[ most of the time, things in trials feel like they happen so fast that sometimes david would struggle to even remember any details, the whole thing a blur in his memory. this is very much the opposite of that. it feels like slow motion, when he hears the doors open followed almost instantaneously by the too-familiar sound of jeff's shout as he's cut down right in the fucking doorway. the three of them get around the oni easily, but none of them leave, all of them clearly thinking the same thing: when he picks jeff up, david can go for that flashlight save and the three of them can cover for him on the way out. ]
[ it would be a great plan if not for a few things. meg's too eager, gets too close and goes down in one hit — and david's seen this guy use the hexes so fucking rarely that that's a shock — but she's close enough to the exit that she manages to crawl out, david and vittorio slipping around opposite pillars while oni's attention is split. and when he comes back, hovers over jeff, david's ready. springs out with his flashlight ready to blind the fucker, except... except what happens is a ragged scream is ripped out of jeff as a sword pierces his shoulder and pins him to the ground. david stands there helplessly, certain he can hear every tear of flesh, every wet spatter of blood as the oni rips jeff's tongue out with his bare hands. and then reduces him to little more than paste. ]
[ david watches it all in horror, and when the oni turns to face the stragglers, it settles into a silent rage. shoulders set and feet planted as he stares back, squaring up like he stands any kind of a chance against that monster of a man. as if he wouldn't be meeting the exact same fate as jeff if not for the way vittorio grabs his arm and pulls david through the gate with all his strength before they lose a second person. ]
no subject
[ it would be a great plan if not for a few things. meg's too eager, gets too close and goes down in one hit — and david's seen this guy use the hexes so fucking rarely that that's a shock — but she's close enough to the exit that she manages to crawl out, david and vittorio slipping around opposite pillars while oni's attention is split. and when he comes back, hovers over jeff, david's ready. springs out with his flashlight ready to blind the fucker, except... except what happens is a ragged scream is ripped out of jeff as a sword pierces his shoulder and pins him to the ground. david stands there helplessly, certain he can hear every tear of flesh, every wet spatter of blood as the oni rips jeff's tongue out with his bare hands. and then reduces him to little more than paste. ]
[ david watches it all in horror, and when the oni turns to face the stragglers, it settles into a silent rage. shoulders set and feet planted as he stares back, squaring up like he stands any kind of a chance against that monster of a man. as if he wouldn't be meeting the exact same fate as jeff if not for the way vittorio grabs his arm and pulls david through the gate with all his strength before they lose a second person. ]