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Rei awoke with a start. He got out of bed, feeling like something was off. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, before glancing around the room. His vigilante outfit was still on the floor from last night, so he made a mental note to put it away after breakfast. Getting out of bed, he ran his fingers through his hair, and straightened out his pajamas, before throwing open the door.
Kuyo was already awake, eating a bowl of cereal on the counter. Meaning Kuyo was on the counter, sitting cross legged, while he held the bowl up to his face to eat. Rei shook his head.
“You know we prepare food on that counter right? Even if it's just us in the dorm, I would rather not have you sitting on my food.”
Kuyo just grinned and went back to eating, so Rei ignored him. Grabbing his own breakfast, he pulled up his homework that was due that day and started working on it. It was annoying to have to do work immediately after waking up, but his nights were too busy and he needed to get it done. Once he had most of it done, Rei went back to his room, put the suit away, and then grabbed his clothes and took a shower.
The rest of his day was fairly normal, although his instincts had him constantly looking around. Something felt wrong. He went to class, had lunch with Kuyo in the dining hall, and did some homework before dinner. While prepping dinner, he made sure to lock eyes with Kuyo as he wiped down the counter, which only caused Kuyo to laugh at him.
After they ate, he slipped into his room, and grabbed his suit off the hanger that was hidden in the back of his closet. After putting it on, he slipped out of the window in his bedroom and met Kuyo on the roof.
“So where are we headed, X-Static?” Kuyo asked, his voice serious.
“I’ve heard rumors of some weird deals going on downtown, near the low tier districts. I think we should go check it out. It could be Ember.” Rei replied, powering up as he pointed, electricity coursing around his arm.
Rei jumped over to the next roof and Kuyo followed, vaulting off the roof with the tip of his sword. Once across the gap, they continued jumping across to lower and lower roofs, until they could easily drop down into the street.
On the street, they powered down. A handful of vigilantes had already died, and running across the rooftops powered up was the fastest way to get caught. They slipped through the alleyways as the sun began to dip lower in the sky.
While dashing through the streets, they rounded a corner to a wide open area with a person. They were laying on the ground unmoving. Kuyo slowed down, staying vigilant as Rei ran in to check them. They were covered in blood and burns, with large stab wounds. Next to their head, was a small vial.
Rei picked it up, examining it closely, inside there was a thick brown substance that looked almost like dried blood.
“That's weird, the killer left a vial behind.”
Footsteps echoed down the road towards them. They belonged to a man with purple hair and green eyes. He was wearing a black trenchcoat and had a mask covering his face.
“Excuse us, do you know what happened here?” Rei asked the man.
In response his hands lit on fire and lengthened, being caught by Kuyo's blade, and nicking his shoulder. Rei threw lightning at him when Kuyo rushed again, but the man continued to dodge every attack.
Rei decided they needed to stop him fast, and ran around him. With Kuyo distracting him from the front, Rei was able to grab the man's shoulder and pour electricity into him, dropping him to his knees.
“Looks like we found our killer.” Rei stated, looking down on the man on the ground.
Kuyo looked closer at the corpse behind them, and then agreed with Rei.
“The attacks match the wounds.”
“Alright,” Rei started, walking closer. “Let's knock him out. Looks like we can go home early today.”
A flash of black appeared next to him from above, surprising Rei. A second later he felt pain down his left shoulder and chest, as his costume burned away from the new person's fire claws.
A second enemy stood next to the first one helping him up, she was also dressed in a black trenchcoat and hat, with her blond hair tied up under the hat.
Rei screamed out in pain, and fell to the ground as the woman commanded the man to stand up.
“Sorry,” he apologized. “I haven't gotten used to this ability yet.”
Rei tried to dissect the meaning of that sentence, but his thoughts were interrupted by a shock of pain causing him to groan. His assailants responded by stabbing him again.
As his screams echoed between the buildings, Rei was forced to watch Kuyo run in to save him. He sat there barely able to move as Kuyo got slashed up, while screaming out his name. The words felt faint, like he could barely hear them.
“Get out of here, while you still can.” Rei managed to say, his voice feeling distant and heavy.
Kuyo shook his head.
“I'm not leaving you.”
Rei watched him turn around to face their opponents, conjuring a second blade. And he was immediately outsped and beaten, dropping to his knees.
Fighting through the fog, Rei stumbled up to his feet, going mostly unnoticed. He spit out some blood and jumped forward, grabbing onto both agents, and smiling at Kuyo.
“What are you-” Kuyo started, but Rei cut him off.
“Take care of yourself, alright?”
He started increasing the electricity emanating and coursing through his body. Giving all that he had left to give. He could tell it wouldn't be enough, his injuries were already too great and already reaching for his power was getting harder and harder.
“Go!” Rei screamed out, his voice breaking as he poured more and more current into the surrounding area. As he saw Kuyo run away, Rei closed his eyes, and everything went white.
Rei awoke with a start. He got out of bed, feeling like something was off. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, noticing they were wet with tears, his chest also hurt as if he had been sobbing all night.
“Huh, I must have had a sad dream last night.” Rei thought, before glancing around his room.
His vigilante outfit was still on the floor from last night, so he made a mental note to put it away after breakfast. Getting out of bed, he ran his fingers through his hair, and straightened out his pajamas, before throwing open the door.
He walked out into the main room of their dorm, not seeing Kuyo at all. Rei thought it was a little strange, but brushed it off and went to go get some breakfast to eat.
When he walked in front of Kuyo's door, he heard sobbing inside. Worried for his friend, Rei knocked on the door.
“Hey Kuyo, is everything ok in there?”
Rei didn't hear a response, and was about to knock again when the door flew open and he was tackled. When his back hit the floor, he activated his ability to fight his attacker, when he felt the wet spot on his chest. Kuyo was the one that tackled him to the floor. And he was currently gripping Rei's shoulders like he was about to disappear and crying on his chest.
Rei wrapped his arms around Kuyo and pulled him tight, and then found his arms slapped away. Kuyo shot to his feet, a sword appearing in his hand, pointed at Rei’s throat.
“Who are you, and how dare you come here looking like that?!” Kuyo screamed at him, causing Rei to defensively put his hands up.
“Relax buddy, it’s just me. Rei, your best friend.”
Kuyo shook his head, tears forming again.
“No, it can’t be. He died last night and I couldn’t stop it. So I’ll ask you one more time, who you are.”
Rei slowly stood up, Kuyo’s blade still at his throat. He held out his arms wide, and activated his ability causing sparks to dance up and down his limbs.
“I’m still alive, man. It must have been a bad dream.”
Kuyo shook his head, his voice cracking.
“No no no, it was too real to be a dream! Look at all these injuries!”
Kuyo tore off his shirt to reveal his well muscled torso, completely unmarred. He held the ripped shirt in shock as he looked at his arms and chest, flexing his muscles and shaking out his limbs.
“I-I don’t understand?”
Rei rushed forward and wrapped Kuyo in a hug, pulling his head onto his shoulder. He felt more tears seep into his shirt, and just pulled him tighter. Kuyo’s ripped shirt fell to the floor, forgotten as he hugged Rei back.
“It was all a bad dream. I’m still here. I’m not going anywhere.”
They didn’t go to class that day. Kuyo was still upset all morning and Rei decided it was better to spend the day comforting his friend, than going to a class. They stayed in pajamas all day and just ate on the couch while hanging out. By dinner time, Kuyo was looking a lot more like himself again. He accepted that it was just a bad dream, and was happily joking around again. Just like normal, they split up to change, and met on the roof.
Rei, knowing Kuyo still wasn’t feeling his best, took the initiative.
“I’ve heard rumors of some weird deals going on downtown, near the low tier districts. I think we should go check it out. It could be Ember.” Rei stated, pointing.
Kuyo gave him a weird look.
“That’s exactly what you said in my dream. Weird.”
Rei felt an odd feeling in his stomach at the mention of Kuyo’s awful dream, but he pushed it aside. It could wait until after they were done saving people.
They traveled downtown, until they reached the area Rei wanted to check out. Once there, they saw a body on the ground. Rei ran to check it out, while Kuyo followed nervously.
“I really don’t like this, X-Static. It's identical to my dream.”
“I know, I’ll be careful. That guy over there is clearly in trouble, and we can’t just not help.”
Rei got close and leaned over the body. He let out a sigh upon seeing the man was already dead. Noticing a vial by the corpse, Rei picked it up and turned to Kuyo.
“Looks like the killer left something behind.”
He started to walk towards Kuyo when he heard footsteps. Turning around, Rei saw a man with purple hair, in a black trenchcoat and hat, wearing a mask just like them.
“X-Static, get away from him.” Kuyo demanded, fear filling his voice. He activated his ability and pointed two swords at the approaching man.
Rei turned back around and looked at Kuyo confused.
“He's one of us, Ponytail. Just look at him.”
Rei was a little confused by Kuyo's fear. They had never met this man before, and he was reacting with hostility. They were all here to help people out, no reason to be rude.
He stayed watching Kuyo, trying to understand his side, when suddenly Kuyo's eyes widened.
“X-Static!” He yelled, running forwards. “Move!”
Rei was still confused but his instincts kicked in and he activated his ability, preparing to dash towards Kuyo. He was too late. A burning hand pierced through his chest, a wound Rei instantly knew was fatal.
Memories came flooding back as he was stabbed, of everything happening before. Rei realized that what Kuyo remembered wasn't a dream.
“Sorry,” He choked out to Kuyo, who was standing there in shock. He then repeated himself, the words feeling familiar on his tongue.
“Take care of yourself, alright?”
Rei grabbed onto the hand running through his chest, holding it in place as he filled it with all of his electricity. Determined to take one down with him, he didn't notice the second person arriving, also stabbing all the way through his chest and prematurely cutting off his ability. Rei watched Kuyo run from the two attackers, as everything went white.
Rei awoke with a start. He got out of bed, feeling like something was off. There was an ache in his chest, uncomfortable but manageable. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, before glancing around the room. His vigilante outfit was still on the floor from last night, so he made a mental note to put it away after breakfast. Getting out of bed, he ran his fingers through his hair, and straightened out his pajamas, before walking to the door.
When he went to grab the handle, it was thrown open by Kuyo who grabbed him by the hand and dragged him out into the main room. There was a whiteboard setup in the middle that Kuyo had clearly been writing on for at least a couple hours.
“What's this for?” Rei asked blearily.
“So I was thinking about strategies last night. We don't really have plans in case we end up fighting anyone stronger than us. I wouldn't want either of us…” Kuyo trailed off, staring at Rei's chest before continuing.
“I don't want either of us to get hurt.”
Rei watched as Kuyo rushed around grabbing different items from around their dorm, and scribbling on the whiteboard as he walked past. He had an awful feeling in his stomach as he watched. Kuyo was scared of something, and Rei didn't know what.
“How can I help?”
The two of them worked together in frantic silence, Kuyo moving frantically and Rei silently following him, doing his best to learn what was wrong.
“So what exactly are we doing?”
Kuyo turned to Rei, eyes wild.
“I realized that, if we go up against someone stronger than us, we don't really have any plans. Ember has already killed a couple vigilantes, so we know that they are strong and able to surprise us. So I want to make some plans, so that we can escape and maybe win.”
Rei could tell there was something Kuyo wasn't saying, but he decided to not ask. They didn’t have too much time before class, but they managed to plan it out a little.
“So, since my blades give me more physical reach, you should back off in a fight. Stay back and drop lightning on them, while I stop them from reaching you. That should be enough to hold anyone off for a while.”
Rei nodded, and added his own thoughts.
“If I aim high, and you aim low. My electricity would probably blind them temporarily, and you could injure their legs, letting us run away much easier.”
Kuyo nodded, chewing on the end of his marker, and reached up to note it down. Finally satisfied, he stood up to begin heading to class.
“One last thing, Kuyo. How will we know if we see Ember? Nobody's ever survived seeing them?”
Kuyo looked pensive as he searched for the right words.
“I don’t know. Lets just treat everyone we don’t recognize with caution. If we stay on guard, they can't surprise us.”
The two of them split up to go to class, but Rei kept an eye on Kuyo whenever he saw him on the campus. He looked tense the entire time, but determined. Like he was waiting for something to go wrong, and yet was also ready for it. Rei didn’t know what had happened to stress him out this much, but he spent the whole day wishing there was something more he could do.
That evening, when they met up on the roof, Rei was surprised again. Kuyo was up there before him, and already ready to leave.
“Let's head downtown today and look around. Sounds good?”
“That was my plan anyway, I've heard there are some new deals going around out there. Could be Ember.”
Kuyo ran off immediately after Rei finished his sentence heading in a straight line down the streets. He didn’t even look down any side roads, causing him to gain more distance from Rei as he slowed down to check things out. Eventually Kuyo made a sharp left and came to a sudden stop. Rei followed him, and saw a body laying on the ground. He went to run in, but Kuyo grabbed his wrist.
“Be cautious X-Static. We don’t know what happened, or who’s still here.”
Rei was about to brush it off, but noticed how serious Kuyo was. His grip was almost painful, and he wasn’t shifting his weight at all. He looked ready to pounce. Rei agreed, and let him take the lead. Kuyo strode forward with one sword at the ready, and he followed. Once they reached the body, Kuyo stood guard as Rei looked down to inspect it. He picked up a vial lying next to its head, and held it out to Kuyo.
“Looks like the killer left something behind.”
When he didn’t take the vial out of Rei’s hand, he looked up. Kuyo was standing still, eyes trained on an approaching figure. He was wearing a black trenchcoat and hat, with purple hair sticking out from under it. Rei went to wave hello, when Kuyo stopped him.
“Careful X-Static, we don’t know who that is. Remember the plan.”
Rei nodded and hesitantly took a step back, sliding slightly behind Kuyo.
“Hey there,” he called out. “Do you have any idea what happened here?”
There was no response as the man stepped forward again, and again. With every step Kuyo got more and more tense, and the tension got thicker. Until it snapped. The man dashed forward, hands lighting up, and Kuyo met his attack, his blades blocking all of the claw slashes. Rei moved in to help but Kuyo stopped him.
“I can handle him like this, he can’t touch me. Just shock him!”
Flanking to the side Rei shot a bolt of lightning at the man's head, which he ducked and responded with a stab to Kuyo’s stomach that was barely blocked. Since the man was bent over, Rei touched the ground and electrified it, shocking him and opening him up for Kuyo to land a slash to his shoulder that cut just barely into his collarbone. Grimacing the man dashed backwards, clutching at his shoulder. Rei ran over to help support Kuyo who was covered in small nicks, and breathing heavily while leaning on his swords. As Rei reached him, he noticed their opponent glance up for a fraction of a second and reacted instinctively. He tackled Kuyo, sending them both sprawling to the ground, as a second assailant stabbed both hands into the concrete where they were standing.
“Pathetic, you would have lost without me.” the woman said to her companion.
“Sorry,” he responded, stepping closer one arm still dangling. “I’m still getting used to this ability.”
As if waiting for them to talk, once the man started speaking Kuyo slashed. His swords swung directly at the woman's throat before she had a chance to dodge. They crashed into her skin, and barely nicked it. She laughed and drew back her arm, only to find it unable to plunge forward into Kuyo’s unprotected body.
Rei latched onto her elbow and was holding it back, while filling her body with electricity. He bought enough time for Kuyo to back off, before delivering one last shock, and retreating too. They stood next to each other, and watched the woman just shake off Rei’s electricity like it was barely even there.
“We can’t beat her.” Rei gasped out.
Kuyo growled, but nodded. “If only I could put more power into my swings, I could cut deeper.”
“We need to run, I’ll call down enough lightning to obscure their vision, and then we run as fast as we can away from here.”
Kuyo nodded, and Rei began charging up his lightning. Letting it surround his body, and drawing out as much power as he could at once. He dropped it all on the head of the woman, who just stood there watching him. A brilliant blue flash filled the sky as she was encased in lightning. They could see her shadow through the flash, and watched as it slowly took a step, and then another.
Rei and Kuyo ran, ran to the side from the fight instead of directly behind them. As they entered the alley, someone stepped out of the shadows, ramming a flaming hand into Rei’s ribs. He stood there, his smile visible through his black mask. Rei smiled back. He reached up, and grabbed the man's throat, shocking him with everything he had left.
As the man collapsed, Rei turned to Kuyo. His memories of the last two attempts flooded through his mind from the fatal wound.
“She’s coming. Just get out of here Kuyo. I’m out of lightning.”
“No!” Kuyo exclaimed, reaching out to grab Rei. “I’ll carry you out of here if I have to.”
“I’ve already died twice, but you don’t have to.” Rei coughed, spitting out blood and causing pain to flare up from the hole in his side. “Just listen to me this time. Forget about saving me, just… Take care of yourself, alright?”
Kuyo punched the wall hard enough to make his fist bleed. But he did as Rei asked, and left. He never could turn down his best friend. Rei sat there for what felt like minutes, but was probably only seconds, and the woman walked into the alley. She saw the man on the floor, hand still deep in Rei’s ribcage and scoffed. She raised her arm, and her burning fingers were the last thing Rei saw before it all went white.
Rei awoke with a start. He got out of bed, feeling like something was off. There was an ache in his side. He sat up and rubbed his eyes and twisted to the side, trying to stretch out the stitch in his side causing him pain. Once it felt a little better he glanced around the room. His vigilante outfit was still on the floor from last night, so he made a mental note to put it away after breakfast. Getting out of bed, he ran his fingers through his hair, and straightened out his pajamas, before walking to the door.
Outside Kuyo was laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling. As Rei walked in the room he could hear Kuyo muttering.
“What’s even going on? What’s even the point? I can’t do anything but watch.”
Rei stood there, his chest hurting. For as long as they had known each other, Kuyo had been a bastion of courage and confidence. Now he seemed broken, unstable, and falling apart.
“Hey, Kuyo, is something going on?” Rei asked, worried and hesitant.
Kuyo glanced at him, tears in his eyes, before looking back at the ceiling.
“No, not really. Nothing I can do about it anyway, everything I’ve tried has seemed so pointless.”
Rei moved over, and laid on the floor next to him.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Kuyo exhaled a breathy sob.
“No, not really.” He started, and then continued anyway when Rei didn’t speak. “Its just that, I’ve tried my best and given all I have, and every time it's a resounding failure. I’m just not good enough.”
Rei punched Kuyo in the arm, and when he didn’t flinch, Rei grabbed his shirt and dragged him closer.
“Listen,” Rei said, staring directly into Kuyo’s eyes, their faces only inches apart. “You are good enough. You are one of the strongest people I know, and I’m not talking about your ability. It takes strength to be confident. It takes strength to be confronted and change your views. It takes strength every time you step out of this building to help people with me.”
Rei stood up, and walked to the window, throwing open the curtain and letting light shine on Kuyo’s face.
“When I became King at Wellston, I decided to make the strong uplift the weak. Teach them to be better. So that everyone could stand together on equal ground, without any fighting. You’re strong Kuyo. If you think you’re among the weak then lift yourself up. How much time do you have?”
Kuyo laughed darkly, as if Rei’s statement was a cruel joke.
“Don’t worry, time isn’t something I’m worried about running out of.”
“Then find what you’re missing. What you need to succeed, and become better at it. I believe in you Kuyo, you can do it.”
Rei walked out of the room to get breakfast, leaving Kuyo pondering on the floor, a slight smile on his face. Kuyo didn’t go to class that day. He didn’t even leave the floor in the center of their dorm. When Rei returned from class, and got ready to go out, Kuyo was still sitting there meditating. Deciding not to interrupt him, Rei left and headed downtown.
He only slowed when he came across a body laying in the street, checking it out he saw a vial next to its head, and slipped it in his pocket. When he heard footsteps, Rei turned and waved. He didn’t recognize the person, but he greeted them anyway.
“Hello! Are you new to this? I don’t recognize you. My name is X-Static.”
Rei held out his hand and stepped closer to the silent guy. The other guy raised his hand too, and just before they could shake, it caught ablaze. He slashed at Rei’s arm, cutting deeply. Rei clutched at his forearm, jumping backwards as he powered up. He grimaced as the man continued to move forward, dodging all the electricity Rei threw.
Rei launched another bolt of lightning, and ran forward with it. As it coursed towards his opponent, Rei ran behind him, placing his fingers on the man’s neck and delivering a shock when he dodged the initial strike. The lightning caused his opponent to tense up, making it easy for Rei to kick out his knees, sending him to the floor. Rei stopped, standing above the man and looking at his claws.
“It looks like I found the killer. Were you just waiting around for someone to stumble across the body?”
Rei walked closer, keeping a close eye on the enemies hands, as he prepared a shock to knock him unconscious. The man was clearly mobile, but staying on the ground waiting for something, Rei assumed he was waiting for a counterattack. He got close, but stayed just out of arms reach as he prepared the shock. Exactly as the man on the ground wanted. An attack from above jabbed into the meat of his shoulder, stopping his arm from moving to strike, as the attacker landed behind him. Once he was disabled, the man on the ground jumped up, ramming his arm into Rei’s chest.
Rei only felt the burn for a second, before it stopped hurting. He stumbled as the claws pulled out of him and stopped supporting his weight. Falling to the ground, Rei looked at his two killers.
“You know, I only have one regret.” Rei muttered, mostly to himself, as memories filled his brain. “I tried so hard to give him hope today, and now he’ll suffer through this again and again. I wish I could tell him to move on.”
He coughed with damaged lungs, and went still.
Rei awoke with a start. He got out of bed, feeling like something was off. He sat up and rubbed his eyes feeling sad. There was a pain in his chest, both physical and mental. He had a sinking feeling that he had messed something up. Rei glanced around the room, trying to see what it was. His vigilante outfit was still on the floor from last night, so he made a mental note to put it away after breakfast. Getting out of bed after finding nothing wrong, he ran his fingers through his hair, and straightened out his pajamas, before throwing open the door.
Kuyo was already awake, but surprisingly silent. He sat meditating on the floor as Rei prepared for the day. He was repeatedly forming two swords, almost on top of each other, and then dismissing them. Rei let him work through whatever he was doing, making Kuyo some breakfast as he made his own, and setting it next to the man before heading to class.
When Rei returned later that day, Kuyo was still in the center of the room, panting heavily on his hands and knees. He watched as Kuyo raised up one hand and punched the floor.
“Come on! I’m almost there. I can do this!”
Rei grabbed a glass from the kitchen, and filled it with water, bringing it to Kuyo.
“Are you ok? You’re really struggling with this. Can I ask why?”
Kuyo took a sip of the water, nodding thankfully before responding.
“I’m just practicing with my ability. I’m trying to get a bit more weight behind my blades, and I can feel that I’m almost there. It just keeps barely slipping out of my grasp.”
Rei nodded, and patted him on the shoulder.
“I’m heading out to patrol soon, so you should take a break. You’re too tired to go out tonight. Get some rest.”
Rei went into his room and changed, before slipping onto the roof. As he prepared to leave, he heard footsteps behind him. Kuyo was standing there ready to go.
“I’m not letting you go alone. I can handle this much. It’s just… I don’t want you to be alone out here at night.”
Rei reluctantly let Kuyo follow him and they began to run. Kuyo seemed to know where Rei was planning on going, even though he never said anything. Kuyo would make the turns before Rei even pointed them out.
Eventually they reached a more open street, and saw a body laying down on the ground. Rei rushed over and Kuyo stayed right behind him, constantly glancing in all directions. Rei picked up a vial off the ground, and showed it to him.
“Looks like the killer left something behind.”
Kuyo stepped in front of Rei immediately after he spoke. Rei looked up and saw someone walking towards them wearing all black.
“I don’t like the look of this guy, X-Static. Be on your guard.”
Before Kuyo could finish talking, the man dashed forward attempting to attack them with his now-forming flame claws. Kuyo met his strikes with a blade, swinging the other from above. He went on the offensive, using one hand to block the man’s hands and the other to attack his undefended bodyparts. Slowly, the man in black got pushed backwards under Kuyo’s unexpected offence. Distracted by the flashing swords he didn’t notice Rei coming around, and shocking him to his knees. The two stood above their attacker, looking down on his body, covered in small cuts and light burns.
“Looks like we found the killer. His ability matches the wounds.” Rei started, crackling with electricity as he moved in. “Let’s knock him out and be done with it.”
He took a step forward only for Kuyo to instantly call out.
“X-Static! Dodge back! Now!”
Without thinking, Rei followed the order as a second person dropped from above. Her flaming claws punctured the ground as she landed, and she pulled them out to whirl around and rush Rei. Kuyo went to help, but found himself stopped by the first man. He stood between their fights, hands alight.
“You don’t have the power to beat me all on your own. Not before she kills your friend!” he taunted, blood still dripping from his dozens of cuts.
Kuyo glared at him, and dropped both his swords. He held out two hands in front of him and pushed on his ability.
“I… will not.. fail him again!” Kuyo forced out as he clenched his teeth. Memories of waking up every morning, knowing Rei had just died filled him. He reached for his power, and something clicked.
Rei was fighting for his life, every attack she made had the potential to be fatal, and his lightning wasn’t doing very much to her. He could only hope Kuyo was having better luck. He was slowing down as more and more of his body was singed and sliced. She feinted high, and then jabbed forward with a stab Rei wasn’t sure he could fully dodge.
Their fight was cut off by a loud scream. Rei glanced over, expecting the worst, and was pleasantly surprised.
Kuyo was breathing heavily, holding a giant sword in two hands as the enemy sat at his feet. Kuyo’s slash had cut deep into his shoulder, digging into the man's chest. He turned around and ran at his partner, taking a slash at her. She was too surprised by the events to fully dodge, and it clipped at her arm. The slight impact still cut down to the bone, visibly shocking the woman.
She glanced at her profusely bleeding partner, and the tired but relatively uninjured Kuyo, and turned to leave. She hoisted her partner on her shoulder, and ran around the corner disappearing.
Kuyo went to give chase but Rei stopped him.
“She only left because her partner was injured, and I'm not sure either of us can fight very well. Your aura is weak, and my limbs are trembling and sliced up. Lets just leave now, while we still can.”
Kuyo looked angry as she left, but softened his gaze as he looked back at Rei.
“Yeah alright. I can get her another day.”
Rei went to object, but Kuyo stopped him.
“It's personal between us, and besides, she cut you up. I’m not gonna let her go next time.”
Rei shook his head exasperated, but raised his arm to help support Kuyo. It was unclear which one of them was really supporting the other as they walked back. When they reached home, Rei asked the burning question in his mind.
“Where did you learn to do that with your sword? That was so much stronger.”
Kuyo scratched at the back of his head, clearly finding the question awkward. Eventually he answered.
“Well, I only started working on it a couple days ago. It was really difficult at first, but in the fight everything just clicked. I actually almost gave up at one point.”
Rei smiled, and patted Kuyo on the back.
“I’m glad you never gave up, you’ve only gotten stronger from this.”
Kuyo smiled back, as Rei walked away to go shower and bind his wounds. He stood there for a moment, taking in Rei’s form. Every breath and movement was full of life.
“Yeah. Me too”