Into The Fire
This story is a direct follow-up to Freak In The Streets.
The battle was over. The Bleeding Zone had shattered, and with it, all tensions that had been previously hanging in the air. Scarlet Senshi didn't let that tension go poof right off the bat, however -- she still had a job to do. Takaishi was probably hurt, as her motorbike's sudden disappearance most certainly would've caused him to fly right off the seat of the vehicle. The masked heroine, clad in red and black, still wanted to know more about that other masked individual who she didn't recognise. He seemed to be an ally for the time being, but the lack of knowledge was unnerving to Kaoru underneath the leather and kevlar. A complete blank in her data was one of the worst things she could encounter in her line of work. The most she could make out was what she assumed was the Idolon's name, Taiyou o Korosu... that seemed incomplete. The what that destroys the sun? Far too cryptic for her liking.
Kaoru arrived at the edge of the scene of the battle. A nearby alley, where Takaishi, indeed, lay on the concrete, seemingly in pain. Kaoru hoped he wasn't too hurt, as she went to check up on him. Being outside of a Bleeding Zone made her instinctually drop her kayfabe to a degree.
"Are you alright?" She spoke, in a stern tone of voice. Her speech softened up quickly. "I'm sorry... I didn't have time to tell you that the bike wouldn't exist outside of a Bleeding Zone."
"I... I'm -- agh -- Shit, my ankle still hurts. And now, my shoulder too." The massive teenager tried to get up, stumbling, only for Scarlet Senshi to lend her shoulder to him and at least, get Takaishi to sit on a nearby dumpster. "Thanks. Other than that, I'm okay... Who are you?"
The question made Kaoru tense up. It was only now that she realised that she was, indeed, talking to Takaishi Kuroda, from the gardening club. The gentle giant whose large hands she felt that one time, with the soft smile and the calm demeanour. She had thrown herself at him before in what was, in retrospect, a pretty inappropriate position... Even if all she wanted was to get him to safety, of course. Kaoru paused for a second, unable to speak, as the embarrassment flooded her obscured face.
"Uh... Hello?" Takaishi made himself noticed, as Kaoru shook her head. She re-established her confidence.
"You know my name. I am Scarlet Senshi, watcher of the watchmen!" Scarlet Senshi posed dramatically, perhaps in an attempt to shake off the question. Takaishi was not impressed.
"N-No, I mean..." He stammered. "Do you have a name? Were you just passing by or something?"
"That is a mystery!" Kaoru shot him down with an accusatory finger, and continued. "Would you require some form of medical assistance? Perhaps I can find a healer of some kind..."
"Um, maybe Shu could help?" Takaishi coyly remarked, almost as a joke.
Kaoru could only stammer a sudden response, desperate to hide her secrets. "W-Who is that?"
"Just a friend of mine, he's helped me with stuff from time to time... What were you doing here, anyway? How did you know what was going on? Why did you help me?"
In truth, Kaoru's danger sense, an ability she could use in and outside the Idea World, alerted her to a nearby battle in a Bleeding Zone -- but specifically, she was alerted about someone familiar to her, Takaishi, being in danger. She used a Garganta with the specific purpose of helping him, but she suddenly found herself rescuing him, and helping someone else finish the fight. It didn't quite go as expected -- Kaoru thought Takaishi would be fighting alongside her, but instead, she had to rush him out of the Bleeding Zone. A part of her was a little disappointed...
"I... I appear wherever there is injustice. That is the vow of Scarlet Senshi!", she quickly replied. Takaishi shrugged, not quite getting what she was getting at. He sighed with disappointment.
"I don't get you hero types. You're always running into danger, without a care in the world... And somehow, things always work out for you. Aren't you ever scared?"
"Of what?" Kaoru asked, with curiosity.
"You know... Getting hurt. Or someone getting hurt because of you."
There was a short pause. Kaoru wondered if she could truly be honest with Takaishi... She wanted to, to a degree. Takaishi's presence was somewhat comforting to her, but at the same time, she was starting to be let down by his attitude to battling in Bleeding Zones. Perhaps she could do something about it. The mask began slipping further.
"It's... It's hard to explain. I guess I am scared of all of that. When I run into battle, I could absolutely get hurt. And I do."
"Really? Then..." Takaishi struggled to find the words. "What keeps you going?"
"There's something that scares me even more."
"And what's that?"
"Someone getting hurt... Because I wasn't there to help. Or someone running wild with unchecked power, without anyone to stop them."
"But that's easy for you to say!" Takaishi argued with frustration. "In the Idea World, we have these powers that let us fight back. In the real world... would you be able to do the same thing? Against a guy with a knife, or a gun?"
Kaoru fell silent. That question was tough -- she wasn't sure how to answer at first. Despite her preparations, her contingency plans, her drive to find the truth and act... There were many that could overpower her with ease. But she knew, it wasn't about certainty. Takaishi was missing the point. And she was struggling to find a way to prove it to him.
The armoured heroine turned around, swiping into the air with a swing of her hand. She created a Garganta, a portal into the nearest bleeding zone.
"Jump in. I have something to show you."
Takaishi was limping, and he hesitated for a moment, but he eventually followed Scarlet Senshi into the Bleeding Zone. An abandoned wreckage site in Kageoka's forbidden zone, lit by red skies and circled by darkened clouds.
"What are we doing here?" Takaishi asked, with fear in his voice. "We just got out of a fight -- Are we gonna jump into another one right now?"
"No, this Bleeding Zone is stable for now. Bear with me," Scarlet Senshi demanded, injecting some calm into the situation. "Blakeney, I need your help."
A crimson ring of light flared into existence on Kaoru's gloved left hand. "Okay, now hold my hand. I'm gonna show you something. I think this is possible, but it's gonna take all my concentration..."
Takaishi held up his right hand, not quite sure how this charade would go. They held hands... and Kaoru immediately realised she was holding hands with Takaishi. A wave of awkwardness washed over her, one that Takaishi perhaps shared to a degree. The blush in his face, unlike Kaoru's, was quite obvious. It took around a minute, but eventually, out of the ring, much like a jack-in-the-box, manifested a spindly, plant-like creature, with an ominous, crazed grin on his wooden face. Blakeney, the original Scarlet Pimpernel, could only hold a physical body for a short amount of time, but it was clear that Kaoru had summoned him for a reason.
"Ahaha! I LIVE!" Cried out the being, startling Takaishi and causing him to jump as a reaction. Blakeney chuckled to himself, and apologised to the poor lad. "Sorry, sorry! I REALLY wanted to do that to someone."
"So THAT'S your Idolon?" Takaishi asked, recovering from the jumpscare. Kaoru nodded coldly.
"Blakeney, you're better at words of encouragement than me. Mind helping me out here?"
"I'm on a timer, cherìe... but I might as well."% Blakeney faced Takaishi, twisting in shape as his vines spun around his body, and his leaves rustled all throughout his spindly form. "Young man! Have you heard of the story of David and Goliath?"
"Uh... I think I have," replied Takaishi.
Blakeney folded his arms, falling into a more relaxed posture as he hovered like a genie over Scarlet Senshi. He took on a sing-song tone, as if reciting a poem. "David walked into the valley, with just a stone, clutched in his hand... He was only a boy, yet he knew someone must take a stand!"
"Oh, it's this one again..." Kaoru remarked under her breath, smirking.
"Well..." Takaishi rubbed the back of his head. "Are you sure that no one would've done that if he didn't do it?"
"David didn't know that, " Blakeney continued. "He just did it, because he knew someone had to."
"But... How did he know if he would win? Maybe he was just lucky!"
"Luck is an ally of justice, young man! He who is truly just, will have luck at their side. And besides... You can't just choose the battles you know you're going to win. You have to make your own destiny."
Takaishi thought about Shu, and his insane lucky streaks that allowed him to perform superhuman feats, like jumping on cars, or surviving dangerous falls. Kaoru, too, thought about Blakeney's words, and for a second, wondered if Blakeney was telling her not to doubt Shu so much.
"Isn't that just hoping that you'll make it, though? What if I do something wrong? What if..."
Takaishi thought back to the time Shu helped him rescue his cousin. He cut off his own finger, just to show the yakuza that he meant business. And thinking back... Shouldn't he have done that? Why did he not have the courage to do so? Was it the fear of pain? Blood? Amputation? He was immobile, in that moment. And instead, Shu did it for him. The feelings of helplessness led to anger, and that anger started to cut away at the fear, slowly but surely. However, excuses and laments reared their ugly heads anyway.
"Tch. It doesn't matter -- I had chances to do that. And I missed out on them. I'm a mess... Why do I even have these powers, anyway?" Takaishi lowered his head, now hanging in shame. Kaoru bit her lip -- Perhaps she had idealized him a little too much, after all. But she wasn't annoyed. Even if she herself never quite faltered in taking action when she found it necessary, she realized that she, too, faced a similar fear.
Trusting others.
In fact, doing all of this at all, summoning Blakeney and exposing her heart to Takaishi in such an intimate way, took a lot of trust -- more than she expected to have. Was it the Ai situation that helped her bridge the gap? Or the recent battle against the Census Club? Regardless, Kaoru saw in Takaishi something akin to herself, much like Ai, back when they fought. There was a desire to heal, in helping him heal too.
"You'll find other chances," Scarlet Senshi spoke up. She started to speak from the heart -- bad mistake. "You have people that rely on you. People that have already fought beside you before, who will need your help again. You can fall down today, but tomorrow, you'll have a chance to get back up!"
"Well said, my Scarlet Pimpernel!" Blakeney continued. "There will always be a valley, always mountains one must scale! There will always be perilous waters, which someone must sail!"
"Then, what do I have to do? When I'm scared, and I can't move, what do I do?! Where do I find that courage? How can I be like you, and Shu, and everyone?"
Blakeney cackled. His root-like hands grabbed a hold of Takaishi's shoulders, in what felt like a grand electric shock of emotional resonance. The Idolon's voice boomed through the entire Bleeding Zone.
"Let the lightning strike! Let the flash of it shock you!"
Images of previous battles flashed in front of Takaishi's eyes. That large-scale battle he fought alongside Momofuku and the Student Council, where they were surrounded by enemies. That chase through the city, pedaling as fast as possible while Shu braved the dangers -- far more than any normal human being possibly could.
"Choke your fears away! Pull as tight as a wire!"
The words were cryptic. Blakeney was a dramatic creature, a poet at heart. Kaoru had learned to accept him like this, and took it upon herself to translate.
"Being brave doesn't mean you're not scared, but rather... You do something about the problem, even if you're scared."
Takaishi wasn't entirely convinced yet. Doubt was still visible in his eyes. He clawed at any excuse, any reason to stick to his world of inaction, knowing deep down that he was wrong -- still, so very lost.
"And... What if I feel weak? What if I don't have the strength?"
Blakeney's poetry resumed, and Takaishi took in every word, slowly beginning to understand.
"Let the fever spike! Let the force of it rock you!"
The acknowledgement of fear. Takaishi saw it as an obstacle. His senses didn't lie to him -- back then, when he faced the yakuza, he was clearly in danger. But Shu clearly felt the same way... enough to piss his pants, even. That same thunderbolt that incapacitated Takaishi entirely, had also touched Shu, in that moment. But it didn't stop him. If the Prez had the strength to go beyond his senses, why couldn't Takaishi look past that jolt?
Perhaps that was a feeling to welcome. Knowing that one is afraid is the first step to action. Takaishi might've been wrong to see it as a roadblock, but he was the one that was letting it stop him. He might've not had the strength to rule over such a feeling yet... but it was starting to become clear. Nameless spoke to Takaishi in ways it had never done before, enveloping him in its many arms. They felt strong, stronger than ever in that embrace. They yearned for a chance to employ that strength. Takaishi melted into the feelings of dread, rage, helplessness. Those feelings of inadequacy, all that fear, it was leaving space for anger. Anger at himself, but also... anger at those who had put him in those situations. An anger that was only beginning to blossom, for Takaishi was still a gentle giant -- but it was a start. Now, all he needed was a chance to face his fears.
He asked with a glare, his voice wavering no longer. "When will I be able to prove myself?"
This time, Kaoru and Blakeney replied at the same time, as if it was a practiced speech.
"We will have our day..."
"...sailing into the fire!"
Blakeney let go of Takaishi, vanishing with one more smirk, as his esoteric energy reverted into Scarlet Senshi's ring. The mysterious spiky heroine looked into Takaishi's eyes, in awe at the wave of newfound confidence -- maybe a little more impressed, or perhaps, awestruck, than she should've been. Scarlet Senshi coughed audibly, as to clear the awkward air, and their hands were separated.
"You think that helped you?" She asked, innocently -- uncharacteristic for Kaoru.
"I think so..." Takaishi answered, with a little less confidence than before. Kaoru wanted to do a mental facepalm. "It was a lot of mumbo jumbo."
"Please forgive Blakeney, he's... very theatrical. But he's a better motivational speaker than me."
"No, no... I think I get it." Takaishi took a deep breath. "Feeling scared... that's not bad, right? Necessarily. I just have to find the willpower to move in spite of it."
"Yeah... More or less." Kaoru crossed her arms, her tone softening ever so slightly. "Start with a decision, then take the first step. The rest will come naturally to you."
A strange feeling of peace washed over Takaishi. His troubles around facing his fears were far from over, but the strange, yet energetic words of that Idolon had inspired him in a way. All those opportunities he had to make things right -- he had the chance to capitalize. He was the only person that could carve out a path to what he wanted.
"Thanks. I'm not sure if I can put this into practice just yet, but... thanks, really." Takaishi began approaching the portal once again, but before he did so, he turned to Scarlet Senshi once again. "Hey..." He acted on impulse. "Do I know you from somewhere?"
The shift in Scarlet Senshi's tone was drastic, as she swiftly reverted back to her superheroic demeanour. "N-Not at all! Justice has many forms -- You might have confused me for someone else!"
"Sure... Will I ever see you again?"
Kaoru wasn't sure how to answer. She hesitated to say yes -- that would mean she knows who he is from somewhere else. She had to act impersonal, and inconspicuous. Deep in her heart, she knew they'd meet again, if Takaishi ever tagged along for any big battles that the Student Council went through. She posed dramatically, scarf billowing in the wind.
"Wherever there is injustice, the Scarlet Pimpernel shall blossom -- that is the vow of Scarlet Senshi!"
Scarlet Senshi backflipped away, soaring into the low-rise building rooftops as she proceeded deeper into the Bleeding Zone. Takaishi shrugged, as he left through the portal, back into the same alleyway he came through. He was in no condition to fight, but he was getting better.
"Just my luck..." Takaishi thought. "How can I possibly get out of my own way like that? I think I'm grasping it, though... but it's gonna take a while for all of that to really set in." He looked at the darkened skies, thinking of his parents and his cousin, who were most likely worried about him. "I wonder what kind of flowers she likes..." He asked himself, as he left into the shadowy streets.