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[moneyballer]

username: I CAN B UR DADDY

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[moneyballer]

[Asher Millstone is fucking terrified.

To be fair, this is not the first time.

Here he is, risking what could be his life for a person he's only known for a few months, but honestly? It's worth it in his book.

Seeing as he ran right out the door as soon as he got that message, Asher is still clad in his sleepwear, which consists of his Middleton tee and a pair of checkered pajama bottoms. While he's thrown his uniform jacket over it, everything about him is unsettled, from his messy hair to the rigidity of his posture. He's been lucky enough to have seen no signs of Koltira yet, and perhaps that's for the best.

This is a barn, but is it the right one?

God, he hopes so.]

Hello?

[A yell in the middle of what appears to be pitch black. In an effort to comfort himself, he clutches his own shoulders worriedly.

Hopefully, he's far enough from the monster that's lurking about.]

text;

[pummelling]

[The closer he gets, the more that he'll see signs of Koltira's presence, rather than the man himself: rocks broken, the ground disturbed and torn through. Drying red blood in the dirt.

And the closer Asher gets, the more clearly Jin can hear him, even if he doesn't yet see him. The magitek, again, is a blessing.

Jin's exhausted. He shuts his eyes tight and focuses.] im here

[There's a faint thump as he rests his head back against the barn.

A nearby door creaks as it opens; a Qorral man, bearing a shotgun, stands half-out of the doorway. The look in his eyes is not of aggression, but one of terror.]

[moneyballer]

[Every step he takes is a wake-up call, a screaming reminder that maybe he shouldn't have decided to do this. The sight and smell of blood makes him particularly queasy, but the darkness of the night hides any green seeping into his pale complexion.

At the sight of the gun, Asher immediately holds his hands up in the air. Alarm is his gut reaction, but soon his eyes adapt to the darkness and see what appears to be an elderly man whose face shows signs of both fear and long days in the sun. Say something, ween-ball!]

Yo, yo, yo...!

[The sweat pooling on his forehead is glistening in... Whatever light they have.]

I come in peace.

[Nailed it.

Whisking his head in either direction, he does his best to search for anything vaguely human-shaped.]

[pummelling]

["Papa, is it gone?"
"No, baby-- the man said to stay inside!"

Out of sight, the woman continues to speak to the child in hushed tones. Her husband's expression wilts at Asher's casual greeting-- some kind of alien expression, maybe? it sounds so stupid, he's confused, but then again, he can't judge-- then turns guilty. "Son, you're ALASTAIR, ain't ya? If it's your friend you're lookin' for, I--" He breaks off, turns his head around to glance back at his family.

"You have to understand. I know it ain't right. I got mouths to feed, and if I'd've gone out there and that thing had've..."]

asher? [Jin calls, feebly, through text.

"What I mean t'say is-- well, I..." He shifts uncomfortably. There's pity etched into the wrinkles of his face. "If he didn't get away from that monster..."]

action but! also voice

[moneyballer]

[Jin isn't dead, he can't be.

Asher can't fault the farmer. He too had decided to stay inside for his own safety, and as another mere mortal, he understands why the other may not have been in any position to help. The device on his wrist makes another sound, and he immediately glances downward to read Jin's short but distressing message.

One word, small and fragile.]

Yeah, it's me.

[Briefly, he makes eye contact with the Qorral man, stern but not angry. The look in his eyes is determined, as if to communicate, "I will find him."

Asher continues to whisper into the magitek.]

If you can hear me that means I'm close. Where are you, do you know?

Near the barn, you said?

action and text rip jin

[pummelling]

["Is that him? You're talkin' to him?" The farmer's eyes go wide, and he lowers his gun. "If I can-- if there's anything I can do. He kept that thing from gettin' at my children, my wife. I'll help."]

yes [the magitek chirps softly.

"The barn's that way, son." Tentatively, the farmer steps out of the doorway and points Asher behind his house. "Please. Let me know what you need, and I'll gather it up here."]

[moneyballer]

[His feet start moving before the kind-hearted farmhand has finished speaking, so fast that he almost trips and falls flat on his face in the dark. There's more debris in Asher's way, although he doesn't quite notice it now. Little shards of broken glass and busted wood, all dangerous but not sharp enough to pierce the heel of Asher's enchanted boot. They snap and crackle as he continues onward, afraid of what he might encounter.

Crap, crap, crap, this is all wrong. What if he's too late?

What if something happens to Jin, and it's his fault?]

Oh my god.

[What hits Asher first is an overwhelming bout of nausea, partly from the sight of his friend's wounds and the smell of it all, as blood isn't something that the young law student has learned to stomach particularly well. Thankfully, he does everything he can to keep from losing his last meal, and frantically removes his jacket in a pathetic attempt to deal with the damage that has already been done.]

Oh my god, oh my god-

[Inhale, exhale.

These are words he tries to repeat in his mind, but to no avail. Asher breathes too sharply and all at once, disrupting his own flow of oxygen, shoulders and chest heaving as his trembling hands attempt to tie the fabric of his coat around the blood that's seeping from Jin's side. He fucks up the first few times which doesn't do anything for his nerves, causing him to almost hyperventilate at first.

Asher has to close his eyes for a moment, and takes another deep breath before continuing.]

How the fuck did this happen?

[If Jin dies, it will be on him.

God fucking damn it, why does he always feel so useless?]

[pummelling]

[Jin’s conscious enough to know that it’s definitely Asher who’s at his side, shaking hands trying to stem the flow of the blood from his side. He can’t speak much— his throat’s still hoarse and aching, as Koltira’s shadow energy had only just wrapped itself tightly around his neck— but there’s a light of recognition in his eyes. A grunt of pain, when Asher makes a mistake and pulls his coat a little too tightly.

The pain, at least, means that he is still alive. And at least he's got company now. With Asher here, there's a little more hope that he can stay that way. He can't explain again, can't properly articulate that it's Koltira who'd done this, Koltira who'd been overtaken by something else within him, but Jin's hand reaches forward to touch Asher's arm.

He came for him. He... actually came for him.

It's a bracing thought, as his fingers weakly grasp at Asher.]

[moneyballer]

[Asher hovers miserably over Jin's body, almost jumping at the touch from the other's arm.]

Jin?

[He leans in a little closer, only just now registering that there's some kind of bruise on the young monk's neck. Absent-mindedly, he brushes a few strands of hair from it to get a better look.

Bad idea, the night sky makes it hard to tell.]

I don't even if I know can move you.

[pummelling]

[It's already beginning to bruise. Jin tilts his head back to allow Asher a better look at his neck, and he utters a short, breathy laugh.]

C-call a healer.

[This was a terrible idea. Going after Koltira in the first place, getting Asher involved-- how could he have been so stupid?

Fortunately, the Qorral farmer's scurrying up, arms full of an old, heavy blanket. At the sight of Jin on the ground, he gasps to himself, nearly dropping the bundle in his arms-- "Sun above." --and moves closer, anxiously standing about a foot behind where Asher leans over Jin.

"Y'can't leave him out here long. If the cold won't get 'im, the wildlife will."

(If Jin weren't in so much pain, he'd have taken offense to that.)]

[moneyballer]

[The farmer's words are enough to jumpstart the idle gears in his head. Jin is still somewhat conscious, barely so, and at the very least they have the family to help them. No matter how scared he may be, Asher has no choice but to suck it up and give this his all.

He dips his head beneath Jin's arm, hoisting it and all of the broad-shouldered man's weight onto his shoulder.]

I'm on it.

[A blanket is draped over Jin from the back as Asher staggers to his feet, wobbling from the weight at first. Once he finds his center of gravity, he turns towards the house.]

You'll be okay.

[And then, muttered more to himself than to anyone else:]

I'll make damn sure of it.

[pummelling]

[As Jin fades out, his mind doesn't hang onto much. Warmth, in spite of the chill that's come over him. Movement. His body being lifted up. Asher's voice murmuring something that seems like a comfort; a voice he doesn't quite recognize, chattering anxiously at his friend.

His eyes shut and his body goes limp. Jin manages one last message of distress-- one he should've made first, actually-- before he slips out of consciousness.

There's a part of him that's sure he'll wake up from this just fine. For now, however, he's out cold.]