Welcome to The Duality of Man, an original animanga role-play that features numerous supernatural creatures. Unfortunately, these various species have distanced themselves because of the war that occurred thousands of years ago, plaguing some with eyes that only see their dualism. While others meddle themself with their differences, two groups fight, each attempting to eliminate the other in for their definition of worldly peace. These two groups of the Terror Response Syndicate (TRS) and the Assembly of Phantoms (AP). With individuals fighting merely over their differences, it brings uncertainty to the outcome of this war.
We happily accept all role-players as long as they obey the rules and are capable of meeting our word count of 50. This does include those who are unfamiliar with this style of role-playing. The staff of The Duality of Man are willing to happily help those who are new to the role-playing world so they feel comfortable on site. Feel free to message the staff if you need help, they can be found here or in the site Discord and will gladly answer questions alongside calm concerns. If you have any suggestions we would love to hear them; guests may use the support board as a suggestion area as well. Should you decide to join, may I say welcome to the site and we all hope you enjoy your time here.
Yours Truely,
The Staff
season
Summer 2024
Heat has broken through into a glorious summer. The snow has entirely dried through the spring, leaving to the brilliance of the warmer months. Terror activity has risen as people are brought out of their homes, leaving the TRS in a position of consistent work. Each are attempting to maintain victory in the endless struggle for power.
Since the wonderful members of TDOM enjoy the site enough to play around on it, this thread is to assist with the site's tidying! Functionality is important and we want to make the site functional even if its activity will be minimal at best!
As quickly as she’d denied her blatant cries for validation, Mikaela Lye had turned on heel to address their hidden stalker. The one that she had been dead set on avoiding just a handful of minutes ago. So dead set that she’d literally made a deal with an assassin to enter a haunted house alone.
Daichi wasn’t one for mind games but he began to wonder if the previous direction of their conversation were really so bad that Ruby would turn towards a lesser evil.
The lesser evil being some weirdly attractive guy in a cowboy suit of course. Given that his own getup was a last-minute buy from a slooty Halloween store, Daichi really couldn’t point any fingers in that regard. Instead, he grabbed the brim of his cop cap and gave it a little tip in an incredibly mocking gesture as he spoke his next line.
“Howdy sheriff, what brings you to these parts of town?” Daichi’s feigned accident was atrocious but this only made it delicious, “I’m just her boy toy, don’t mind me.”
With a smirk he put his hands up in a gesture of piece and stepped back to enjoy the show that was about to unfold. Mikaela had already stepped back into the discussion with a strangely sassy tone. More so than the one she’d used to mock him. Apparently, it could get worse.
Daichi gave the man one more lingering gaze before turning back to Ruby. Clearly, she had it handled. The assassin leaned himself against a nearby wall and crossed his arms. It might’ve looked like he was bored to anyone without knowledge of his profession but in reality, he had his pointer and middle finger directly on the poisoned blade that lined the inside of his sleeve.
Any unwanted movement towards Ruby and this Emiko guy was dead. Daichi’s gaze settled between them, wondering who would slip up first. This was a goldmine for information if he played his cards right, he could get more than they initially bargained for.
An errant obsidian strand slipped across his face but Daichi didn’t dare brush it away. The guy was already far too close to Ruby for his liking.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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Enrico's scowl turned to take in Touri and his obnoxious act. Despite her resistance, the corners of Mikaela's lips tugged ever so slightly into a smile. He was a complete idiot, but when they weren't directed at her his annoying mannerisms were almost cute. She didn't know how he managed to act so human when he clearly spent most of his days walking with shadows. It was something she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to manage, and for a moment Mikaela thought she felt something like admiration filling her chest. He acted like he was a monster, but there was no way it's true. No matter how much he insisted she simply couldn't believe someone like him was truly heartless. And if he was, maybe the life she'd run from all those years ago wouldn't have been so bad after all.
"Here on business." Enrico said, pulling Mikaela away from her silent musings and she was careful to school her face back into an impassive mask and push away any errant thoughts. They wouldn't help her here. The next words were addressed to her. "My, his accent is as fake as yours."
Mikaela narrowed her eyes. "What the hell are you implying?" she asked, as her mind raced back to their past interactions. She couldn't recall putting on a fake accent. Her natural accent may have been thinner, blended with the Canadian one for the sake of stopping people from estimating how recently she'd been in Italy, but beyond that there had been nothing too crazy. Certainly nothing unbelievable.
"I think you know." he said bitterly. There were plenty of lies for him to question, but this wasn't one of them. Was he suggesting she wasn't Italian or calling her out for trying to cover anything at all?
"I wouldn't be too sure about that, I'm not so all-knowing as I used to be." She offered smoothly, trying to keep any genuine confusion out of her voice. If she was mixing up her lies there was no reason to let anyone know it wasn't intentional. Rather, she should move on. The most important thing now was to disarm him. She stepped in close, lowering her voice to cover for the proximity, as though she didn't want people overhearing. In reality, she couldn't care less. "On that note, you know the local gangs so much better than me. You recognize him? I'd really rather not be dealing with a hitman." His gaze was drawn to Touri, which was the wrong direction. She didn't have much time to pull this off and if he could see her movement in his peripheral vision it may not work so well. A secondary distraction wasn't too much trouble, though. She scanned his features and smirked. "Yeah, you don't really need to answer me, I can read it well enough from your face." Her hand snaked out and grabbed his wrist, thumb tracing over the gold timepiece that rested against it.
"Your pulse is too fast. There's no one here to be afraid of." It was true. She could feel the blood rushing through his veins, like a mouse caught in a trap. While, like any true cat, she was tempted to draw out the game, she couldn't get distracted from her actual goal. Her free hand slid down and practiced fingers loosened his gun from its holster, ducking back into the folds of her dress to hide her newly acquired weapon just as the clasp of the watch loosened in her other. She'd fixed her gaze on the watch, hoping it was enough to get her caught, and when she returned to focusing on Enrico's face there wasn't a trace of amusement. Had she overdone it? She didn't have anywhere to holster the gun in this stupid dress so she could only get away with this if he wasn't actively looking for the stolen object.
"Foolish woman with your transparent words. Take your hands off my watch and shut your mouth." His words were made harsher by his tone, but she simply smiled and took a step back, using the motion to angle the side of her dress concealing the gun as far away from him as she could while still retaining a casual air. "You used to be much better at that. Are you more focused on ruining lives than petty thievery these days?" The words were meant to sting, she was sure, but Enrico was the last one she'd let get under her skin. He came off as cold but she doubted he'd ever follow through on anything which made him no scarier than a daffodil.
"Something like that." she shrugged. She certainly hadn't done much stealing in the past few years, but she didn't ruin lives anymore either. Well, not in the same way. A gambling hall could take lives just as easily as spreading information to the wrong people, but it was far less intentional and it left little of the actual blame to her. "I've really been into charity work lately. You know, helping others learn the trade. Speaking of, Touri you're letting a great opportunity slip away. Here you have someone who knows much more about me than I'd ever share with you and you're not asking a single question." She pouted back at the assassin. She hated to think what he might ask, but with the gun in hand it would be much safer if he managed to distract Enrico. She wondered if he'd pick up on that plan. Who knew if he was paying close enough attention to notice her true sleight of hand, and if he did she wasn't so sure he'd be interested in letting her hold onto a firearm.
pfpfpt, this post is about to create some fireworks I think
Daichi Takeshi wasn’t really sure what he had expected to happen. A stalker that she’d rather not avoid but rather was now confronting. In a way the man had done Daichi a favor by ignoring him, allowing him to have full concentration on the issue at hand. While he wasn’t someone who frequently fought outside of the shadows, he wasn’t new to such a situation.
Ruby pattered around in a harsh tone – intended to irritate or scare. He couldn’t help but compare her to an alley cat backed into a corner by a stranger. While his demeanor was one of bored disinterest, he was still poised to strike if the situation escalated.
Chilled needles pricked the back of his neck as his nekomata companion foolishly stepped forward. He thought it would end there, his fingers somewhat tightening their grip as he planned just how he was going to kill this man. But much to Daichi’s chagrin, Ruby reached out and grabbed the man’s wrist.
“We’re on a date actually,” he interjected, mostly to hide the ever so slight tension in his lip at her unpredicted movements. Ruby clearly was not all there if she thought it was a good idea to get in proximity of a snapping dog.
How had Ruby made it this far? Daichi hardly knew.
Still, he had to trust that she had some sort of plan in mind. If everything went horribly wrong, he could simply shift and make a quick escape. It wasn’t like he owed Mikaela anything. The note hit discordance in his brain because he knew he did. Technically speaking, their little play date wasn’t over until Ruby said so.
What a distasteful thought.
“My my, petty thievery? Ruining lives?” Daichi replied in something akin to a purr as he breached the gap between them. The assassin wasn’t getting enough information the old way and he didn’t like watching Mikaela play with her food so to speak.
It very well could be that Ruby’s intentions were to lose both of them in this game by pitting them against one another. Daichi’s fingers had slipped entirely from his knife now and instead snaked over Mikaela’s back like they were indeed the loving couple he’d described not too long ago. In a gesture that was begging for another side-elbow, he pulled her close with his arm.
“It’s alright doll. I still love you,” feigned affection dripping with sarcasm hung in the air before he turned towards Enrico, still looking surprisingly pleasant, “so sheriff, what brings you to town? Did she break your heart or your questionable business tactics? From what I’ve gathered she’s pretty good at both.”
Daichi rubbed his bare thumb down a section of Mikaela’s exposed arm as though to remind her that he wasn’t going anywhere. Again, it was pushing her commitment to them appearing to be together because pushing him away would ruin it all. Assuming that was even what she was going for.
“Cats naturally have claws so you should’ve expected a scratch at some point. Anyone who doesn’t is just a fool, right?” sarcastic eyes never left the man who now stood in front of them. Daichi wanted to be underestimated if things escalated.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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Mikaela resisted the urge to glance back at Touri as he joined the conversation. If she didn’t know any better she’d say he was jealous. But she did know better. He was afflicted with something far worse. Protectiveness. For someone who claimed he wasn’t some knight in shining armor, he sure had a hero’s complex. How long would it take him to realize he’d fixed his attentions on someone who had no interest in being saved? There was nothing she needed saving from that she could ever tell someone like him about, nor would she ever ask anyone else to navigate those waters in her place.
Her shoulder tensed as he placed an arm around it, but she glanced up at him with a beaming smile. She was playing the role of an enamored girlfriend, something she could do well despite how much she’d prefer to punch him and be done with it. He may not have given her a proper distraction, but at the very least he blocked part of Enrico’s view. In the process he’d taken away her free movement. A warden had to protect his inmates just as a knight had to protect a princess.
"Don’t delude yourself, my love, you wouldn’t care for me nearly as much if I wasn’t a little dangerous." she informed him. Of course, he’d given no indication as to what his true type was, but she was fairly certain her words held enough truth. She’d only managed to keep his attention when they first met by being completely unpredictable. Then again, people treated a random stranger much differently than a friend. There was no way to tell who he preferred to hang out with.
Words interrupted Mikaela’s thoughts, responding to a question she hadn’t really been paying attention to when Touri asked. "My heart was the least of the casualties." He spoke with a certain hostility that caught her off guard. She furrowed her brow, trying to recall what, exactly, her mission had been when she was assigned to Enrico. Usually her line of work didn’t leave many victims; that’s why she’d chosen to take the role of an informant within the Ravagers. "It’s my sister’s life she uprooted."
A sister. Yes, she remembered a sister who pulled him into their world because of a stupid mistake. She always felt bad for people who were pulled into the darker shadows of the world. If you weren’t raised in them it was nearly impossible to see the tripwires everyone danced around. In this girl’s case she’d been spying for a group that couldn’t care less whether she made it out alive or not. All Mikaela had done was make sure the Ravagers knew what information was being leaked.
Enrico turned to her next, eyes doing little to hide the emotions flowing beneath. He had never been a very good liar. "You know, she’s in an early grave thanks to your ploy." A muscle tightened in Mikaela’s jaw. Was this his plan? To remind her of her past actions and hope it was enough to break her?
"Don’t you dare cry to me for pity" she snarled. "You’ve done far worse than I ever will, you’re just too naive to see the lives you take. You may have been safe before, but the rules of my former employers no longer bind me and you’ll find that makes me far less merciful." As she spoke the words, Mikaela told herself they were a lie but they still rang true somewhere deep inside. If anyone managed to truly upset her, she had far fewer limits than she ever had before. Her actions now only reflected upon her own name and that was easily replaceable. She didn't intend to hurt anyone, but that didn't make her any less afraid of what she might do on a whim.
The fact didn't sit well with her, so she changed the subject. "Cotton candy?" she asked, glancing up at Touri. She’d passed the stand selling cotton candy much earlier in the night. To get back there they’d have to pass through the outskirts of the party where a few people going missing wouldn’t be noticed by anyone. She hadn’t liked passing through in the dark on her own and she didn’t think she would feel much safer with an assassin at her side. Still, with Enrico unwittingly unarmed the privacy would give her a much better opportunity to lay down a threat that kept him away for a few more years yet.
"If you plan to ditch me, do it now. And if not, know that this will probably get a bit bloody" she breathed quiet enough for only her supposed boyfriend to hear. All too aware of the act she was supposed to be putting on she smirked as though she’d made some sort of joke. She certainly wasn’t about to release him from their deal, but he was bound to it by nothing more than honor and she wasn’t sure that was enough. An entertaining evening was one thing, but she doubted he’d expected to be dragged into this battle. Nor did she need him to actually stand by her side through a fight. Having the tables turned unexpectedly was the biggest danger she could run into.
Ruby responsible for the death of someone’s sister? He stared unflinchingly at the man as he ignored the obvious threat in front of him, determined to attack the dark-haired woman behind Daichi. While he was still the barrier between them, Daichi felt as though he weren’t even there given the weight of it.
Ruby’s angered response did tell the assassin that perhaps this Enrico had hit a soft spot. Or maybe she was as annoyed as Daichi was by the accusation. Either way it pissed him off more than he'd like to admit.
Mikaela’s sudden dissuasion from their current conversation fell on mostly deaf ears. Her quiet sentiment, however, hit the core of his mind. Was this insanity? Had years of being apart from his sister fractured his ability to remain impartial to things like this? Daichi had originally intended to honor their deal by providing the bare necessities.
But… something about this man’s presumptions had provoked a darker side in the career killer. How brazen to claim that a single person was responsible for a death. Despite all her outward appearances, Daichi didn’t think Mikaela Lye was one to willingly pull the trigger on any human being. So, most likely against all of Ruby’s current wishes, he stepped forward with the intention of daring this man to attack him.
“Did she pull the trigger herself? I doubt it. What’s really going on here is that you were too stupid to realize that your associations with a criminal organization could actually affect your family. Anyone worth anything should realize that,” his words were intentionally careless, sharpened to anger, “your sister died because you were inept and blaming others is only a way of excusing yourself from the truth; It’s your fault. Don't blame others for your mistakes.”
The seeds were planted. A plot that Anzu might be surprised about. Daichi Takeshi doing more than brandishing a blade and dancing in the shadows. Who was this person? He didn’t dare take his eyes off the man in front of him – who knew what sort of weaponry the guy had currently on him (if any).
Aside from magic or innate abilities, Daichi was certain he could overcome any physical weapon. If the abilities were present… well, this party had gotten really boring.
Daichi continued to stare at Mikaela’s ghost from the past, forgetting his initial comb for information. Nothing made him angrier than someone who couldn’t admit their own faults. It was easy to blame others but most of the time an individual’s actions are the causative factor. To ignore this was pure foolishness.
Sage-hued centers continue to watch and wait patiently for whatever came next.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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Much to her dismay, Mikaela's words fell on deaf ears. Her plan to draw them to a more private location would be hopeless if her supposed ally started a pissing fight with the target she was trying to lull into a sense of false complacency. It wasn't like there had been a high chance of that anyway, but she still didn't like Touri getting in the way. Especially when he had no reason to. She didn't think Enrico was armed, but that didn't mean he couldn't be hiding a knife and she didn't want Touri getting himself stabbed in a foolish temper tantrum.
"There's no reason to-" she started gently, trying to stop whatever was about to happen, but she was cut off again. She made a note to thank her father for never having her work with idiots like these when there was actual danger hovering around.
"She's really got you fooled, hasn't she?" Enrico asked bitterly. "Was it those moments of hesitation or did she actually go as far as to fake tears for you?" Crimson eyes turned to Touri, curious to see how he’d react to this. It wasn’t wrong to assume any pity turned towards her was misplaced. She’d prefer her new friend to find that out sooner rather than later, seeing as he was intent to hang around. "How long do you think you’ll last before you get burned? I’m sure she’s killed more people than you’ve met, if she’s wasting her time on you I’m sure someone’s death isn’t too far off."
"Enrico!" she snapped. Almost as quickly as she made the decision, she flicked her knife out of its hidden sheath and positioned it against his gut. In her other hand, the gun directed itself towards the assassin. "Touri." she added in a softer tone. She didn't want to threaten both of them. In fact, she didn't want to run the risk of either of them calling her bluff. If she got blood on this dress she'd have to get it out before her sister saw and asked questions.
She kept an apologetic gaze fixed on Touri. If he suddenly saw her as an enemy it would be a long night. But years of watching over her cousins had her hardwired to use anything she had to break up arguments before it got too problematic. "Of all the people I've had to babysit, I truly didn't expect either of you to make the list. You guys are acting like children and making my business public in the process. I hope you can understand that I just can't have that happening." She tried to keep the anger out of her voice, but it added a layer of harshness to her words anyway. "So, cotton candy? I'm pretty sure the stand's that way." she motioned to a darker area of the party with her chin, hoping they'd take the hint.
Pure bitterness dripped from every one of Enrico’s words, grating on Daichi’s usually calmed nerves. It irritated him to think that someone could be so lost to their own actions as to blame another. Even if Mikaela had put a gun to his sister’s head and shot the bullet herself it wouldn’t be her fault. Associations with a criminal organization were almost always bound to affect family. Even in this day and age where it was easier to live entirely apart.
But before Daichi could make another angering remark, Mikaela drew a knife from her person and aimed it at the man before him. He was about to bristle with annoyance at the showy motion – especially considering she had chastised him for doing the same at the bar, but there was now the barrel of a gun pointed directly at his person.
Daichi stopped cold in his tracks.
There was some semblance to an apology within those ruby eyes but Daichi didn’t change his cold exterior gaze in the slightest. Did she really expect him to obey like a dog? It was his position in the Black Order but that was prompted by money.
He had already collected his prize and, most importantly, he didn’t believe in empty threats.
“Mikaela Lye, I hope you didn’t point a gun at me with the intention of not using it,” he replied gruffly, less a threat more a dare. His finger had already slid into the inlet of his sleeve, disguised by the slightest of gestures. Daichi’s eyes flashed back to Enrico, ignoring the gun held level to his person, “so what was your purpose in following us? To get revenge? Or just to smolder silently at us like a dying coal at an abandoned campfire?”
It was a question that would decide the fate of what happened next. There were some things he could ill afford to lose and, given the specifics of what had occurred today, one of those things could potentially be compromised. At this point he had moved close enough to the gun to feel the barrel on his shoulder, though he continued to promptly ignore it.
Maybe she would shoot him after all.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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Once again, Mikaela was ignored. Even if she wasn't holding a gun to him, it would have been a stupid move. She was the only one that truly understood the situation, unless Touri was much more involved in local gangs than she'd expected. She'd assumed that by dragging him along she'd have an extra layer of protection, but every word out of his mouth had plenty of potential to ruin her peaceful future.
Mikaela Lye. She shouldn't have given him her real name. She'd promised to, but she could have held off until she knew she wouldn't see him again. Now it had been given to Enrico who could use it to dig up god knew what. The second he'd opened her mouth she should have pulled the trigger, but some foolish desire to hear what he had to say stopped her.
"Don't answer that." she told Enrico, pressing the knife harder against his stomach in warning. She wanted to know the answer, but whatever it was would give Touri too much information on what she used to do. She returned a steely gaze to the assassin. The foolish, idiodic assassin. The hand holding the gun was shaking, in anger no doubt. How dare he try to call her bluff.
She didn’t bluff. The price when she was called on it was far too high. She’d only threatened to shoot him because she would do it if she had to… right? She’d always been told to think through her threats, to make sure she could truly keep them without losing anything herself. After all, when one threat was empty it called all the others into question. Not to mention risking the anger of her father. Somehow she suspected he’d hear about this, even if he was an ocean away.
"You underestimate me, darling." she drawled, forcing her hand to be still as she pulled the trigger. An empty click rang out, somehow piercing her deeper than a true shot would have. "Saftey?" she asked the man behind her. She wasn't looking at him but she trusted her hearing to pick up if he shifted his weight. Plus if he tried to lodge a surprise attack she was willing to bet Touri would react.
"That chamber is empty."the response came, but it made absolutely no sense to her. She knew the general anatomy of a gun, just not in English. There had been no reason to learn the terms in English.
"Whatever. Probably for the better, the goal is not to draw attention." She brushed off the confusion. She was pretty sure she could take both of them with one knife. They weren't experienced working together and Enrico wasn't really a fighter to begin with. She'd lost ground in appearances alone. "If you want to continue this conversation it will be in a more private location. Got it?" she asked. She'd made that as clear as she could, but clearly a threat wasn't enough motivation. "If you want to pick a fight here and now you're a fool."
There was a low growl of disapproval from Mikaela in the form of a don’t-answer-that coupled with what Daichi could only imagine was a pressed blade. In reality he shouldn’t have been surprised when her slender finger squeezed the trigger in his direction.
It begged the question: really, what had he expected? Was this some sort of silent way for him to finally embrace a colorless death? Did he even care if he died? Daichi had come to terms with that sort of thing nearly a century ago so this was an unlikely possibility.
So then, the only thing left would be that he was testing Ruby to see if she would actually shoot him. Well, apparently he now had his answer.
Daichi stared unflinchingly, waiting for the bullet but what came instead was an empty click followed by almost sarcastic words from Ruby’s other victim. She hadn’t checked the gun before waving it around. He’d never been one for guns or killing from afar, too impersonal, but even the least talented of criminals knew the basics of using a gun. It was a rookie mistake.
Against his better judgement, he burst out laughing.
“Did you…. of course, you did,” the assassin reached out with his non-dominant hand and gave her head an enthusiastic pat in what seemed like a harmless, average motion, “sorry though, it’s just the price of business. I’d say we could continue this in hell but, you know.”
In one smooth motion, Daichi procured the poisoned blade from his sleeve. There was no point in making in natural looking because the higher ups had likely already wondered why his true target hadn’t gotten dead.
Managerial issues for later of course.
He jabbed perfectly between the tiny rib space where the slightest of windows to Enrico’s heart was. The movement was so quick, a simple puncture and then he was once again standing by Ruby with a crimson-stained blade.
Sage-hued eyes turned towards his victim to make sure the job was done. If Mikaela wanted to stab him as well, he figured now would be the time.
A distantly loud yell came from the main party area but Daichi ignored it – there was always bound to be someone rowdy enough to annoy others at an event like this. Probably too much liquor.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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Laughter reached Mikaela's ears and as her cheeks began to burn she considered taking her knife and just stabbing him. Blades were far more reliable anyway. At least he didn't accuse her of purposefully letting him slide. She didn't want him to poke further into the truth.
As Touri's hand started to come towards her, every muscle in her body tensed. He'd surely take the gun and stop her from making any further attacks - it was what any sane person would do. Instead, he had the nerve to pat her on the head. A deep growl rumbled from her throat. He was lucky she didn't bite his hand or something. This was the second time he'd pulled this! Once she got home she'd have to plan how to best respond to this particular action. Assuming she ever saw him again. Which she wouldn't. Because running into someone three times was more than a coincidence and she was pretty sure she didn't want to spend time with him for no reason.
She sifted for some sort of meaning in his words, but she didn't take her eyes off him. When he pulled out a blade she took half a step back, away from both men, and assumed a more defensive position, discarding the gun somewhere behind her. It wasn't like it would be of any use and if Touri planned on striking she didn't want its weight holding her up. She wasn't his target, though. In a twist she should have expected, he stabbed Enrico.
"D-did you just kill him?" she asked shakily. Crimson fell from the fresh wound, catching Mikaela off guard. In the past hour it seemed she'd discovered a new distaste for blood. There was too much of it on her hands already. She didn't want to see any more. She uttered a quick prayer for the fallen man, a habit she'd developed in her childhood more on her aunt's insistance than any true belief. Anyone that died near her would need more than a prayer to push them onto any pleasant afterlife.
A few yells managed to break through the dull thrum of music in the distance, but after tuning in long enough to determine none of the voices belonged to her sister Mikaela blocked them out. She had more important things to worry about now. Like how she could get the information she wanted from a dead man and whether this could somehow be traced back to her. The few people who bothered paying attention to her only kept quiet because she wasn't causing problems for them. Depending on who Enrico had been working for that could all be over now.
Her eyes returned to Touri. Until he put that blade away she wasn't going to turn her back on him. "Let me get this straight," she began, burning away the icy fear with a dose of faked rage, "It would cost eight thousand euro for you to try to kill me but he gets to die for free? What the hell? What happened to only killing for a price?"Is someone else paying you? The thought struck her and that fear she'd been trying to erase dug its claws in deeper. Her gaze searched his reaction for any hint that she was on the wrong path. What other reason would he have for stabbing Enrico? She really didn't take him as the type of person to bother taking a life without getting something in return. Especially when that life held no particular weight to him. So what other reason was there?
The one that popped into her head was ridiculous, but she played it out anyway, adding a healthy dose of hurt to her expression. "Do you hate me so much that you'd kill a guy to bring our date to a close?" Wide doe eyes stared up at him as she did her best to embody Libby in those pitiful moments that always managed to win any argument. She momentarily debated whether adding a quivering lip would be taking it too far before breaking eye contact.
"You don't have to lie to me, I can take a hint." she pursed her lips, looking down at her hands as she fidgeted with the familiar weight of her knife. She pulled images into her mind - a certain childhood squabble and the resulting fallout with her father, moments explaining some of the less legal things she'd done to Libby, Touri laughing at her for the folly with the gun - anything to bring a touch of red to her cheeks. It had been a while since she'd truly lied for no good reason, and she wanted to make the most of the opportunity to see if this would make Touri squirm.
It was a well-placed stab, perfectly executed so that the man before him only gurgled slightly before he died. Actually, judging on the delayed death, it had been kind of sloppy. Perhaps Mikaela Lye was to blame for that. He leaned down and wiped the blade clean on the man’s clothing without a care for Mikaela’s reaction. She had, after all, threatened to kill the man and – as she had so aptly demonstrated – she didn’t make threats lightly.
As Daichi stood up, sheathing the blade, Mikaela’s coarse accusations accosted his ear. Was that annoyance or had his unpredictable actions simply caught her off guard? It was clear that she was certainly practiced at keeping her true thoughts, at least in this case, to herself. Well, sort of.
“Don’t pretend that him being dead isn’t better for both of us. I’m assuming you never told him your real name and I certainly don’t want my… associates finding out I was walking freely in the open with someone known to have criminal ties,” a pause as he turned to stare directly into her, “that’s you by the way.”
Thankfully, aside from a few loud yells in the background, nobody seemed to be the wiser for the now-corpse lying in the hall. Daichi sighed. He hadn’t planned it out this far really. Now he’d be hiding a corpse as well. His eyes spotted a tacky coffin pressed against an adjacent wall, most likely cosmetic, but if the inside were hollow it would be an ironic yet fitting hiding place.
"Do you hate me so much that you'd kill a guy to bring our date to a close?"
The question was ridiculous, accompanied by doe-like eyes that could melt any cold exterior. Hate wasn’t something Daichi Takeshi was really capable of anymore. Logic and reason were his guiding principles. A life as an assassin guided by emotions would be a short existence.
Pursed lips, pouting, and a feigned attitude of unwantedness. It was part of the act, wasn’t it? Another game. Sadly, he wasn’t feeling this one.
“Yep, you’re despicable. You couldn’t even shoot me,” he shrugged, “guess I’ll have to find a new date for the night who knows how to load a gun. Now, if you’re done sulking let’s haul your ex into this coffin and get some cotton candy.”
He leaned down, getting ready to hoist the dead man before shooting a toothy grin in Mikaela’s direction. If this didn’t provoke her nothing would.
“I know you were dying to have some and talk about all our problems; we can start with this guy, I guess. Though he won’t be talking much anymore,” he pretend-mused out loud, sliding his hands under the man’s armpits while being mindful of the pooling blood. It’d leave a trail but hopefully everyone would just assume it was another Halloween decoration, “can you grab his legs or will you break a nail?”
More noise outside, what Daichi could only presume was hysterical laughing from a bad joke. This was a tedious night and, despite the amusement Ruby had brought him, he wanted nothing more than to waltz in his apartment and shut out the world. Even assassins preferred curling up on a cozy, quiet couch with a good movie. And no Mikaela Lye of course.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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[attr=class,Mikheadertext1]I'm not ready for the truth to see the light
[attr=class,Mikheadertext2]Make it up, Make it pretty, I don't mind
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[attr=class,Mikmaintextbox][attr=class,Mikmaintext] Hurt flashed in Mikaela’s eyes. She wasn’t sure whether it was because she still wanted to make Touri feel bad or the sting of the comment was genuinely shining through. It had to be the former. Showing true emotions like that was too much of a weakness, especially in a situation like this. Her father had made sure she’d never dare to slip up like that. But then her father had also tried to make sure she’d never run, yet here she was, far from home and relatively free. [break][break] The words themselves weren’t what cut too deep. She wasn’t even sure what dispicable meant, but she was sure it was well deserved. What hurt was that he didn’t bat an eye at her comment. She hadn’t expected him to, it wasn’t like they were friends, but it still caught her off guard. [break][break] Ignoring the underlying meaning of the emotion, she played into it. The potential to mess with Touri was just too delicious, and the best way to hide those bits of truth that slipped through was always by building them into a lie. "How can you think so little of me?" she asked in a shaky voice. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from the assassin, letting him play around in the mess of the murder without paying him much mind. "If that’s how it is…" If he’d claimed she was sulking before she definitely was now. She all but kicked at the ground as she walked. [break][break] She wandered over to the discarded gun and picked it up. She didn’t need the weapon anymore and it being missing could draw more questions from his employers. The last thing she wanted when someone stumbled across this scene was questions. The only way she could be certain she was safe was if they took this to be a cut and dry case. [break][break] Her gaze wandered back to Touri as he tried to tell her what to do. He didn’t seem at all weary around death, not that she’d expected him to be. "Why should I help you?" she asked, letting ruby eyes linger on him for a moment longer before indignantly averting them from the scene again. "You didn’t want to listen to me earlier. Meanwhile, you were acting on… what? Emotion? Pride? Anger? You didn’t have a right to any of those things, Enrico was a ghost from my past, not yours." [break][break] Emotions. Mikaela was pretty sure anyone watching her would assume that was what she ran on. Touri didn’t know her well enough to see anything but a hypocrite scolding him now. She scowled, drawing back to a more personal argument. Her gaze returned to him and her brow furrowed as she recalled the specific act she was trying to pull. [break][break] "Oh! But heaven forbid I have a plan. Sorry, I forgot you don’t think I can take care of myself! Clearly, I don’t know what’s good for me. Only a fool would think I could fight my own battles!" Sarcasm and anger dripped from her words and once again she wasn’t sure how much of it was true. The more childish he thought her to be, the better. She shouldn’t be calling him out on it. And yet with Touri it was harder to fully think through her arguments. It was because he was so dense. It grated her nerves. [break][break] "It’s not like you’re so clever yourself. If you think death will ensure people keep your secrets, you may as well be a dead man walking." She pointed out. It was finally an argument she was happy with. She knew first hand how easy it was to get secrets out of the dead. That had been one of her father’s interrogation methods. If someone didn’t comply to torture letting them die and bringing them back so they thought they were given some silly second chance usually opened them up a bit It was easy enough as long as you had a proper necromancer on the team. [break][break] Something in the air caught in Mikaela’s throat, a scent she very much didn’t like. Burning. Not the standard burning of a closed household flame, though. Whatever it was, it didn’t sit well with the nekomata. She brushed it off and glared at the assassin, but any argument faded from her and she kept her mouth shut.
In reality Daichi had expected some back handed insult or at least a witty retort. What he hadn’t expected was the degree of readability she was emanating. Or maybe she was just really good at faking it? He watched almost dumbfounded as she refused to assist him in hiding the evidence.
Well… she had known the guy after all.
Sometimes it was easy to forget the bindings of a mortal existence. Eternity sort of eroded a lot of the personal things that one might consider human. Add to that death, shameless murder, and the whole existence he’d lived and Daichi supposed anyone might be oblivious to the feelings of others. Most importantly, it appeared Mikaela Lye actually did have feelings.
After the unpacking of what seemed like the entire contents of her mind, Daichi decided that it was best to address her concerns in order. Mostly because a swift cover up for this body would allow both of them to part ways much sooner without being discovered. He really did dislike changing to spider form in front of others. Tipping one’s cards too early was always a bad idea.
“Actually, thanks to you I might add, Enrico knew my identity and, again thanks to you, our association with one another,” his voice was calm and collected like a parent politely scolding a child, “plus, since you made it obviously clear that he couldn’t give me any information he was absolutely useless. No sense in letting someone with that kind of knowledge back into the world. I have an image to keep after all.”
The idea of him keeping an image was laughable at best but he continued to maintain his face for the next portion of their alleged conversation.
“No offense but you seem pretty terrible at fighting anything. The whole oh-please-kill-me act sort of gave you away. If I’m a dead man walking than you’re a death wish waiting to happen,” he adjusted his grip on the now-corpse of Enrico, “I hate to break it to you but if you hate yourself that much that you want someone to end it all for you then you’ve come to the wrong assassin.”
He shook his head. It didn’t really look like she was going to assist with this corpse moving at all. Not with that tantrum.
Actually, it was quite amusing. The way the crimson cores of her eyes bore into him and a sort of subtle stiffness to her lips. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say she looked kind of cute this way. It was one of his faults really. Pushing buttons was far too fun to resist.
Daichi hauled one half of the dead weight in his arms into the faux coffin and bent down to grab the other. The screaming upstairs had become somewhat of a racket but he hadn’t really noticed how much until the silence fell between them. Unfortunately, any time that might have been allowed to him to evaluate this had gone directly into taunting Ruby.
What didn’t escape his subtle senses was the sudden crack in the air. An acrid, familiar dryness that could mean only one thing: Fire. Headed straight for them actually. Instincts kicked in and Daichi dropped Enrico, gripping the first thing on Mikaela he could find. It was some purple, fluffy part of her wardrobe that was barely secure enough for the amount of force he yanked her back with.
The assassin let go, not really sure where the nekomata would land behind him but it was far enough that she didn’t fall within the line of fire that lit the ground just where she had been standing. His fingers instinctively reached into his pocket, drawing a different knife in defense before him. It would be a poor counter to any sort of magic of course but it was better than nothing.
Sage-hued centers tried to find the source of the attack but fell on an empty entrance hall instead. He hissed in distaste. What awful timing. Had the Black Order finally decided he wasn’t worth the trouble and sent someone to kill him? Or had Mikaela Lye been the real target here after all? So many questions without answers.
What a pain in the ass.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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[attr=class,Mikredheadertext1]I'm not ready for the truth to see the light
[attr=class,Mikredheadertext2]Make it up, Make it pretty, I don't mind
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Mikaela couldn't read Daichi. He clearly knew she was a manipulative liar, and yet he acted like she was nothing more than the naïve girl she presented herself as. It left her wondering whether he could see through her and was lying or he was just that dense. It was annoying. [break][break] She was starting to get too honest, so she wiped away the retort she wanted to bite back with. She smiled up at him, releasing the fake anger she'd been holding onto. "Awe, that's adorable! You got scared and lashed out." She knelt down and put the gun back in its holster. "It's ok, cuciolo. I could have used some intel from him, but I'll forgive you." [break][break] That horrible dryness was getting heavier, a sure sign that the phantom fire was getting closer. She couldn't tell exactly what was off about it, but it still wasn't normal. At some point while Touri tugged the corpse into what he thought would be its hiding spot, she decided she had to find her escape route before things really went south. [break][break] She'd decided exactly where she wanted to go, but a certain idiot assassin had other plans. As she her muscles tightened so she could break into run, a strong hand gripped the sleeve of her dress and tugged her toward him sharply. "Cretino!" she cursed as she stumbled back and skidded to the ground. She would scold him for his stupidity, but her lungs were tightening and her eyes were stinging. It was too hot to breath with that fire right in front of her. [break][break] She felt her dress loosen as he released her. He'd torn her damn sleeve! She huffed, knowing this would piss Libby off, and tore off the rest of the piece of fabric, pressing it over her nose and mouth. Then she kicked the corpse closer to the flames. Fire buried crimes as well as anything else and right now she just had to get out. She couldn't let herself worry about anything else. Daichi wasn't wrong when he'd claimed she had a death wish, but she'd promised Libby she'd stay at this party until midnight and she was pretty sure dying counted as ditching. [break][break] A draft swept through the area, blowing smoke into Mikaela's face. She broke into a coughing fit and turned around, as though that'd keep her out of the direct line of smoke. Crimson eyes met Daichi's, though his face was a bit blurry. "Touri," she said slowly, trying to keep her voice clear despite how muddled her mind was getting. "Any other night I'd be happy to die, but get me out of here."
One careless kick later and Ruby’s late romance was closer to becoming a crispy addition to the flames so intent upon consuming the mansion.
Dai huffed. This was a bit of a mess, more so than it had been only seconds before. Fire consumed everything normally but for a jorogumo it was even worse. His instincts screamed for him to run, to phase into his tiny spider body and find a small crack to skitter out of. But there was a problem here, a problem supposedly named Mikaela Lye.
“Get me out of here”.
Get her out of here.
… did she really think he was trustworthy enough to follow through on that deal?
He scowled, grabbing the ridiculous shades off of his face and pitching them behind him. A new heat accosted his eyes, running the length of his fingertips so that he nearly recoiled backwards. This was spreading far too fast to be a normal fire which could only mean one thing to him. Either a guest had gone berserk – highly unlikely - or the Assembly was involved.
“You’re going to owe me big time kitty cat,” he said through clenched teeth, fighting every survival instinct wired into his brain as he stepped forward and grabbed her by the wrist.
There really was only one way out. To go forwards was impossible. Backwards would trap them in a basically windowless haunted house with only one exit that was likely compromised. Which meant, much to his dismay, that they would be taking the stylish and more dangerous way out. Daichi released his grip on her dainty wrist for just long enough to pick up a faux candelabra and tossed it at one of the grand, giant windows that made up this portion of the mansion.
Glass shattered followed by the echo of the sound of whatever cheap plastic the candelabra was made of hitting the floor. Daichi kicked out just enough class from the right side so that they wouldn’t get snagged climbing out onto the thin ledge in front of the windows. He peered outwards, noting that they were a good three floors up.
Thirty-three to forty feet? Not a jump even he would survive. Thankfully, he didn’t have to jump. Sage eyes combed the exterior, obsidian hair tossed by a charitable breeze.
Underneath lay a surprisingly untouched hedge maze that didn’t look like it had been part of the party. At the end was a large decorative iron gate and, as he was happy to note, their escape from the about to be toasted mansion. Daichi poked his head back in before offering Mikaela a serious expression.
“So, are you any good at climbing? If not, you might die here,” the last part was a joke. He’d carry her out if he had to. Daichi had a few tricks up his sleeve but even with a fiery death creeping closer he couldn’t help but try and provoke those expressive burning orbs towards something resembling anger or impatience.
The assassin kept one hand on the broken glass frame, his boot on the edge of the window as the breeze swept over him. Heights had always been something he enjoyed but this was probably because it was absolutely impossible for him to fall. Ruby didn’t know that though and he certainly wasn’t going to tell her. More fun that way.
MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS
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