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It's a rather quaint town when you get down to it. At least, that's what the Sheriff would argue. Warm and dry in the mornings and afternoons with a brisk coolness in the evenings. The perfect type of weather to just sit out on your rocking chair and observe the comings and goings.
... Of course, there's not much in the way of comings and goings when there aren't any actual people here to watch. Nevertheless, don't let that get you down! The town is your oyster and those roosters won't stop crowing until everyone's out of bed. Up and at 'em, rise and shine, it's time to make the day yours!
After all, there's nothing wrong with the town today and you might just want to savor it while it lasts.
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Whether she will be or not is immaterial to her, as long as she can stay alive. ]
Come on.
[ Xion will move towards the door, making sure Milla is close by. They'll probably need to move together if something goes wrong. ]
Are you ready?
[ Because once she has confirmation, she'll brace herself - leaning her weight on her good foot - to move, and then yank open the door. ]
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[either way, she shifts closer to Xion to help her open the door]
I'm ready.
[and once that confirmation is given, she assists in yanking said door open. . .! making sure to stay tucked behind it of course]
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The moment the door unclicks from the lock, there is a loud BOOM and the girls are going to have to be really fast to get out of the way of that --
Well, that cannonball being shot directly at them from inside the room. The cannonball that is, of course, being shot out of that cannon that was at the other end of the room. That was the black mass.
The shot will take out the door and post of the front of the shop, even knocking out most of the porch floor where it'll land. Hope it doesn't land on anyone's feet!
There's also a scraping sound to indicate that the cannon is being reloaded, even if it's not quite visible from here. ]
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[at any rate, Milla had done her best to try and shield Xion when positioning herself in front of the door. as such, when the cannonball comes bursting through the wood, it catches Milla right in the ribs first. now. . . while Milla may be the woman who took an explosion to the legs, several powerful hits to the gut, plenty of enemy magic to the face and a whoooooole host of other hurt during her battles at home. . . that's still a goddamn cannonball]
[so she's being forcibly flung from the porch now with nothing but a choked and pained cry. and since Xion was behind her, the other woman might be getting tossed back with her. the sound of the cannon reloading doesn't even register right now, because freakin' ow]
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Xion doesn't even think when they land, just reacts, grabbing Milla and pulling her away from the line of fire. Here's where a lifetime of combat actually starts to pay off. It's just muscle memory. She's gasping as she does it, not even because she finds Milla hard to move, but because she's putting full weight on her heel and it's sort of agonizing. Adrenaline lets her ignore it, though.
That noise, that awful scraping, gets Xion to look at the building in a panic. ]
Something's... I think it's happening again!
[ haha REALLY PULLING MILLA OUT OF THE LINE OF FIRE like she's not risking that twice. still, her eyes are wide with horror ]
We have to stop it! Milla, are you okay? Do you need me to get help?
[ god how does she do all of this, help milla but also stop the cannon from destroying, like, Everything ]
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Milla Maxwell, saved by abs???). and of course, she does what she always does when she's injured and probably in need of immediate medical attention][she attempts to push herself up into a sitting position and stand up!! it's. . . a lot more difficult than she'd like it to be. she definitely has a couple of broken ribs, and her torso absolutely burns with pain every time she takes a breath. which, by the way, are coming in short, shallow gasps. which makes talking very difficult]
I-I'm-- f-f. . . all right.
[she's not fine, but she's going to tap into her determination and try to pretend like she is. (hint: it's not working). she manages to crawl up onto to her knees, but one arm is wrapped around her ribs while her gaze narrows at the hole where the gunsmith's door used to be]
W-we need to f. . . find the mechanism t-to turn it off, before it fires again!
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[ Xion hovers over her friend, her whole chest cavity a churning mess of panic and fury and concern. She doesn't push Milla, but....
They don't have any time!
With a hurried glance at the building, Xion makes a decision she knows she'll regret. Whispering a mental apology to everyone who's ever loved her, she stands straight. ]
Please, try and get all the boards off one window. I'll need a way back out!
[ And then she's gone, darting into the Gunsmith through the door. She'll get out and stay out of the direct line of fire of the cannon, but given they couldn't see inside very well, she has no idea what to expect from the rest of the interior. But once she's reasonably out of the way of cannon-fire she'll try and at least take stock to see ... well, what's in here, and which way to go. ]
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Those shelves, the ones loaded with weaponry? The real weird thing about them is that they all seem to be... loaded. So, this is what happens.
The cannonball will blast, shooting off to the left and narrowly misses Xion who is doing the whole dodge and weave thing. She'll see the pile of balls next to the cannonball, and an arm sticking out of the ground nearby, picking up cannonballs in its hand and pressing them into the shaft. It's, naturally, not quick enough for someone running straight at it but --
But, again, those weapons. A nearby crossbow is going to take aim at Xion and fire. The arrow bolt is going to embed itself in her knee, the same leg that's already broken.
Xion used to be a replica, then she took an arrow to the knee. ]
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Xion falls with a scream of pain, but she refuses to stay still. Her whole leg is now burning agony, but she uses her hands and her good leg to keep moving, dragging herself along the floor and squinting ahead. Is that ... is that an arm? An actual human arm???????
At least now that she's inside she can assess what the hell is in here, and probably also pointed at her. Her whole body is heaving with pain and she kind of wants to throw up, but nearly dying many times to droves of Heartless is enough to keep her going. She's been hurt worse.
What else is in here that she can see and get out of the way of while still making her way over to the cannon? Because she'll try, unless this really seems like a hopeless endeavor that will get her quickly killed.
She is definitely also hoping that Milla will be able to get those boards off. ]
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[one breath. two breaths. then three, all raspy and quick. her ribs hurt. they hurt so bad (human bodies are so fragile) but she doesn't taste copper and she doesn't feel blood. that's a good sign, right? she's fought monsters through worse pain, she took down a freakin' Hammerzamm while in excruciating agony from her aspyrixis. she can do this]
[she pushes herself to her feet quickly, ignoring the way her body throbs. she stumbles forward, eyes locked on the window that's still boarded up, expression determined. she's a woman on a mission, and once she gets close enough, she grabs one of those planks of wood and starts tearing them down. every movement causes her body to ache, but she can do this. Xion needs her to do this]
[the BOOM of the cannon, and Xion's scream, don't get her to stop. but they do get her to tense up]
Xion! Are you all right?!
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Also, there's kind of... everything? On the shelves. It's a weapons shop. Which means another crossbow is going to take aim and embed itself in the back of Xion's leg. Same leg that took an arrow to the knee, yes. ]
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The second arrow to her leg gets another scream, this one longer that turns into a wail of pain. But she doesn't stop moving, doesn't stop dragging herself forward. By now tears of pain are streaming down her face, but her expression is contorted with effort and anger.
You wanna fight you fuckin arm?! She'll fight you! She'll fight you!!!!!
Mostly what this means is grabbing it by the wrist and yanking, wondering if she can pull it up somehow. Her other hand reaches out to push at and attempt to scatter the cannonballs. ]
I'm fine! [ she'll shriek at Milla, because that's the truth. ] Just don't stop!
[ She's starting to think she might not get out of here. She's wishing now that she hadn't dropped Soul Eater outside when that first cannonball crashed into them. She could use it like a crutch. As it is, she'll have to somehow get out under her own power. ]
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[it takes her a bit longer than usual to tear those boards down (because. . . well, you know why), but once she does she takes the hilt of Higekiri's sword and uses it to smash the glass on the window. through it, she can now see Xion struggling towards the arm (arm??? HUMAN ARM???) with two arrows embedded in her leg. she can also see the crossbows lining the walls]
[oh god. oh god. she thinks fast, because if she doesn't, Xion isn't going to survive this]
[silently, she's grateful Sara talked her into taking firearms lessons earlier in the weak. she still isn't great with them, and she still vastly prefers her sword, but hell. without her spirit artes, she can't attack those crossbows from a distance]
K-keep your head d-down, Xion!
[god. yelling hurts. yelling hurts so bad. nevertheless, Milla levels the firearm through the window and takes aim at the crossbows (and makes sure she is very much aiming away from Xion). although her hands shake slightly from the pain, she does her best to keep them steady. she can do this. she can channel Alvin for the briefest of moments, can't she?]
[and then she fires, attempting to knock the crossbows down one by one]
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At least the crossbows do get knocked out of the way even if the arm keeps fighting her. She'll have to tug at it. Tug and tug and tug until it's ripped right out of the floorboards in a mess of blood and sinew. The floor underneath looks... bloodstained, but that's about it. There's not much sense in where the arm came from.
Though, somewhere Natalie Goodman will feel an intense searing pain, as if she just lost her arm all over again. Poor girl.
And then the gunsmith will go still. ]
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A gasp of surprise escapes her when the arm rips free, and, god, it's bloody, it's real, this is beyond horrifying--
But she's in so much pain she almost can't process it. She drops the arm because touching it at all is making her skin crawl, and once the gunsmith goes still, she just kind of ... lays there, for a moment, panting.
Is it ... done? Did they ... succeed?
Xion hardly has time or the presence of mind to care. Leaving the arm behind, she starts the slow and very painful process of dragging herself towards the door. Without an arm to fire the cannon, it's hopefully a safe exit. Xion will make it all the way to the doorway, and then, for some insane reason, try to use it to pull herself to her feet.
This is very hard.
But at least she can pull herself up enough to look around for-- ]
Milla?
[ Her body doesn't feel real right now. After the initial cracking pain of each shot it's like her body has gone warm and almost numb. She knows it'll get worse soon.
But Milla -- she has to make sure Milla is okay -- ]
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I'm h-here.
[the words come out soft and wheezed. what if she just. sits here for a bit?? and doesn't move??? the pain is so white hot that she can no longer move through it]
. . . it seems I s-should have left a note before we came here, much like Jason did for me.
[#hindsight. Milla's pride in herself was, occasionally, her downfall]
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In any case, Shinnosuke heard a boom and then sounds of questionable things happening, so???
Trying to keep a mental map of what should be around so as to avoid crashing into anything, he runs over to the area. He slows down once he's near the gunsmith at least—though this doesn't save him from, well. He's doing his best, but he's still getting used to having to feel around with his walking stick and why did you have to sit down in front of the doorway, Milla?]
Wha—
[Because yeah, he'll be tripping over her. Oops.]
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[there's a sharp hiss of pain, but Milla instinctively reaches out to catch his arm from her position on the ground. even when seriously injured, her first instinct is to protect others. that's Maxwell for you]
S-Shinnosuke. . .
[it's obvious from her tired, quiet voice and the small gasps in between her words that she's struggling to talk, here. but this is a fortunate turn of events]
C-careful. I think the g-gunsmith is safe now, but I'm not s-sure yet. [. . .] . . . do you know where Dr. Lecter is right now?
[THAT'S A CONCERNING QUESTION]
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[ Xion just kind of stares up at him blearily, still clinging to the doorway, before she just ... collapses. Hits the ground like a sack of potatoes. Thankfully, she doesn't fall on the side of her injured leg, probably only because she put one last effort into twisting her body.
Is she even still conscious???? Great question. Shinnosuke won't be able to see it, but Milla sure will: she's bleeding steadily around her crossbow bolt wounds. In the light of day, there's something ... awfully strange about her blood. It looks red, and human, and yet ... there's just something subtly off about it. Something wrong.
Well, no time to worry about that!
Xion will make it clear she's still awake, at least, by reaching out blindly. What she gets is Milla. Which prompts her to say: ]
Get help... please... Milla needs it...
[ so
do you??? ]
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Geez, you two...
[He can't see anything, but he can guess what happened. He'll avoid moving his walking stick at least, lest he accidentally whack Xion with it or something.]
And you berated me.
[That's to Xion—he can't judge because he just did the same thing two days ago, but now Xion can never judge him again. And don't think for a second that he believes she doesn't need help either??]
He's usually in the hotel, isn't he? I'll see if I can find him. [EXCEPT HE CAN'T SEE SO HE'LL PROBABLY BE GETTING SOMEONE ELSE. LIKE JASON.] Try not to die by the time I get back.
[so yeah brb]
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Cue disgruntled seeing eye teen noises, and also?? A lot of arm tugging and possibly question marks on the back of his hand. Mostly because what the fuck, Shinnosuke. What is he doing. What is the hurry. Who fell down a well. If there's any blood smeared on him from literally tripping over Milla and Xion, Jason might as well be yanking him down until he starts talking.
Please save them all, Dad. Or else we're all eating Replica and Bullshit Magical Girl for dinner today.]
this icon is regret.jpg
Hannibal is in his room when the duo comes to find him, and much like when Milla had come to fetch him the other day, he's enjoying a quiet, domestic moment with Will. They have the two beds pushed together, and when they're interrupted, they're definitely cuddling in bed, but it's nothing inappropriate, don't worry. They're honestly too chaste for that. But it is happening, and Hannibal is immediately looking exasperated when Jason and Shinnosuke come into the room. ]
Surely not—
[ He starts, but he places a hand on Will's shoulder fondly as he starts to get up, and he immediately grabs a bag from the coffee table. He's at least prepared this time, since he made a medical emergencies bag yesterday because of you two. ]
What happened now? Who is hurt?
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Shinnosuke has absolutely no idea what he and Jason have interrupted, so Hannibal and Will could've been having sex for all he knew (protect Jason's innocent eyes, though). Also, you know, he wouldn't care, but that's a minor detail.
In a flat tone:]
Milla and Xion broke into the gunsmith. No idea what the damage is, but c'mon, no break for you. Sorry, Doc.
[At least it's not two dumb teenage boys again??]
there is not enough regret in this town to make up for our sins sorry dad
He at least has the decency to give both of these dudes an apologetic look as Shinnosuke finishes explaining, before gesturing for Hannibal to follow. He will also fulfill his duty by tugging Shinnosuke along and
maybe
not letting him fall flat on his face.
Depends on how much shit he talks on the way there.]
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But even so, he hardly hesitates to follow along. In fact, he runs very slightly ahead, though he does give them a slight wave of apology as he goes by. ]
I will meet you there.
[ Because no offense boys, but he feels the situation is urgent enough to be a bit rude and outpace them. He arrives at the gunsmith before long, and giving a quick look between the two girls, he half tosses the bag down as he goes to Xion first. It's less bias and more the fact that one of them is visibly bleeding, though he does speak to Milla as he starts to inspect Xion. ]
Milla? Explain what happened, please.
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