of his mind to fester.]

[He nearly puts the gun away, but the cracks in Emet-Selch's shield...]

[Tyki thinks he sees a pattern to Emet-Selch's movements, and the maybe a little to the dragon's, aside from the heads. He thinks he might have a feel for their differing speeds. Maybe he's kidding himself; he knows that's a possibility. But the dragon follows Emet-Selch, and Emet-Selch seems to stay in place for a two or three hits before escaping the onslaught. By Tyki's judgment, the best time to shoot will be the split second when the dragon is finishing the first strike and going for the second -- before Emet-Selch moves, before the dragon moves to chase him. An instant he chooses to bet more than actually believes will give him the best chance of hitting his target without hitting the man he's trying to help.]

[He hesitates, but when enough of those spiderweb cracks run through Emet-Selch's shield to make its failure seem imminent, Tyki holds his breath, waits for that moment before the second strike, and fires.]

[The bullet carves through the air. It strikes.

And strikes true.

The beast howls! The earth trembles as its stamps its feet stepping back as if that would dislodge the bullet. And then he turns all three of it's massive heads at Tyki and breathes a cone of white, clear shards at him.

The sounds of misplace air and swirls of purple cloud his vision for a moment as Emet-Selch teleports in front of him and braces both hands in front of him from the assault of the breathe weapon.]

[A spark of thrilled disbelief runs up his spine before leaving him cold.]

[He has time to think, oh, right, as the shards come soaring towards him, and he twists to begin his escape, knowing he might already be too late -- but he freezes at the unmistakeable color and feeling of Emet-Selch's magic, and stares at Emet-Selch's back as the man stands between Tyki and the incoming onslaught.]

[It must only be an instant, but it feels like a long time, or a moment out of time, when Tyki can't make heads or tails of what's happening.]

[This isn't what he was trying to do. This is the opposite of what he was trying to do. He knew shooting could endanger Emet-Selch, but not like this. This never occurred to him. Why would Emet-Selch go out of the way to shield him?]

[It doesn't make any sense, he thinks numbly as the shards rain down.]

[Try as he might, he can't keep the full blast out. Tiny slivers make it through and when they touch skin or cloth they burn and freeze at the same time though they leave no mark.

But the damage is mostly mitigated.

The heads dive in next before a proper counter attack can be mustered. The shield will take three hits solidly, and Tyki will see Emet-Selch wince with each strike. But he can't teleport. Or he doesn't teleport.]

Go!

[Whether he leaves or not, Tyki will be able to see the damage he has done. There is a wound rotting and festering turning gray around the edges. Strange. It was just a simple bullet, right? Why would that happen?]

[He snaps out of his paralysis when Emet-Selch orders him to go, but with his confusion at Emet-Selch saving him and what that bullet did to that dragon, it still takes him a second to throw his brain into gear and choose an action.]

[Tyki doesn't have the grip strength to make Emet-Selch move if the Ascian doesn't want to, but Tyki still makes a grab for Emet-Selch and tries to pull him into running -- not to run away, exactly, but to try to stay a step ahead of the dragon's attacks without breaking Emet-Selch's shield. Tyki doesn't know if Emet-Selch has held off on teleporting away because of Tyki or because it's not possible. Tyki doesn't want to leave Emet-Selch if he can't teleport out of the way, and assumes that being yanked on won't stop him if he can teleport.]

[It's the surprise that gets him tugged in Tyki's direction.]

Wha---?

[He stumbles back a few steps and it probably is all for the better because on the third consecutive strike from the dragon's head the shield shatters and Tyki will be able to feel Emet-Selch shudder from the recoil. The third head barely misses both of them, but now Tyki has to deal with an irate dragon readying another full volleys of attacks.]

[Running seems like the best option, but he doubts Emet-Selch can keep up on foot...]

[He goes with the first thought that comes to mind -- but sorry, magic bro, it's going to be undignified and there's no time to hash it out. Tyki assumes that if Emet-Selch doesn't like it, he can teleport -- and if he can't teleport, he probably doesn't have a lot of other options for not becoming dragon kibble at the moment. He does bark a brief explanation:]

You shoot; I'll dodge.

[Guess who Tyki's trying to throw over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes?]

Wai---!?

[All but screeched at Tyki as he's tossed over his shoulder. He's still disoriented as the dragon charges in, and he works on reflex.

He teleports both of them into the middle of the woods somewhere landing in a heap of arms and legs.]

[He flails -- Emet-Selch might accidentally catch an elbow -- and scrambles to his hands and knees, before realizing that they're no longer among the burning buildings or in front of a dragon.]

... Well! That works, too.

[He has a big nose, so he probably gets clocked. He holds it for a few moments as it smarts before just lying on his back eyes toward the canopy.]

...

...

This is going to take some planning.

It does seem to be a trickier problem to solve than the wolves.

... Why did you shield me?

What?

...

[Does he want to press the matter...? Yeah, his confusion is eating at him just enough. He sighs as he sits cross-legged, rests an elbow on his leg, and his chin on his hand.]

The way things were going, as far as I saw -- you'd teleport, the dragon would chase after you, you'd shield yourself from the dragon's attack, and then you'd teleport again. Seemed to be a pattern.

But when the dragon tried to attack me, you stepped in and took the hit, even though the reason I shot the damned thing was because your shield looked to be in rough shape. And then you didn't teleport away, even as it was attacking again. I thought you might not be able to teleport again.

Were you trying to get hit by the dragon, and I simply got in the way?

Protecting each other to survive this forest. Isn't that what we are supposed to be doing for each other? Do tell me if I am mistaken.

Do you imagine you would have survived three breathe attacks from a dragon? I do not. Hence I stepped in. Leaving you there would have resulted in the same as not assisting at all, and I do hate to waste effort.

I was trying to protect an ally. Is that so hard to believe?