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“…Do not expose your identities, and wait for the signal before you act.”
“Yes, sir!”
Thoma stood several feet behind the commissioner and his Shuumatsuban assistants, scanning the environment below them. Technically, he should be at Komore Teahouse, but he couldn’t just sit back and wait for news of the storm on Tenshukaku. Not when both Kamisatos were involved. Ayato didn’t formally know of his escape, but Thoma suspected he knew from other means. He didn’t attempt to hide himself, even as the Shuumatsuban members launched themselves from the clifftop and Ayato turned away from the city.
He did, however, duck behind a large rock when he first caught sight of the Fatui. There were four of them, one Cryo Cicin Mage, one Pyroslinger, one Geomancer, and leading the herd, a Pyro Agent. The harsh wind fluttered through Ayato’s sleeves as he exchanged words with the Fatui, words that Thoma was too far away to hear. Thoma steadied his grip on his spear. His newly reclaimed Vision gleamed with anticipation and anxiety.
To his left, the grass ever so slightly parted and became tipped with frost, a sound like a butterfly’s wings descending over Thoma’s ears. He checked over his shoulder just to be safe, and did a double take when he saw none other than Kamisato Ayaka crouching next to him.
“My lady!” he whispered, only daring to take his eyes off Ayato for the split second it took to give her a look of alarm. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Neither should you,” she countered, chilled pulses radiating from her form. Pyro Allogenes were quick to anger and often responded with extravagant displays of passion, but when a Cryo Allogene was angered… The cold rage that boiled beneath the surface was absolutely unmatched. Thoma felt unease worm its way into his heart. He’d never seen Ayaka angry. Was she angry at him? That did not bode well.
Thoma swallowed nervously and slid his gaze back towards Ayato. They had bigger things to worry about, they could figure out who was mad at whom later.
The commissioner was now locked in combat with the squad of Fatui, effortlessly dispatching the Cryo Cicin Mage and the Pyroslinger in two calculated strikes. Ayato spun on his heel and slashed at the Geomancer, but the Fatuus dodged and leapt to the side. Unfortunately for him, Ayato had been anticipating that move, and the Geomancer’s stomach met sword only moments later.
“Hmph!” growled the Pyro Agent, “You underestimate your foe.”
Ayato flicked the blood from his sword and raised it at the Fatuus. “If assassinating me was that simple, I can name a few rival clans who would’ve had an easier time over the years.”
“We’re not done negotiating.”
Thoma watched in horror as a fresh wave of Fatui Skirmishers and Cicin mages alike melted out of the ground, raising Ayato’s adversaries from one to thirteen. The commissioners eyes narrowed as the platoon surrounded him. Thoma glanced at Ayaka.
“We should help,” he whispered.
“Not yet. Brother has a plan, we don’t want to interfere.”
“How could he have anticipated this?”
“He probably didn’t. But don’t worry, you know as well as I do— He still has a few tricks up his sleeves.”
Very few people were fortunate enough, or perhaps unfortunate enough, to witness Ayato’s Kamisato Art. Suiyuu was unlike any sword technique Thoma had ever seen, it left him speechless every time Ayato chose to use it. Two of the closest thirteen Skirmishers were decimated in the dead calm of Suiyuu’s enhanced Hydro field, three more slashed to pieces in quick succession. The original Pyro Agent paced around the edge of the circle as Ayato fought, delivering hushed orders to any of his comrades that retreated far enough. Thoma kept his eye trained on the suspicious Fatuus.
“I still don’t like these odds. We should help.”
“Not yet…” Ayaka’s words were beginning to falter, doubt creeping into her mind as well as Thoma’s. Ayato was amazingly skilled. Even so, only a certain amount of skill can hold off the sheer force of numbers.
An Electro Cicin mage fell to the ground with a shriek as Ayato spun to face his next opponent. The Pyro Agent swept his hand aside in exasperation, which called forth more reinforcements. Things went from bad to worse in an instant, Ayato suddenly buried under wave after wave of Fatui.
Ayaka clutched Thoma’s shirt and pulled him closer. She was muttering to herself, each word causing her to grip Thoma tighter. Her knuckles were turning white. “He’s strong. It’s okay. He’ll be okay. He’s strong. It’s okay. He’ll be okay…”
When the guttural cry of pure anguish pierced the night, Thoma and Ayaka shared twin expressions of rage as they leapt into the fray. Thoma doesn’t remember the battle. He only remembered his burning frenzy of flames that incinerated the hoard. Ayaka swirled Cryo in perfect synchronization with Thoma’s raging Pyro, Melt reactions decimating more of their enemies that their own individual strikes. He caught a glimpse of Ayaka’s face at some point during the massacre and found only cold, unbridled fury. Her face alone shocked Thoma back into consciousness.
The last few enemies fell as quickly as the first. Thoma and Ayaka briefly turned to each other in a moment of acknowledgement before rushing to either side of a writhing Ayato.
He’d fallen unconscious thanks to a nasty stab wound on the right side of his stomach, but his “rest” was fitful. Blood only continued to soak through his white robes as unaware Ayato made the situation worse with his movements. Curved red lines swirled around the wound, which could only mean one thing: a Pyro infection. It ate hungrily across Ayato’s abdomen and threatened to take root, but Thoma called to his own control over the element and held the infection at bay. Once that had been taken care of, Ayato stopped wriggling and his breathing evened ever so slightly. The commissioner began to stir.
“Brother!” Ayaka finally whispered, spending a good few heartbeats staring at the wound, speechless.
Thoma figuratively threw himself into a distraction: treating Ayato as best he could. “My lady, there’s bandages in my right pocket. Could you try and patch him up, please? I have to keep this Pyro infection at bay.”
Ayaka nodded and dutifully went to work. Neither spoke, every single ounce of their attention dedicated to Ayato. At one point in the process, Thoma was so focused on holding back the infection that he almost didn’t hear Ayato’s attempt to speak.
“What happened?” Ayato croaked, lifting his head, “What are you two doing here?”
“Rescuing you, what else?” Ayaka snapped. Tears leaned over the edges of her eyes. She only got rough with her words when bickering with Ayato, and this time was no exception.
The commissioner tried to laugh, but the pain seized him and it died in his throat. This inability to laugh seemed to surprise Ayato. He tried again. Just like the previous attempt, the laugh stopped short, Ayato’s eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
Great, he’s going insane.
“I thought you were holding back the infection!” accused Ayaka.
“I’m doing the best I can! He’s not going into shock, right? I’ve never seen it happen before, but this can’t be how it starts…”
A new voice spoke from behind them. “Lord…Ayato?”
Thoma quickly glanced behind him and only relaxed when he noticed the Shuumatsuban attire. Those guys did not mess around when it came to stealth.
“We…We failed to protect you…”
Ayato lazily moved his head to face the ninja. “I do not keep the Shuumatsuban for the trivial matter of dealing with assassins,” he managed, usual eloquence practically muscle memory.
“Trivial…?” the Shuumatsuban member trailed off.
Thoma took over the conversation. “We think he’s going into shock. Give us your report, and then help us get him to a healer.”
“The operation went smoothly,” the ninja said, swiftly moving to Ayato’s other side, “The resistance platoon is hidden near Tenshukaku.” He looked like he had a question, but he wisely bit his tongue and focused on his task.
“Okay, that’s good. Let’s just get him out of here.”
They moved Ayato as carefully as they could, silence only broken by the commissioner’s delirious giggles. Thoma took one last look over the hill before they started their trek back to the Kamisato Estate, watching Yoimiya’s fireworks bloom overhead.
“Good luck, everyone...”