forum "Never thought it'd be you behind the mask" O/O

Started September 25, 2021 by @ShadeStar

tune

(lol alright!)

Adrian didn't know what else to do. He'd gotten into a fight with a hero and been beaten and thrown around. A metal shard had been stabbed through his right shoulder, and blood stained his grey uniform. The mask still clung to his face. He was lying face-down on Phoenix's couch; she was the only hero he could think of who seemed perhaps close in age to him, the only hero who might help instead of throw him immediately to jail. He could barely breathe, each small movement sending jolts of pain through his body, his breaths harsh and labored. He hoped he hadn't left too much blood on the fabric beneath his body.

Phoenix had lost the villain she had been chasing with a slight huff. She had used up so much energy chasing the stupid villain that she had to end her patrol early and head back to the office. It took her a few minutes to head back, but she got back without much incident. She had been expecting to be able to collapse on the couch in her office and let the energy return to her so she could maybe take another round tonight, but instead was greeted with a bloodied and beat-up Shroud. Her mind froze as the sentence came tumbling out of her mouth, "What the fuck?"

Adrian shifted to blink up at her, eyes hardly able to focus. "Hey." he breathed, mouth pulling to one side in a faint attempt at a smile, that quickly turned to a grimace as he curled into himself again. "Didn't have…ah…anywhere else t' go…"

"So you came to the headquarters of the very people that chase you down on a regular basis?" Kore was finally able to take in the situation. One of the most notorious villains in the city was bleeding out on her, Phoenix's, couch. What had caused him to get into the state? Most heroes were moral enough not to gravely injure villains, often opting for capture instead. She, she could figure this out later, for now, Kore should probably use what energy she had to save Shroud. After a few hesitant steps, the hero approached the couch and knelt next to him before stretching a hand out to heal him.

Shroud flinched away from her hand on instinct, breathing harsh. "Couldn't go t' the hospital." he managed, wincing with each little movement he made. "Hah…" he pressed a hand to where the shard was still sticking from his shoulder, sharp and shining.

Kore spotted the shard and figured she needed to remove that first. She made sure her movements were slow as she moved to do so and spoke with a soft and non-threatening voice having realized the severity of the situation, "Hey, hey, I'm gonna help. No need for a hospital, I can help you here, if you'll let me."

His eyes flickered up to her. They were grey now, not glowing with his abilities, though they seemed hazy. Whether that was pain or his abilities trying to make him disappear to deal with the pain…that was anyone's guess. He didn't move, but didn't flinch when she reached out again, though he did stiffen faintly. The quietest whine left his throat when he stiffened, muscles screaming with pain.

Kore figured she was okay to remove the shard and she did so carefully, but quickly to reduce the amount of pain he was in. She then placed her hand where the shard had been and let her golden energy flow from her to him healing him at a rapid rate. Hopefully she wouldn't regret this later as she could feel her legs get weaker with every ounce of energy she spent on Shroud.

He grunted when it was removed, letting out a breath as she healed him. "Thank you." he breathed, eyes flickering to look up at her. He was still in a great deal of pain, but it was significantly less now that the shard was gone and ehaled.

Kore only stopped healing him once she was sure he was stabilized. She let out a soft breath as she fell back into a sitting position having lost some feeling in her legs, "Would it be rude to say you owe me now?"

He shook his head, pushing himself up to a sitting position with a soft grunt. "No. I do owe you." he replied quietly, looking over at her. "Thank you."

Kore hummed for a moment before moving. She hid her wince as she went back to a kneeling position to push him back into a laying position, "I was just doing my job, sorta. Don't get up yet, I wasn't able to fully heal your injuries."

He let her push him back down, blinking over at her. "Well. Either way. Most heroes wouldn't have. They'd have thrown my ass in jail before you could count to ten, then maybe worried about the injuries." his voice was matter-of-fact, no doubt in his words. It was a little worried, the fact that he so obviously believed that heroes would care more about locking him away than the fact that he was half-dead and ready to bleed out.

Kore pursed her lips at his response. She didn't really believe him as no one here would ever put locking someone away over their well-being. But, but maybe she could check the encounters to see who Shroud kept running into. "Well, I guess now you owe me one. If that's what you really want."

"I do." he replied. "But I'm not paying the debt by going to jail." his eyes stayed fixed on her; it was a little disconcerting, the intensity of his gaze despite the pain still lingering in his eyes.

"Fair enough," Kore had seen worse gazes from other villains when she had locked them away as Phoenix. But those had reasons, Shroud's had none. She showed no outward signs of discomfort as she continued on, "But do know I'm going to sit on this for some time."

"I expected that." he replied, shifting a little and wincing faintly. The pain was far easier to deal with than it had been, but still there.

Kore wasn't going out on another patrol today and she was honestly surprised Shroud hadn't seen the crutches resting on the end of the sofa, or at least that's where she thought she had left them. Maybe she had been smart today and moved them out of sight and that seemed to be the case. It would just be a pain to put her normal clothes back on given her legs weren't going to recover, "Now that you're healed, why exactly come here? Don't you villains have a place you can go to heal?"

He blinked at her. "We, ah…not really." He replied slowly, unwilling to surrender too much information to her. "It's complicated." He ran a hand through his hair, adjusting the way the half mask fit his face.

Kore frowned a little at that. She would have thought the others would have at least been coordinated enough to have some type of base to heal up at. But maybe others had known about it considering she was the youngest amongst the heroes, "I see… Must be bad enough you went to a hero for help."

He flashed a crooked smile. "I have classes in the morning, my professor would kill me if I wasn't there." He replied.

Kore's eyes went wide for just a moment before they returned to a neutral position, "You're a student? I would've thought you'd be… Older."

He hummed vaguely. "Yes. And no, I'm not." His gaze slid over to her again, eyes only half open.

"Then I guess you should get home," Kore hadn't moved from her place on the floor, "Wouldn't want to be late for classes, and you certainly shouldn't crash here."

"Yeah." he said again, pushing himself up to a sitting position with a pained grunt. "I'll…ah…I'll get going."