[ With the muzzle of the gun searing against his forehead, what little of Maruki's consciousness is still operating at any sort of capacity figures it's the end–
But with Akechi's furious grip holding his mending throat together, he knows it's not.
With Akechi on top of him, he has to be caught in the crossfire of his own attack. Has to hang on through it as the Tentacle of Healing works overtime to heal him faster than he can hurt, but his vision still goes white hot blank, his body still bears the brunt of the impact.
He wants to wrap an arm around Akechi to keep him down, keep him close, but he can't. He can't do anything. Anything he has left over after that Hail Mary strike goes toward keeping himself alive, knitting together a near-fatal wound, and then–
Nothing.
When his eyes eventually flutter open, Azathoth is gone. The base of his skull is heavy, and his whole body is impossibly weak, dizzy and nauseated even as he does nothing more than blink up at the darkening sky.
There's so much blood. That's the first thing he feels. Hot and sticky around his head and neck, down his shoulders, between his fingers, soaked into his shirt and the ground beneath him, coated over his tongue and teeth, everywhere, everywhere.
Maruki groans softly, raises violently trembling hands to touch is neck again. In one piece, but the damage has been more than done. His heart thuds weakly in his chest, every beat defiant in the face of– ]
Akechi.
[ His voice sounds entirely unlike itself. Broken, shaking, clogged with his own blood. He coughs to try to clear it and the cough turns to a retch; Maruki rolls onto his side and spits bloody saliva and bile up on the already filthy ground.
If Akechi took another shot now, he wouldn't have it in him to summon even a single tentacle. He's done, down for the count, easy prey.
The arm pressed between his body and the ground curls up, supporting his weight on his elbow, then on his palm, shifting to sit up as the world spins viciously around him and his eyes search for– ]
Akechi.
[ Maruki stares at him, wherever he's landed, and breathes ragged from the effort of sitting up like he's just run a mile. ]
cw gore, blood, emeto, ha ha yay new icons just for akechi threads
But with Akechi's furious grip holding his mending throat together, he knows it's not.
With Akechi on top of him, he has to be caught in the crossfire of his own attack. Has to hang on through it as the Tentacle of Healing works overtime to heal him faster than he can hurt, but his vision still goes white hot blank, his body still bears the brunt of the impact.
He wants to wrap an arm around Akechi to keep him down, keep him close, but he can't. He can't do anything. Anything he has left over after that Hail Mary strike goes toward keeping himself alive, knitting together a near-fatal wound, and then–
Nothing.
When his eyes eventually flutter open, Azathoth is gone. The base of his skull is heavy, and his whole body is impossibly weak, dizzy and nauseated even as he does nothing more than blink up at the darkening sky.
There's so much blood. That's the first thing he feels. Hot and sticky around his head and neck, down his shoulders, between his fingers, soaked into his shirt and the ground beneath him, coated over his tongue and teeth, everywhere, everywhere.
Maruki groans softly, raises violently trembling hands to touch is neck again. In one piece, but the damage has been more than done. His heart thuds weakly in his chest, every beat defiant in the face of– ]
Akechi.
[ His voice sounds entirely unlike itself. Broken, shaking, clogged with his own blood. He coughs to try to clear it and the cough turns to a retch; Maruki rolls onto his side and spits bloody saliva and bile up on the already filthy ground.
If Akechi took another shot now, he wouldn't have it in him to summon even a single tentacle. He's done, down for the count, easy prey.
The arm pressed between his body and the ground curls up, supporting his weight on his elbow, then on his palm, shifting to sit up as the world spins viciously around him and his eyes search for– ]
Akechi.
[ Maruki stares at him, wherever he's landed, and breathes ragged from the effort of sitting up like he's just run a mile. ]
Are you done?