Hope for Morning [Private][Gage/Hikari/Ariu]

Gage puts the base of his black leather boot into the face of the hollow while pulling his blade free of its head when the hollow, as Ariu called them, turned to glinting white particles in the air. Hefting up the large blade he tosses it aside, the energy that he was using to hold the natural earth together fading away and letting the stone blade crumble to nothing. Walking back to his bike he swings one leg over the white sports bike and starts the engine, the high pitched whine of the engine revving just before he releases the clutch and lets the rear tire spin out like a wild animal on a hunt.

Just as the wheel catches traction Gage lifts his foot free of the ground and lays low, his bare head ducked down to avoid the wind. Twisting his wrist about he checks the time, I'm a little late but I should be there before tussles start. Laying into the throttle he lets his speed and agility take him the wrest of the way to Agiu's house where they are supposed to be meeting. Several short minuets pass before he slows down, his engine no doubt having warned her that he was nearby anyways, as he rounds the corner to her street. Pulling his bike up he drives it on the side walk and up to the path of her house off the road. Normally he would leave his bike near the street but on the off chance that they did get into a scrape he wanted to make sure that they had a ride out of here. Taking a knee he inspects the sidewalk taking a quick mental note of the types of stone and sand in it along with any nearby signs and other sources of metal. Turning to head inside Gage looks over the house.

Ariu paused when she sensed Gage on his way, glancing around until she managed to spot him. Immediately she went to wave, pausing when she noticed an odd lull in the hollow's activity. They had been roving around just moments ago, but suddenly she didn't sense any of them. A slight unease made it's way down her spin as she looked around, swallowing softly as a soft light congealed at her quincy cross. About to hop down, she made her way to the edge of the roof when suddenly her head all but exploded from the sudden sensation.

Everywhere.

Immediately she manifested her weapon, something of a panicked look on her face as she suddenly hopped down, about to tell Gage to get inside when she noticed someone....else? "Who are...." she murmured softly, slightly jarred from her original train fo thought before a loud crash got her attention, the sight of a large head bursting out of the house adjacent to her own catching her attention as a rather large, lengthy centipede of a hollow showed it's ugly face, a roar shaking the ground as it turned it's attention in their direction, those tiny little lets bristling with sharp little points. Turning to meet this new threat, Ariu missed the sight of the four other hollows emerging from the buildings around Gage and Hikari. Two of them moving in a pair, seemed to be some sort of porcine variety. The other two taking the forms of a large bell and a kitsune.

Greetings and questioning cut short, Ariu immediately forced a rush of reiryoku into her arms, bracing herself as she spin that pendulum axe in her hands, reishi rushing in from her surroundings in a reishi burst forming along it's edge, about to charge the centipede in danger of wrecking her house when a sudden loud noise jarred her off her feet, a loud booming ring blaring out from that Bell hollow, the noise strong enough that she swore she could feel her ears bleeding slightly, her balance cracked as she stumbled, only barely raising her weapon in time as that centipede plowed into the spot she'd been a moment before, line after line of those little needled legs jabbing at her as it passed, her weapon taking the brunt of the strikes, the occassional one winging her shoulder or hips, one managing to pierce through her forearm, immediately resulting in her grip on her weapon as she dropped to the ground.

Even worse, all three of them would be able to sense several other hollows turning their attention to the small group. Whatever insane luck had gotten Hikari there without incident seemed to have run out, and all of them were going to have plenty on their plate soon.

Standing at the gate the blonde watched as the other lady made her way down from the roof, approaching the other blonde male that was down on ground level. She sensed reiatsu coming from the both, though she's never met anyone else that produced spiritually energy other than Seran. Well there was Yaksha, but so far she'd not even been able to catch a hint of his spiritual energy and didn't really know what he was. So for now she saw him as a talented human, just like these other two right in front of her.

Hikari noticed the other woman looking at her for a moment when she jumped down from the roof, her lips moving as she began to form her sentence though she didn't get far with that as centipede looking hollow broke through the house next door. Hikari turned her head towards the disturbance, her golden eyes peeing at the hollow. The just as abruptly as the first there was another two explosions, along with the arrival of four more hollows. Two going after the other male, the other two... after Hikari?

She turned when she sensed them behind her. Perhaps her reiatsu hiding skills weren't as great as she had originally thought. That or these hollows were simply better than the others. She jumped up and backwards, clearing the gate she was standing behind with ease as she moved out of the way of the hollows attack. She landed some ten meters away from them, her knees slightly bent, her golden eyes that were usually filled with innocent curiosity was now filled with a seriousness that was never usually a part of her demeanor. The two fox like hollows came at her again quickly covering up the distance she had put between them. At this point, she didn't feel like deal with these hollows, with a scoff she clicked her tongue and suddenly the reiatsu she was suppressing exploded.

As soon as the two hollows were within range, basically 5 meters away from her there was a large electrical surge that created a plume of dust around her and the hollows. Once it cleared Hikari would be standing there suddenly with armour over the white dress she'd been wearing before and a rapier at her side. The two fox like hollows that had been attempting to attack her on the other hand were now stuck in motion, sparks of electricity running around their bodies indicating clearly something had been done to them. Hikari reached over with her right hand a drew her rapier, taking one quick step forard she shoved off towards the two hollows swinging her blade from right to left hard across their masks.

She turned around and moved towards the injured girl that was being attacked by the centipede. that way she was, she wouldn't be able to get to the girl in time. Hikari pointed her rapier at the hollow and then released it as her hand got covered in electrical energy firing her rapier at half bala speed towards the hollow in question, hopefully piercing it's mask and saving the girl. She could sense there were more hollows on the way, and the more people she had to help and the less hollows she had to deal with, the better.

Gage rolls uncontrollably on his side until he is able to get some purchase with his left leg and stop the spinning. Popping up in a three point stance he favors his gored leg, his head spinning on a swivel to find the hollows. Pushing up into a standing position he snaps his hands downwards, fire gathering at his finger tips like he has a lit rag in his hands. Taking a boxers stance he looks at the two porcine Hollows with his hands now balled into fists and flaming with the fire created by his Soul Communication, both now using their front legs to root the ground and their tusks to dig up the ground in a sign of aggression.

"Come an' git it boys," Gage hops to the side as they both charge in at the same time, throwing a hard right hook, a bolt of fire leaping from his hand taking a curving path slams into the mask of the Porcine Hollow sending its face into the ground tumbling end over end. With his left hand he thrusts out open palmed at the standing hollow and sends out a gout of fire as if from a flame thrower. Twisting his hand counter clockwise he 'dials' in on the focus of the fire taking the wide and yellow flame and tunes it into a thinner blue white flame that the Hollow keeps pushing its way into.

The bone white mask scorches, snapping a single large crack appears along the length of the mask before it splits completely and falls away leaving the flesh underneath exposed to the white hot of the fire. With a Blood curling scream the beast stops mid-stride and tries to rub the pain out of its eyes on the ground. Gage does not let this slow his aggression, blood pouring down his thigh and into his boot, the warm fluid cold by the time it reaches his ankle.

Matching the motion with his right hand he places them together and closes them both into fists. The blue flame turning even more intense and shortening its length. Over the course of three seconds this flame becomes more and more intense, starting to sound similar to that of a winding up jet engine before it reaches its peak and detonates, sending a shaped explosion forward into the hollow with a blast strong enough to push Gage backwards several feet before he even makes contact with the ground again. Turning at the last moment he looks to see the open maw of the other injured hollow closing at him. Reaching out he grabs the tusks but its still to late, the incoming momentum blowing him over onto his back as he pushes away. With each snap of the mouth it tries to close on his head, its vile breath washing over his face. "Ariu? Ariu! ARIU!" is all that Gages panicked mind can muster as the teeth work their way closer and closer to his skull, the tusks beginning to cut into his hands.