bursts into tears

[oversea]

Comments

[transmit]

[ they could've ruined them harder but they showed restraint and that should count for everything…

but he doesn't need to any more than that to immediately begin channeling his arts and spin on his heel. they seem surprised at first—which may be the upper hand thorns needs to get a quick one in on one of them. they need all the advantages they can get. ]

[oversea]

[ at least they're getting their exercise in!!!

but he does immediately go for whoever is closest, knocking their weapon out of their hands as he slashes at their front. the doctor startles and continues going forward... which he supposes is fine, since it's better for him to get out of the range of the fight.

thorns would prefer if elysium went with him actually ]

[transmit]

[ for better or worse, there is no world where elysium abandons thorns on a battlefield. that has been true since long before they were ever together.

he's less useful on the offensive while channeling his arts, but he keeps himself light on his feet, taking only shallow cuts and scratches as he continues to dodge attacks from left and right. so, they're savvy enough to know to take out the support. wahoo. they don't seem any match for thorns, and they seem to recognise that minutes in.

to turn the tide, elysium catches a glimpse of their intent at the corner of his periphery, metal flashing darkly beneath the cover of night. ]

… They have a bomb! Thorns!

[oversea]

Shit.

[ well, at least they let docybara run off ahead of them or else this would have just been more problematic.

of course, his first reaction is to check how far it is from elysium, and so the most thorns is able to manage to do is use hits units to get the bomb further away with them. it explodes, and they can both get damage, but it is at least not close enough to them to blow up any limbs or worse. ]

[transmit]

[ the blast wave leaves his ears ringing as shrapnel tears past, skimming skin and shredding fabric. debris rains down around them—this close, it would have been impossible not to be caught in the splash zone to some extent. they're trained for this, like everything else, so the damage is kept to a minimum.

the real problem is the smoke trying to fill his lungs, especially with elysium's lungs already as fragile as they are, arm moving up to block it from entering his nose and mouth. in the aftermath, their assailants melt back into the chaos. his immediate priority is thorns, moving toward where he remembers him last. ]

We have to get moving. Now. Did you see which direction the Doctor went?

[oversea]

Just ahead. He'll come to us when we call for him.

[ at least, they gave him a low enough dose that hearing an explosion wouldn't go unnoticed, so docybara is likely on high alert right now. thorns would prefer to get further away before they summon their son though, the last thing they need is him running into a dense field of smoke.

he can tell that he's burnt somewhere, but that isn't a priority compared to getting out. ]

Let's go.

[ hopefully they won't be followed... ]

[transmit]

[ they may not be followed, but they may be tracked. isn't that fun?

but there's no time to think about it, not when they have places to be. he nods and quickens his stride, brushing off the breathlessness beginning to catch up to him. this is absolutely not the moment for a sickly victorian child episode… they gotta go. ]

[oversea]

[ they gotta go!!!

thorns keeps them moving until they are far enough that they no longer see any smoke. once they're there, thorns is just going to try to locate where their baby is with his alchemy... he can't have gotten that far since their cart was hooked up to him, but he doesn't think they're far away enough for it to be safe to actually all out. ]

Are you okay?

[transmit]

… Mm. [ his voice is quieter than it was before, so there's that. every so often he also turns his head away from thorns to make a sound, suspiciously close to a muffled cough. ] Keep going. Momentum's important.

[ mostly because he feels that the moment they stop, he's likely going to keel over. ]

[oversea]

[ ... his concern is growing, but he'll keep moving forward anyway. after a while. ]

Found him.

[ and thorns will direct them to cut to their left. their baby is right ahead, looking distraught at the separation... ]

[transmit]

[ he doesn't realise just how badly his thoughts have spiraled until docybara is right there in front of him. preparing for the worst, over and over, leaves its marks and scars. he stumbles forward until he's pressed against him, face buried in fur.

why is their happiness always so tenuous? ]

[oversea]

[ besides being their child, docybara has sort of become a symbol of a timeline that is going right. look, they're able to properly care and cherish something other than them. look at how good they are at keeping him safe. the moment they lose him, it will feel like the perfect lens of this cycle will crumble.

thorns quickly checks for any injuries... some mangled fur and a few scratches, but they look like they're from running around a forest alone and scared instead of being injured in an attacked. that's fine, they can take care of that once they're away from here. ]

... Mm. Let's keep going.

[transmit]

[ not the docybara death flags…

ignoring the feeling that something is threatening to tear straight through his chest, he nods from where he is, hoping it isn't obvious he's using docybara as a brace. animals are sensitive like that; docybara turns at once, worried, pressing its snout into him. elysium hushes it softly, and for all its stubbornness, it understands the directive to behave and does.

they move forward. elysium does his best not to explode, figuratively or otherwise. he can't be a burden. ]

[oversea]

[ they are really overdue for a break; they haven't even had a proper rest since this all happened in the middle of it, and they're injured. ]

... Have you sensed anyone?

[ he's almost hesitant to ask, since he doesn't want elysium to tire himself out with his arts. ]

[transmit]

[ yeah, even with a catalyst, people aren't meant to be channeling their arts for hours at a time. his sp economy is in shambles, not to mention his vision. ]

… No. You should check the Doctor for any trackers. Our clothing, too.

[oversea]

Mm, right.

[ he starts with elysium, looking him over before going over himself. when they're both cleared, he checks their child.. who is also clear.

...

and then he turns to the cart. and there, right above one of the wheels, is a tracker. ]

... There we are.

[transmit]

… If you can find wildlife to attach it to, all the better. We don’t know how closely they'll be monitoring us, but with any luck, most of their resources will be tied up in Lungmen.

[ there's a moment where he stifles a cough into his sleeve. ]

Let's keep moving until an opportunity presents itself.

[oversea]

[ ...

he forces himself not to start fretting over elysium, since that will only slow them down right now. but he gives him a look that says that they'll talk about elysium's condition later.

he wonders if it would be better or worse to get out of the woods. on one hand, it'll be easier for someone to spot them. on the other, the reverse is true–it'll be harder for them to be ambushed out in the open compared to here. ]

Tell me when you need a break.

[transmit]

[ he needed a break forever ago, but he isn't saying that. thorns is stressed, their child is stressed; the last thing they need is to stop somewhere steeped in the same pressure. ]

I will. This is nothing compared to the worst of what we've been through.

[ is that really the bar they should be using, though? it is now. ]

[oversea]

... Mm. I guess you're right.

[ this is not a healthy bar to set.

after a while, there's movement to their left. thorns freezes... until a small creature pokes its head out from the bushes. ]

Finally.

[ ... he'll have to use a unit to attach the tracker to it, since he's too worried about scaring it off. ]

Let's keep going, but after a while it should be safer to stop somewhere.

[transmit]

[ when was the last healthy bar they set. they weren't even healthy before they started looping; this was inherently doomed from the beginning.

but at this point, it's almost impossible to stay upright, let alone talk, barely even registering movement from the bushes until thorns designates it as clear. relying on sheer willpower, he ekes out a nod. depending on how long thorns wants to keep going, he has maybe another half hour before he trips over his own feet just trying to stay vertical. at least if he does, docybara is there to break his fall… his literal crutch from their last run-in until now. amazing. ]

[oversea]

[ well

that decides when they're taking a break. thorns runs to the cart to dig through it until he finds their first aid items, and then he rushes to elysium's side. docybara whines, concerned, and he gives him a pat to reassure him. ]

I'm checking your wounds.

[ he knows what's likely doing the most damage to him is the oripathy, but the bomb damage probably is not helping. they can take care of the either one of the two. ]

[transmit]

[ nothing about the situation is helping, really. he's hard of breath, starting to feel warm, and is finding it harder to remain upright. but he has to. there is nothing he wants more desperately in the world than to be by thorns' side and to live the life they both envisioned.

his fingers curl into thorns' clothing. it feels like saying anything would just make this worse, too. ]

[oversea]

[ he kisses his forehead, and then once he's done doing what he can to elysium's wounds, he will help him to settle down on the floor with the cart as support for his back.

he moves on to quickly tend to docybara's injuries. ]

We'll stay here for a while. Try to sleep.

[transmit]

… You haven't slept at all since you were on watch. You have to look after yourself, too.

[ which

he knows is a luxury, but still. even if he wanted to protest it, he isn't in the best condition to. where did he mess up? how did he mess up? it's like the spiral never ends. ]