Intro to Zoology (Izzack)

[The Izzack]

Jesus, how did someone run that fast for so long? Perhaps it was best to just let this girl go. She seemed terrified. No one trying to flee from police ran that hard, or that desperately. She would be fine by herself, and Izzack could just rest for a little bit. It would be fine. "No," he thought to himself, "She's in trouble. I need to help her, that's what heroes do."" he gained a sudden burst of energy, feeling fueled by pure determination alone.

Then there was a man in between them.

Izzack awkwardly skidded to a stop, nearly tripping over his robe as he tried his hardest to lose momentum. While he wanted to help the girl, he needed distance to protect himself from any attacks, and it certainly seemed as if this man wanted to fight him if his glare and his...Izzack swallowed the lump in his throat. Why did this man want to fight him? He didn't even do anything!

"S-s-sorry sir, but I...I only wanted to, and you see...The girl, she ran in f-front...my alley, and...and y-y-y-you see I" he stammered, taking a few steps back. as he backed up, he grabbed his scythe and pulled it out in front of him. He didn't need to be directly holding it to use his spells, nor did he really know how to fight with the thing, but it certainly helped to calm his nerves, holding a weapon of his own in response to that...oh dear that looked like a sharp blade. "D-d-don't make me u-use this, sir." he said, in a vain attempt to sound threatening. Once again, he was happy that his low hanging hood made his face harder to see, for if the swordsman could see his face at that point, he might have charged right then, knowing that Izzack would be too scared to run. Hell, he might charge anyway. Oh God, what was he going to do? Tentatively, he took another step back "I'm warning you. There is danger to be had, fighting one such as I." he continued, seeming a little more under control as he increased the distance between them.

[Lepa]

Interesting. "...Get behind me," Katsurou muttered, and the rabbit quickly obliged, keeping her gaze to the ground. She hadn't even looked at Izzack. It was clear from his voice that he wasn't any of the people she had just run away from, but she was still too frightened to register it. And even if she did, he was still very scary looking. Would the situation really be any different? She just wanted someone to fight the danger...!

And that someone was Katsurou. He kept his cold gaze on the reaper, expression unchanging as the latter stammered. Only when he gripped that scythe did Katsurou's brow furrow further. There was danger in fighting him, he had said. It was a moot point; fighting always carried risks of pain and death, and Katsurou was very familiar with it. This would be no different.

He shifted his stance, now gripping his blade with both hands. Normally, he would not make the first strike, but there were two possibilities: this was a costumed fool playing a cruel joke, or the actual reaper. The latter seemed like an absurd assumption, but considering the all sorts of colorful people he had seen in such a short time during his stay in the city, he wouldn't be surprised. One of his techniques could probably scare off a guy in a costume, but how would a reaper fare? At the very least, it'd be some experience...

"If you are such a danger, then... show me." His grip tightened as a light, frosty mist began to radiate off of his sword. One could feel the temperature drop slightly as he suddenly pulled the blade back. "Hyouga!" he barked as he swung it at Izzack, its edge trailed by an arc of ice crystals.

[The Izzack]

Damn it.

Okay, this guy wasn't going to be deterred. Izzack should have suspected that, but he couldn't run. This guy might have thought he was evil, but what if he himself was? Maybe he had scared this girl into submission, and was kidnapping her? Oh god, he was going to have to fight, wasn't he? He jumped backwards, awkwardly parrying the man's swing with the blade of his scythe, and set about activating his magic. He took a deep breath and tried to keep calm.

But who could keep calm at a time like this? In his mind's eye, he could see the source of his powers, like a second sun just beyond his grasp. Desperately, he tried to grasp it, to control it, trying frantically to be filled with it's power, but it just wouldn't cooperate. Why did this always have to happen to him? He turned his attention back to the swordsman, and released that he had not breathed since he tried first to take control of his magic. "Things will only get worse if you c-continue! Stay back!" he threatened, backing up further. Why couldn't his powers activate when he was scared? That would make things a million times easier!  Who needed to lay things awash in flames, or explode boulders when they were calm? He tried taking more deep breaths, but it seemed more like he was hyperventilating than attempting to reach a zen state of mind.

[Lepa]

Sierra flinched as the edges connected with a clang. It was followed by the brief sound of metal dragging as Katsurou pulled the blade back to his offense stance. "Tch," Katsurou sneered, unimpressed. "You keep distancing yourself... " he observed in a low tone, though there were hints of ferocity behind it. He began to step forward, the rabbit woman still sticking close behind him.

"Is this how you operate, coward?" He growled the last word, swiping his blade aside in a display of intimidation. "You see it fit to prey on a frightened girl," he continued, still closing the distance, "but as soon as you are faced with an opponent who can fight back, you tremble?" Katsurou grit his teeth, both the volume and hostility in his voice increasing as he pointed his weapon forward once again. "Dastard!" The frosty mist appeared around his blade once more. "Yowai na... Ukero! Hyougajin: Yukikaze!" he snarled, slashing forward. A chilling gust blew forth from the aerial cut, hurling bullets of snow towards the reaper.

[The Izzack]

Izzack hated this.

He was worthless without his magic, and this man didn't seem like he was going to stop any time soon. Once again the man attacked, and once again Izzack lept back and parried. However, the snow pelting his face messed with his positioning of his scythe, and instead of clanging off his blade, it went down the shaft, and nicked him on the forearm. He paused, seeming more stunned than anything. The cut wasn't too bad. It barely cut the fabric of his robe, but it said something loud and clear to him.

Izzack was going to die here.

It seemed rather ironic, but Izzack wasn't in the right frame of mind to appreciate it. He was much to scared to think much at all, as it were. "P-p-p-please." he said, backing up further. "Please...please...please" he kept repeating, though he didn't even seem to know what he was begging for. He took another step back, stumbled a little as he stepped on his robe, and then...then he ran. He was somewhat tired from chasing Sierra, but fear cured that. He was sprinting as fast as he could, nearly blinded at this point by his hood which kept falling down over his eyes completely every stride, but he didn't even take the split second it would take to pull it up. Breaking concentration for even a split second could mean death for him, and he still had so much that he needed to do. So he ran. "No no no no no no no no no!" he kept repeating every exhale he made. A impromptu mantra that kept him going, kept him moving forwards, towards safety.

[Lepa]

"Hyah...?" Katsurou loosened his stance, momentarily bewildered. He then lowered head, glaring as Izzack fled. "Now you refuse to take responsibility?!" He snapped, bolting from the spot to rush after him. "Face me, scoundrel!" Sierra was left standing alone, arms still clutched against her chest.

"...Huh? H-Hey, wait!" She dashed after Katsurou, not wanting to be left by herself again. "Wait for meeeee...!"

~~~~~~~~~~

"Tch. Disappointing," the young man sneered. Leo had only recently moved to Aster City for business reasons, so he didn't quite yet know the layout of the city very well. That was why he was out for a walk, trying to learn his way around; at least, that was his excuse. In truth, he hoped to find some excitement - after all, the city was teeming with all sorts of people with powers or what have you, but he hadn't run into any of them yet. How annoying. He didn't relocate all the way out here just to be met with the same boring life he had back at Heliosoft's headquarters. Where was the excitement? When would he get to kill a man?!

[The Izzack]

Why did things always turn out like this? Why did Izzack always end up running from people who wanted to do him harm? He was not a bad guy, at least he didn't think he was, so why? Izzack bemoaned his fate as he ran, keeping up his little mantra. That was, of course, until he barreled over something. Wait, no, not something, someone.

"Oh no sorry, are you alright? Oh God I have to get away, but are you okay I, oh jeez, I-I-I-I " he was stuck between self preservation and taking responsibility. At least, he was until he saw the hilt peeking out from behind the man's head. "You're a swordsman? Great, uh, let me help you up. So, uh...lookIneedhelpI...I need help, there's a guy chasing me I think he means to kill me and I need help please help me." he pleaded, turning to run, hoping that this man would fight the other swordsman as he ran, because, hey, he was a swordsman, right? And swordsmen had tons of honor and what not, and they were essentially heroes, right? Izzack might have been a hero himself, but even heroes need help sometimes too, right? That's what he told himself as he walked past the swordsman, looking to seem calm, as if the man chasing him wasn't a threat, so that he could run away when he was out of sight and the men were fighting.

[Lepa]

"Gh!" Leo hissed upon impact with the stranger. He sat up, hunched over, his dull mood now sour. He glanced up as the costumed freak with an odd look: annoyance at worst, apathy at best. Who the hell was this? Who dared to not look where he was going and run into Leonardo Aurelius? He ignored the hand of the stranger, far too proud to accept his help as he pushed himself back up to his feet. He folded his arms, raising a brow at the trick-or-treater as he frantically spoke. Whatever it was he rambled about, he simply didn't care. The only bit he really did pay attention to was the fact that someone was out to kill this idiot. Honestly? He wasn't surprised.

"...Hmph," the heir grunted. The sound of steel raked the air as he swiftly removed his blade from its scabbard, his arm arching it downwards. He held it out, blocking Izzack's way. "What makes you think," he began, his eyes shifting towards him. "I would help you?" He raised his blade up and turned the edge sideways, leveling it at Izzack's neck. "Do you seriously think your half-assed excuse of an apology would more than make up for my time you've wasted just by standing here and existing?" The expression on his face darkened. "Do you even know who I am?"

[The Izzack]

As soon as the sword was leveled at Izzack's neck, he realized just how stupid he had been, assuming that this man would help him. Nobody helped him. They only hurt him. "D-damn it!" he said, almost seeming angry, though the emotion was hidden under a thick layer of fear. Immediately, he moved backwards, but where could he go? On this side, there was a rather...rude man who wanted to kill him, and on the other side there was another man who wanted to kill him because he tried to help someone. He was stuck in between murderers, and he couldn't even protect himself because he couldn't get his damn powers under control. He was going to die because oh his cowardice. Seemed only fitting. If he could manage to do anything beyond cower, he'd probably laugh at the absurdity of it all. He tried taking another step forward, only to trip, and fall to the ground. "No!" he said, though what he was denying wasn't specified. Everything about his life seemed a rather fitting subject for his ire, after all. Futily, he held up his scythe once more in a defencive position, though he knew that blocking an incoming attack from this position would be nigh on impossible. Still, doing something was better than doing nothing at all.

[Lepa]

Leo stared at the increasingly sad display that ended with Izzack on the ground. His frown cracked into a malicious smile. "Pfft!" he snerked. "Is that all you've got?! What a joke!" He stepped forward, looming over the defenseless coward as he pointed his sword down at him. "I don't know who you think you are, but frankly, I don't give a shit." He frowned again, a look of disgust in his eyes. "Asking for help is a sign of weakness. And I don't like weakness." His frown deepened as the temperature around his blade began to increase. "The strong survive. The weak die. That's how the world works, idiot. But don't worry," Leo drew his sword back, his tone smug. "Even if no one remembers a worthless piece of trash like you, at least you'll have had the privilege of having your life ended by Leonardo Aurelius." He smirked, flames suddenly engulfing his blade as he aimed to pierce Izzack's neck. "Now, die! Feuerklaue!"

"Hyouga!"

Blades suddenly clashed, the distinct metal clang echoing just above Izzack. The sensation of fire and ice was frighteningly close.

"Tch...!" Leo had stepped backwards, his attack parried. He glared at the man who had just intervened. "...Who the hell are you?! Get out of my way!"

"Who I am is none of your concern," Katsurou growled, having caught up in time. He glared back as he stood between him and Izzack. "...But I defended him because he clearly could not." He eyed the other man, sizing him up. "...You would dare attack another man while he was down?"

"What, and you're saying you wouldn't? Psh." Leo sneered. "Don't kid yourself. There's only one goal in a fight, and that is victory by any means necessary." Katsurou grit his teeth at his words.

"Um... Hey?" Sierra chirped, a few feet behind Katsurou. Though the running had calmed her down, she could sense the hostility between these two swordsmen, and thus was more careful about addressing her temporary protector. "Um, the guy you were chasing..." She rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I just realized, but... he wasn't one of the hunters after me..." She cupped her hands around her mouth, calling out to Izzack. "I'm really sorry, spooky guy!"

"Is that so..." Katsurou glanced aside slightly to better address Izzack, though he didn't take his eyes off of the arrogant heir. "...My apologies."

[The Izzack]

Izzack had closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable, when he heard the clang of metal on metal. What? How had this man managed to his his scythe and not him? It didn't make any sense until he opened his eyes to see the other man who wanted him dead. "Gah!" he yelped, scurrying away on his back. It took a moment to get his bearings, and just as he realized he was safe, he heard the first swordsman apologize.

He was sorry?

Izzack had tried to help someone, and he was almost killed for it. twice, and he was sorry?

Izzack so wanted to teach this man a lesson. He wanted to teach them all a lesson. He wanted to make them know not to mess with him ever again. As it was, he didn't realize that he had finally gained control of his magic until he noticed he was weaving a spell. It would seem that his anger distracted him from his fear just enough for him to subconsciously take control of that little sun in his mind's eye. Regardless, he let go of the spell he had begun, letting it dissipate harmlessly. This man had saved him, even if he was the cause of him almost dying, twice. Attacking him when he was distracted wouldn't be the heroic thing to do, no matter how much he wanted to. Instead, he cast a different spell, wiggling his free hand in front of him, despite that not being necessary to the casting, and suddenly, a short rock wall rose from the ground directly in front of him, hiding him from view. He didn't want any part of this, but he wasn't going to leave yet. He was going to hide behind this wall until the fighting was over, then he was going to give someone, anyone, a piece of his mind!

[Lepa]

"Hey! Hey, hey!" Sierra whispered loudly, hunched over as she approached. She was still on the same side of the rock wall as Izzack. In spite of her earlier running away in frantic terror because of a man with a gun, she seemed unfazed by the guy with the large scythe and spooky costume. Perhaps she sensed his fear from earlier. "Are you hiding?" Her ears twitched curiously. She was still a bit a ways, but she had her head up, craning her neck to peek over the wall. She frowned. She didn't like the scent of the golden haired man. It smelled of bloodlust.

"Tch! All this garbage about "fighting fair"..." Leo rolled his eyes. "Oh, wait, let me guess: You're one of those bleeding heart, "champion of the weak" morons, aren't you?"

"Men who do not help the weak," Katsurou stated. "have no right to live in this world.”

"Oh, great. You are one of those people..." He sighed, adjusting his blade again. "No matter. I've been looking to cleanse the streets of idiots like you who keep perpetuating the existence of annoying parasites." Heat radiated from his blade again, the metal this time glowing bright orange. "So, do me a favor and hold still! Sonneschwert!" He called out, striking at the other swordsman.

"Tch...! Osoi!" Katsurou clutched his own weapon. "Gekkōken!" He growled back, his own blade bathed in the soft glow of blue as it clanked against Leo's. Katsurou frowned deeply, icily glaring at the other man, who seemed no more than amused. Both of them then backed off, briefly assessing each other before exchanging a series of strikes.

"Geez," Sierra pouted. She had already made herself comfortable next to Izzack, squatting as she rested her chin atop the small rock wall. "Well, that sure escalated quickly, huh?"

[The Izzack]

As Sierra asked him if he was hiding, no doubt implying that he was a coward, he stopped himself from giving a rather nasty reply. He then took a short moment to calm down a bit. This wasn't the girl's fault. She was scared of...something, and she ran to the first man for help. Izzack couldn't say that he wouldn't do the same in her situation. Well, actually he had, though the swordsman he found was much less willing to help, maybe because Izzack wasn't a cute little bunny girl, or maybe it was just because the swordsman was kind of a dick.

Either way, it was hard to fault the girl for what she had done. "I-I'm not hiding. I'm waiting for this to cool over...I'm planning on g-g-giving these men a piece of my mind. Are you okay, though? You seemed to be in danger, earlier." he commented. He wanted to quickly divert the conversation away from himself and his pathetic actions, and towards just about anything else, and what happened to Sierra seemed a good subject to change to. After all, whatever had happened to her had landed him in this whole mess, so he figured he might as well figure out why she was fleeing...and from what.

[Lepa]

"I-I'm not hiding. I'm waiting for this to cool over...I'm planning on g-g-giving these men a piece of my mind."

"Haa?" Sierra looked over at him. "Are you sure about that?" She looked back to the fight in front of them. "They're going pretty intense... and you seemed spooked earlier, yourself!" Her ears twitched. "But it's okay! I can understand that. I am a rabbit, after all. Running away is in my nature!" She stated proudly.

"Are you okay, though? You seemed to be in danger, earlier."

"Oh! Yeah... uh..." She frowned, ears flattening a bit. "Some guy sent people to hunt me!" She then smiled sheepishly, looking aside as she scratched her cheek, her voice lowered. "I mean, granted, I snuck into their house..." She perked up again. "...But usually people don't try to kill me over something like that!"

"Hitzewelle!"

"Yukikaze!”

As Sierra talked, in front of them a burning heat wave collided into the icy wind; both attacks collided into each other with a small explosion, dissipating into the air. The two swordsmen had been throwing numerous attacks at each other, but...

"Tch...!" Leo snorted, adjusting his footing. "What the actual hell?!"

"Hmph." Katsurou stared back, near expressionless. "Something bothering you?”

YES, DAMNIT! There was something bothering him, and it was that this dumb idiot had matched his every move! He was used to curb stomping anyone who annoyed him into a fine paste, but for someone to stand a chance against him? Not only that, but this goodie two shoes had literally matched his every move! Just... how? Had he observed him? After all, Leo had trained in the confines of Heliosoft's main facility - a secure place off limits to anyone who wasn't him. Plus, he hadn't been in Aster City for too long - hardly enough time for anyone to observe his arsenal of moves. The only other place anyone would be able to witness his fighting style would be back at home. But even then... The street urchins he had killed in his home city were nobodies. It was impossible for any of them to squeal on him - he was sure to snuff them out before they had a chance to. Besides, they were just trash that avoided the law to begin with. If anything, he had done the police force a favor.

...But if he eliminated those options, then how the hell was he evenly matched? Not even just being able to hold his own against him, but he literally matched him move for move? The glow of his Sonneschwert was met with the glow of his Gekkōken. The flame of his Feuerklaue clashed with the frost of his Hyouga. The wave of his Hitzewelle against the wind of his Yukikaze...! What even was this?! It was like fighting a mirror version of himself, and it was pissing him off. Was this... Was this a joke? A cheap imitation? Because there was only one Leonardo Aurelius, damnit!

"The only thing wrong," Leo answered, "is the fact that you've been lucky enough to live this long in a fight against me!" He took another stance, head radiating from his blade again. As he readied another attack, several rapid beeps filled the air. He groaned, releasing a hand from his sword to glance at his wrist. A small holographic screen projected itself from his gauntlet.

"Young Master," a friendly voice projected. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, but you're needed back at the office." Leo groaned at the voice, rolling his eyes.

"But...! Ugh... Tch... Fine, whatever. I'm heading back," he grumbled, ending the transmission and dropping his arm to his side. He glanced back to Katsurou. "Looks like you got lucky today, moron." He lifted his sword up, effortlessly sliding it into the sheath on his back. "You'll be the first person who's ever survived a fight with me." Leo glowered with irritation, before shifting into a arrogant smirk. "To be spared by Leonardo Aurelius... You should be honored, idiot."

Katsurou kept his blade at the ready, expecting it to be a dirty trick. "My name,” he corrected, "is Katsurou. Katsurou Shirogane.”

"Yeah, well... I don't give a shit." Leo scoffed as clenched his fist up, parallel to his head. "Names are for important people. Strong people. Like me." The gauntlet on his wrist gleamed briefly. "Just you wait - I'll kill you next time." He sneered again. "Later, losers." It was the last thing he said before a strange light enveloped him.

"...Eh?" Sierra pressed her palms to the top of the rock wall, pushing herself to her feet, leaning forward. "He's goooone~!" She sang childishly in amazement. Katsurou stood there for a moment more, blade ready as if anticipating an ambush. ...But nothing happened. Sierra was right - it was clear that Leo had actually gone. Teleported, perhaps. He sighed, resheathing his sword before turning back to Sierra and Izzack. "Neat!" She looked over to the reaper excitedly. "Look, look! He's coming over here!" She beamed. "Now you can fight him! Just like you said you were gonna!"

[The Izzack]

The rabbit was right. These guys were going at it pretty hard, and they certainly seemed quite skilled in using those swords of theirs. It didn't matter, however. These guys had abused him, had treated him like filth, and, in the cold swordsman's case, he had been treated even worse. He had been treated like a villain. Well, now that his powers were under his control, he was going to give whoever walked away from this a piece of his mind...or a certain degree of justice, if the fire man proved victorious. "That's terrible," he said, not really paying too much attention to Sierra as he kept his eyes on the fight, "I will pass this information onto my leader. We can't have men such as that wandering about."

It was at that moment that Leo got...well, something happened with his wrist, and someone talked through it. It would appear that this man also had access to communicators, as well as fire magic. Truly a formidable foe, in that case. Nevertheless, Izzack vowed to pay him back for his treatment of him...some other day. Honestly, it was just relieving that he was leaving, that man seemed a...special sort of violent.

As Katsurou neared, Izzack stood up straight, seeming almost confident, despite what he had seen before. The source of his powers did seem to fill him with a foolhardy 'invincible' mindset. With another hand motion, he let of another spell. In the distance between them, a small explosion occurred. It wasn't anything violent, just a small weaving of fire and air.  Nothing more than a flash of light and a loud report. More a show that he was not going to run again than anything else. "S-stay away!" he said, voice strong despite an initial tremor. "I'm not going to run any longer. I told you that I didn't want to fight, and you still did. Consider this my final warning, and stay clear of me." he threatened, feeling a little bad as he did so. After all, even though this guy had tried to kill him without even going so far as to ask him what was going on...well, at least he did it to help somebody, so at worst, he was like most of the other people in the city, only with a sword...and willing to help him too, if he was about to get killed by someone else. A few points against, sure, but a few points for that meant that he probably shouldn't have been so mean, even if it was the best way to keep the distance between the two.