I put an axe in my baby's head, I'm gonna end up doing time [SEMI-CLOSED]

[heretic_blade]

Who ⬤ Okada Izō and various
What ⬤ Nightmare curse rain fun times!
When ⬤ June
Where ⬤ Various
Content Warnings ⬤ Violence and trauma at a minimum


(( OOC: These are prompts for the curse release and blood rain from the June event. If you want a custom prompt, PM me here or on discord glitzkrieg#0673! ))

Comments

[heretic_blade]

[ Izō pulls at the strands, trying to free Ryouma instead of himself. His will is too strong for Karasu to force complete control. This is what he wants to do and he's going to do it...or die trying. ]

Stop tryin' t' be a fuckin' martyr and fight it!!

[kaientai]

I'll die before I let it get you!

[ that's just being honest. with strands starting to wind around izō's neck, they're running out of time. and isn't this what ryouma deserves? maybe everyone who said hell is meant to punish you were right after all. he should suffer because that's what the dead clawing their way out of the ground and the walls all around them believe. some of their faces will probably be familiar, seeing as many of them are their slain compatriots. it's easy to know what killed them, although quite a few stand out from the rest because they're what bodies look like when they've died at sea — crewmen on ryouma's ships that were lost, no doubt. that's how the curse gets him, haunting him with this same vision of the angry, swarming dead until he's desperate to make it stop. ]

I'm sorry. Please, Izō! I—

[ what was he going to say? ryouma doesn't get the chance. it's hard to reason when you're terrified. izō can see it when ryouma starts to slip away again, but he was at least right that it would begin to let go if he quit fighting. it starts to loosen and recede, pulling away from izō as the black mass shifts and reforms into a more familiar shape again. the soothing protector at ryouma's back to stand with him against the deadly horde — or that's how it's meant to feel. standing alongside the ghosts of the past, izō might as well be one of them now... ]

[heretic_blade]

[ Of course Ryouma would be haunted by the lives lost around him in pursuit of his goals. Of course he'd carry that pain and guilt with him long after his death. Ryouma is too kind-hearted for the kind of life he had to lead. Izō can only stand there, shaking.

It isn't fair. ]

What?! Leave ya again?! I jus'...I jus' got ya back! I ain't leavin' ya for nothin'!!

[ Screaming so loud he's hoarse, as if being louder means he can fight this. Ryouma has to want to be free and escape this. Izō knows this. He grabs desperately for Ryouma, pulling on whatever he can get a hold of. ]

Jus' come with me! Please!!

1/2

[kaientai]

[ it's nice, getting to hear that much. if he survives this, he'll remember that. he hopes izō can see it too — that his smile is meant for him. that ryouma is at least grateful to have had that much. ]

It's okay, Izō. It doesn't hurt anymore.

[ maybe the curse has gotten better at acting or maybe ryouma just believes it more but "oryou" seems more convincing now than before. she floats at his side, whispering things in his ear, and ryouma beams at her with the same love in his eyes as the real thing. it'll be okay now. he hardly notices how or when the gun ends up in his hands. ]

2/2

[kaientai]

[ when he looks back at izō again, his eyes have changed again; they're cold despite the brightness of the colour. ]

Gonna stay even if I shoot ya?

[ like this, he would... ]

[heretic_blade]

[ He should run now. That would be the sanest choice to make. He's rooted to the spot, though, eyes flickering between the gun and Ryouma's face. ]

...Ya won't.

[ Izō calls his bluff, even if deep in his gut he knows it's not a bluff. He isn't going to run away. If Ryouma is willing to shoot him, so be it. ]

[kaientai]

[ the nice thing about these old-fashioned guns is that they make a really satisfying sound when you cock them — which he does — and his icy smile never falters. ]

Won't I..?

[ when you take the kindness away then he's just an asshole who likes to play games. ]

[heretic_blade]

[ This is a dangerous game. He should back down and flee.

He won't. ]

Ya won't.

[ Firm, with conviction. ]

[kaientai]

[ well, izō isn't wrong. ryouma never would. he'd sooner turn the gun on himself, just like he'd eaten the metaphorical bullet a moment ago.

only it's not really him anymore. maybe izō can see that more clearly now. he's not just buying into the lies, it's deeper than that. he's still a servant, after all, and the cursed energy is like a slow poison. ]

Ya always were a shit gambler.

[ and then he pulls the trigger. ]

[heretic_blade]

[ The bullet hits him in the side, just above his hip and exits out the back. Izō puts his hand over the wound in utter disbelief. How could this happen? How could he be so stupid? That...isn't Ryouma. Not the one he knows. Izō takes a step back as tears well up in his eyes.

He can't even say anything, he just stares at Ryouma, searching his face for answers. Karasu, however, is done dealing with this. The tengu forces control in Izō's moment of weakness and runs, taking flight away from this.

A trail of blood and a few shed feathers are all that's left behind. ]