[The coldness in his words was only surface, thin ice over stormy water; but the more Julius goes on, the more it spreads through his insides and seizes his thoughts. By the time Julius reaches his conclusion -- Lenka's hands tighten convulsively on the hilt of the greatsword, but his fingers feel numb. For a split second, he can't feel anything at all.
Kill me.
Leave me.
Sometimes, you have to make a choice.
The world slams into roaring focus again with the barest shadow of movement out of the corner of his eye; he moves before his thoughts can catch up, finds himself swinging the greatsword he'd been worried about wielding without access to Bias Factor or anything else. His arms strain against the weight, but the blade bites smoothly into and through the ribs of the Uvi trying to pull a sneak attack while they're both distracted. It's sent smashing into the wall of a nearby establishment like a bad mascot costume, splashing into the gutter in a pile of scales and ooze.
Lenka is left staring blindly after it, breathing hard. Instinctively, he reaches for telepathy again; he doesn't want to talk to an Aragami out loud right now.]
I refuse.
[There's the faintest tremor through it; telepathy betraying him still. But telepathy means the steel in it still comes through clear and true. He leaves the sword's point where it's fallen; any more stray Uvi in the area can be cleared out with magic, or the Aragami's long-distance attacks. He turns his furious stare back on the Aragami, or what he thinks is the Aragami's head. It doesn't matter.]
I'm not going to die here. You aren't, either.
[It's both a reiteration and a promise. Some things are simply a part of him, and while he's still struggling with this one, may always struggle with it; he's keeping to it.]
no subject
Kill me.
Leave me.
Sometimes, you have to make a choice.
The world slams into roaring focus again with the barest shadow of movement out of the corner of his eye; he moves before his thoughts can catch up, finds himself swinging the greatsword he'd been worried about wielding without access to Bias Factor or anything else. His arms strain against the weight, but the blade bites smoothly into and through the ribs of the Uvi trying to pull a sneak attack while they're both distracted. It's sent smashing into the wall of a nearby establishment like a bad mascot costume, splashing into the gutter in a pile of scales and ooze.
Lenka is left staring blindly after it, breathing hard. Instinctively, he reaches for telepathy again; he doesn't want to talk to an Aragami out loud right now.]
I refuse.
[There's the faintest tremor through it; telepathy betraying him still. But telepathy means the steel in it still comes through clear and true. He leaves the sword's point where it's fallen; any more stray Uvi in the area can be cleared out with magic, or the Aragami's long-distance attacks. He turns his furious stare back on the Aragami, or what he thinks is the Aragami's head. It doesn't matter.]
I'm not going to die here. You aren't, either.
[It's both a reiteration and a promise. Some things are simply a part of him, and while he's still struggling with this one, may always struggle with it; he's keeping to it.]
I'll stop you.