[ The blade connects just below his shoulder and cuts through his flesh and muscles like butter. As time has a horrible habit of passing slowly in moments like this, McGillis experiences a moment of visceral fear at the idea that the word is going to cut clean through, but that fear is soon alleviated by the tenacity and thickness of human bone.
This time McGillis screams. Pain cuts through him all over, and he remembers how it felt to die (truly die) back on Rustal Elion's damned flagship. Anguish clouds his senses, and it pushes reason to the bottom of his mind. This isn't Gaelio. The best McGillis has for Izou is a blossoming fondness, not nearly enough to hold him back from the thing he's been doing all his life.
Survive, survive, survive. Survive through any means necessary. Only the strong can live. Weakness is fatal. Survive. You have to run, you have to lie, you have to cheat, you have to kill, and you have to live--
The core mechanism at the center of every living being.
McGillis, despite being dead already, does not want to die here.
His right arm is completely useless now, but no matter. He's never been the kind of man who has only one avenue available to him. With his left arm, McGillis reaches behind him and produces a dagger. It was one of the first purchases he made after coming to Sunset City, because he is all too aware of the threat of running out of ammo mid-fight.
At this point, McGillis has nothing to lose by getting real close and personal with Izou - it will hinder his movements after all. And so he moves to stab (4) and stab (3) and stab (10) and stab (15). He finds his rhythm easily, grimly determined to get Izou to drop his damn sword already - though he is not aiming to kill, he is also not trying to avoid it now. There is something more beastial about his mind when pain occupies so much of it. ]
'Under'?! You know nothing about what it means to be lower than someone else--! You--!!
[Unlike the so called Demon of Kyoto, Izou doesn't want to kill senselessly, being more principled than he'd admit to. Still, he does get a visceral satisfaction as his sword meets the faint resistance of flesh, in the the warm arterial gush of blood that issues out. The pained cry of his target, direct feedback that he's done what he resolved to do every time he swings the blade.
He doesn't feel guilty, because he's letting his anger drown out his conscience. When he killed people for the Kinnou-tou, he was able to justify it with what he'd been told. That is the enemy. They deserve divine punishment and you are a tool to deliver it. But now, if he stopped to think about it, he wouldn't be able to say whether McGillis was in his eyes equivalent to those men or the ones who had given him the orders.
The stabs at least draw a yelp out of him, but he's suffered far worse and won't be detered by this. He swings, but with the close range putting him at a disadvantage, he just grazes McGillis again(7) before the injuries to his shoulder make him lose his grip on his sword completely (1)]
Don't- Like fucking hell I don't! The reason I had ta take orders from everyone else is cause I couldn't have gotten anywhere on my own! I didn't have the money or status ta do fuck all, so I had ta claw my way up to a place where people'd at least see I was worth something!
[Exasperated, furious, desperate, Izou is resorting to jamming his thumb into the wound he laid across McGillis's chest, twisting to at least get the guy to back off so he can regroup.]
[ That hurts like a bitch and it's the exact kind of playing dirty that McGillis himself would resort to if pushed to that point, so he can't exactly decry it as unfair. Unfortunately, it also activates something deeply stubborn in him. Sure, it hurts so much that he feels he might see black spots dancing in his field of vision any minute now, but he's got Izou where he wants him and like hell is he letting go now.
Rather than backing away, he's using his strength to push forward, aiming to topple them both over and position himself on top of Izou. He's not losing in terms of pure muscle strength, and when it comes to height and weight he has a clear advantage that he's planning to leverage to the fullest. ]
Even-- even having the power to claw--
[ That sentence remains as a fragment because McGillis can't focus on speaking and grappling and being in insurmountable agony all at once. ]
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This time McGillis screams. Pain cuts through him all over, and he remembers how it felt to die (truly die) back on Rustal Elion's damned flagship. Anguish clouds his senses, and it pushes reason to the bottom of his mind. This isn't Gaelio. The best McGillis has for Izou is a blossoming fondness, not nearly enough to hold him back from the thing he's been doing all his life.
Survive, survive, survive. Survive through any means necessary. Only the strong can live. Weakness is fatal. Survive. You have to run, you have to lie, you have to cheat, you have to kill, and you have to live--
The core mechanism at the center of every living being.
McGillis, despite being dead already, does not want to die here.
His right arm is completely useless now, but no matter. He's never been the kind of man who has only one avenue available to him. With his left arm, McGillis reaches behind him and produces a dagger. It was one of the first purchases he made after coming to Sunset City, because he is all too aware of the threat of running out of ammo mid-fight.
At this point, McGillis has nothing to lose by getting real close and personal with Izou - it will hinder his movements after all. And so he moves to stab (4) and stab (3) and stab (10) and stab (15). He finds his rhythm easily, grimly determined to get Izou to drop his damn sword already - though he is not aiming to kill, he is also not trying to avoid it now. There is something more beastial about his mind when pain occupies so much of it. ]
'Under'?! You know nothing about what it means to be lower than someone else--! You--!!
no subject
He doesn't feel guilty, because he's letting his anger drown out his conscience. When he killed people for the Kinnou-tou, he was able to justify it with what he'd been told. That is the enemy. They deserve divine punishment and you are a tool to deliver it. But now, if he stopped to think about it, he wouldn't be able to say whether McGillis was in his eyes equivalent to those men or the ones who had given him the orders.
The stabs at least draw a yelp out of him, but he's suffered far worse and won't be detered by this. He swings, but with the close range putting him at a disadvantage, he just grazes McGillis again(7) before the injuries to his shoulder make him lose his grip on his sword completely (1)]
Don't- Like fucking hell I don't! The reason I had ta take orders from everyone else is cause I couldn't have gotten anywhere on my own! I didn't have the money or status ta do fuck all, so I had ta claw my way up to a place where people'd at least see I was worth something!
[Exasperated, furious, desperate, Izou is resorting to jamming his thumb into the wound he laid across McGillis's chest, twisting to at least get the guy to back off so he can regroup.]
no subject
[ That hurts like a bitch and it's the exact kind of playing dirty that McGillis himself would resort to if pushed to that point, so he can't exactly decry it as unfair. Unfortunately, it also activates something deeply stubborn in him. Sure, it hurts so much that he feels he might see black spots dancing in his field of vision any minute now, but he's got Izou where he wants him and like hell is he letting go now.
Rather than backing away, he's using his strength to push forward, aiming to topple them both over and position himself on top of Izou. He's not losing in terms of pure muscle strength, and when it comes to height and weight he has a clear advantage that he's planning to leverage to the fullest. ]
Even-- even having the power to claw--
[ That sentence remains as a fragment because McGillis can't focus on speaking and grappling and being in insurmountable agony all at once. ]