#and also henry is like. fully unconscious being ignored on the ground behind them. which sort of undercuts the emotional weight of the scene

[quietwingsinthesky]

on the one hand, syndicate’s resolution of jacob & evie’s overarching fight feels sort of rushed and unearned, but on the other hand, if i was in an argument with my sister and then some fucking guy tried to kill her in front of me, yeah, that might not solve all the reasons behind the argument but it would make me go ‘oh! right! i never want to live in a world without you!’ and stop us from fighting. so that bit’s actually quite realistic.

[graveyard-in-the-void]

(Writing frenzy continues, this time even with some “art” I swear to god, I’m ruining the lore of pumpkin scissors completely with my AU. In my defense though, listening to this and this didn’t really help me with my active imagination! ... I seriously need to get a grip on action though. I want to write it so bad.) --- Lucifer ---

“Okay, newbie.” Malcolm remembered Foxy’s words from back then. “There are a few rules, even in OUR section. I know it’s surprising, but I’m sure you’ll get the hang of most of them easily, just by watching us! We’re pros after all. However-“ This part was especially vivid, as a shadow crossed the fox’s face. “The main rule, the rule you need to know before anything else… never, ever make Henry angry.” It had been so confusing. “Uh. Foxy… I appreciate your concern, but the Lieutenant seems… always angry?” “Oh-“ He waved his hand. “Upset? Frustrated? Annoyed? Offended? All of these are fine. That’s just how he operates. But no- what I’m talking about here is anger. Rage. Fury.” “He’s already scary enough… I won’t try to make it worse.” Somehow, this drew a chuckle out of Foxy, as he looked over him, up his whole size. “Yeah… some people are scary enough by themselves, aren’t they?” And from there on out… he did see what Foxy was talking about. There were special moments. When they entered territory that they were shot at just for stepping in. When they entered pricey houses, facing the occupants who lived in luxury, sucking out all the life from the cities around them. When they faced a hateful mob, carrying their old, rusty weapons, raising it against their uniform, much more than their words and actions. Every single ones of these times… … when Henry drew his sword… … there was something in his eyes… … a light. Shining maniacally. That stuff was scary. But… there also always had been something about it that made Malcolm feel calm. He knew this kind of light. His lantern seemed to exude something similar- but what Henry had was much, much different. It felt so controlled and aimed. It felt… right. Just, even. In a terrifying way. Henry was ALWAYS armed too. To act on this shine, whoever it may shine on. Fully ready to engage in combat with anyone or anything, from his slacking subordinates to full on abstract concepts. It was good he was always armed. Because they could have never seen this ambush coming. They should have. But they didn’t. Inside of the metal facility, a place nobody should have- could have- predicted them to be… Now the alarms were going off, red light blinking. The siren screaming at the top of its capabilities. Stinging right through the soul- And it was good that Malcolm wasn’t the only one keeping his weapons too close. Too close for comfort. His own, that was. The light of the lantern was shining. It felt so oddly bright in these halls that turned from pitch black to deep red in just a second, coloring his whole vision in with the wrong colors, the wrong noises- He wasn’t thinking. He was listening to the orders that his brain produced at a volume that somehow allowed him to listen to everything and nothing around him. Moving forward. Töten Sie. The only law of his field. This parasite inside of him, the enemy raising the weapon- It was too quick, and too long. A whip? A metal whip, made out of multiple parts that expanded more and more? It was a painful, hard to predict weapon. People could quickly falter under it, especially when wielding a sword- but also those with guns weren’t save from having the weapon ripped form their grasp- leaving them defenseless. Most people, that was. Malcolm just rose his wrist, letting the weapon sling around it, ripping away fabric and skin- Then he pulled. It broke. Expected. What wasn’t expected though- A liquid. It splashed out of the tip of the weapon, covering Malcolm- And starting to abruptly tear away his flesh, in a horrible sizzling noise. Before he could adjust for it, the weapon jumped forward again. In the back he could hear Henry scream out for him- Then he was on his knees, coughing up blood and weird chunky clumps of flesh. Did get anything inside his mouth? He couldn’t realize the feeling- Staring up, at the assailant, all his mind was busy with was to come up with a way to get up again, to avoid the whip and crush this persons being, under his bare hands if it had to happen- He was only lightly armored, if he managed to reach him, somehow- The cold mask that seemed to be the one of a demon simply stared down at him, the expression empty as his own. Slowly he began to raise his hands, willing to pull himself forward- But before he could, something yellow and pink flashed before him, the movement of a short sword was audible- He wanted to scream, suddenly he was on the ground, in pain, suddenly it all came flooding to him, the reality of the situation and that Henry too would be hit by this liquid- whatever it was, whatever it was, if it hit- Abruptly a silver snake landed with a cold, high noise on the ground. The attacker moved backwards. His voice muffled by the mask, almost unrecognizable. “We expected nothing less of the famous Lieutenant Miller. However. You should give up now.” Henry’s eyes bore into his enemy, as he held his sword up defensively, ready for the next weapon and the next attack- “No. I have no intend to make anything easy for the likes of you.” Behind him Malcolm groaned, trying to force himself upwards, his mind a completely jumbled mess, screaming of blood and protection, of love and violence, he couldn’t decipher it- The demon simply scoffed. “… still alive? Well. No witnesses.” He snapped his finger- A gunshot. Then another. Then another. Frozen, Henry turned around, his eyes wide and empty as Malcolm collapsed once more, this time seemingly for good. His body was still twitching, probably grasping to get up- Ignoring the very real threat of getting shot himself, or the masked person stabbing him into the back, he jumped forwards, in such a rush to crouch next to him- over him, trying to keep the life in his eyes- Malcolm’s stare was purple and wide- The eyes of an animal. He grabbed Henry abruptly by the wrist, so strongly that it hurt, but Henry didn’t care about that. Those eyes were not like Malcolm’s at all. Quickly his eyes wandered down to the cursed lantern. It wouldn’t even let him die as himself, huh? Reaching out, he clicked the mechanism shut. Instantly the man below him grew weak, limp, looking up at him with those wide, pained eyes that he knew. “H… Henry…” “Shhhhh-“ Gently he took his cheek into his hand. “It will be okay. You will be okay.” Those words. Said every time. By now he believed in them, that they had some power. After all, until now it always worked, right? The gunmen had stepped out of their hiding places, surrounding them. “Lieutenant Miller. I once more ask you to come along with us… or we will see ourselves forced to use the poisoned darts to cause you to fall unconscious… after a long period of writhing in pain, of course. The body must be fully exhausted for it to take full effect.” Henry however wasn’t even listening. All he did was holding his corporal, trying to- force Mal to stay alive by simply keeping his eyes on him- There were many things Malcolm could tell him now. It hurts. I’m scared. Get away from here. I’m sorry. You did nothing wrong. But both of them were caught watching each other, staring into one another’s eyes, trying to find answers to this situation- Henry hand wandered slowly down to Malcolm’s belt as he shifted, just for his other hand to be abruptly squeezed. “D-don’t touch- the- it will-“ “… it is merely a tiny will-o-wisp.” The alarm didn’t stop screaming, no matter what, keeping Henry at the edge of his sanity. God, he hated that noise. The grip of his corporal was staying tight- “I am warning you one more time, Lord Miller. If you-“ Leaning down, Henry kissed Malcolm, paralyzing him for a second- All the time he needed. Before he the corporal had a hint of a chance to gather himself again- As he looked up to Henry, for a second he was sure he could see flames dance over his lips, out of his open mouth, raising up to his eyes that were flicking with- “N-no-“ “I will be fine.” Calmly Henry stood up, to turn back to the people. If they all shot at once- Well, they wouldn’t shoot at his vitals. They clearly wanted him alive for something. Then all he would have to deal with was the drug. His mouth tasted like Malcolm’s blood. He liked that. Slowly he rose his hand, to lick off the rest of the blood and thinned down acid, as Malcolm watched from the ground, quietly realizing something- Henry took a deep breath, closing his eyes. “Your ambush was cowardly. Your trap ridiculous. But I was not mad yet, for I know that is the way you are.” His eyes wandered over everyone as adjusted his step a little bit more, to better shield the man behind him. “However, not only did you shoot at a man on the ground, which alone did seal your fate, but you also happened to shoot at my Corporal Malcolm… and unlike him… I am a little twisted.” Then his hand went down, and he opened up the chamber. It exuded a pale, golden light. And then Henry’s face was gone- Together with the rest of him. In ONE move he was forward, so much faster than Malcolm could ever be, Malcolm who staggered and stumbled, Malcolm who HESITATED- Henry was on top of the first goon, stabbing him multiple times with his golden dagger, before rolling with the body, letting it soak up the bullets, moving again within a second onto the next one who screamed loudly, his weapon useless on such a short range. One kick. He stumbled, closer to the other next victim- Gunfire. Some of them did HAVE to have hit Henry, however, he wasn’t standing still enough to show, as the two goons fell down to the ground, like oversized puppets. The other two wanted to run, gain distance, but Henry simply threw both of this weapon, splitting them with ease. The demon hadn’t moved. “What an impressive display Lieutenant Miller. How interesting to see you under the influence of the will-o-wisp. However, now you are out of weapons.” “Why thank you. My Corporal has this sort of effect on me that I desperately wish to impress him…” “You will never see him again after today, so it might be good you had this last chance.” The demon aimed calmly forward with the injection in his little gun- Just to stop for a second, his eyes widening just the tiniest bit. Due to his connection, he had seen the ATTs in action before. He had seen their movements, their attacks, their expressions- But- But what he saw in front of him now- There was something off, something abnormal- It wasn’t only that the dulling effect was taking place, it wasn’t just- Henry Miller… … was grinning. His teeth reflecting yellow and sharp in the pale golden light. He was- Enjoying himself- He wasn’t being wielded by the wisp as its senseless murder puppet- This man was battering the will-o-wisp into submission. Submission to him. It flickered so excitedly. Caught in its steel cage- No, no- It wasn’t in its lantern anymore- IT WAS IN HIS EYES AND MAW- “You know why… I saved you for last…?” Henry didn’t seem to mind not having a weapon. The devil masked man rose his weapon, trying to suppress the cold climbing up his spine as though death itself touched him. All he had to do was shoot. Then this creature would be on the ground. The body was still human. And small. It was- “… I wanted you to know that the mask you are wearing…” Abruptly he shot. It hit Henry in the shoulder, the liquid quickly emptying itself into him. Slowly he reached up and inspected the syringe. Then suddenly, his bright, white grin was back. “… thanks for providing me with the weapon, but I was not done yet. Besides, I do not need this.” And with that he was on top of the masked man, who struggled below him. “… your mask is an insult to the good name of demons. At least they have conviction.” The man froze, staring up- For a second just a second he saw a dragon opening its fire-tainted maw- Slowly Henry came to his feet, stumbling the slightest bit- Hissing. “… bastard… ruined the taste in my mouth.” Finally he wiped the blood off his face, the blood that had been on there in such quantity that it dripped onto the ground from his chin and into his clothes- Turning to Malcolm, he expected- something. Fear. Probably. But there was only such- Sadness…? Walking over to him, shuddering and in pain, he kneeled back down next to him. “We will fix you up, Malcolm-“ “… you’re hurt Lieutenant. Why… did you…” Footsteps sounded in the distance- From both sides- But before Henry could rush down the corridor to try and distract the enemy from spotting Malcolm, out of the corridor stumbled Foxy and Simon, out of breath and concerned. “L.T.!” Both of them called out. “Wh-what happened?” “You’re injured!” “Big guy-“ Henry interrupted them. “Good that you are here. Get Malcolm out. Fix him up. I will clean the place out.” “A-alone?!” “L-Lieutenant- don’t- the- the syringe-“ Coldly Henry’s glare wandered from his subordinates to Malcolm, where he paused, his eyes turning softer, but the flickering inside of his eyes didn’t die down. “… there are people somewhere in here. Stuck. I heard something as we walked. Let me get them.” His hand rose up to his belt, where the metal lantern flickered in the rhythm with his heart. “… let me do this. I always liked to play with fire.” Malcolm wanted to speak up. Object. Henry didn’t want to save these people, he wanted to use the lantern- But the other two nodded and proceeded to lean over him, helping him up, as Henry disappeared into the darkness of the red and black- and now golden- corridors. Only faintly, when they were almost gone- He could hear Henry laugh. Slowly he closed his eyes- And prayed for him to be okay. It took an eternity. Simon and Foxy were discussing if one of them should maybe go in, while Malcolm stared up into the sky, gathering himself, fully planning on standing up again, to go inside- But then they heard- Chatter. Out of the opening of the tunnels, a pale, golden light started to shine… … and slowly the silhouette of a person was recognizable, stepping closer. And behind him… … more and more people. They looked tired, beaten and battered- But they were smiling and talking. Forcing himself to stand up, not even hearing his comrades trying to talk him out of it, he walked towards the opening of the tunnel, seeing soon enough that while Henry was drenched in blood, he seemed mostly fine. Scratches and rips, but- fine. The people were celebrating when they saw the sky again. Malcolm wondered how long they’ve been down there. And for what purpose. For now, they were trying to help the weaker ones in the group with some of the food and water they had, sending a message to HQ that they needed some more people here to help. The still injured Malcolm was fairly useless- Waiting for Henry to get freed from the crowd of grateful onlookers- Until he was interrupted by a boy, barely more than a child. “This- this pink guy there! He’s awesome! He- did you see what he did?” “… no, can’t say I did…” Malcolm answered, slightly hesitant. “HE SLICED THEM! DICED THEM! PEOPLE WITH AND WITHOUT MASKS. THE SCIENTISTS TOO! HE GOT ALL OF US OUT! A-at first I couldn’t believe it- I was in this dark room- with no sound- and things got so weird, the scientists said that was normal- but then the door opened and someone- someone brought light! The Pink Guy, he brought light to me- a-and the others! And he got us out!” Making a few movements, the shaking boy jumped around, trying to do some combat motions. Hell- he probably didn’t even know he was shaking. Adrenaline? Fear? He looked up at Mal, out of brown eyes. “S-so, yeah! He’s a great person! Right? He’s so good at fighting and he- took all out of us out! We didn’t get hurt! He killed all the baddies. That makes him the good guy. Right?” Malcolm opened his mouth and he wanted to say something- positive, something good, something that would leave the kid with the sense that it all just had been a dream, a fairytale in which killing the beast was- good- … but… “No. I… do not think… the Lieutenant is a good man.” It was barely more than a whisper. “… he is merely the devil… collecting his dues. And the light you saw, it was-“ Lucifer. The light bringer. Abruptly he moved forward, reaching out for Henry, who allowed him to. “Corporal? Are you alright again…?” “I- yes. Lieutenant, please, let me- can we talk for a moment?” Lieutenant Lucifer. His eyes were dark. No hint of the hellfire left. “… of course.” They stepped away from the crowd, and as soon as they were out of sight, the big guy held out his hand. “… give it back.” Slowly Henry inspected him. “… please.” Malcolm added. With a sigh Henry picked it up from his belt, handing it over. “I suppose you need it more than I do anyhow. I do not need the will-o-wisp to guide me.” “I’ve… seen.” For a moment he paused, then he spoke up. “Uhm- Lieutenant- can I ask something?” “Of course, go ahead.” “Why… the scientists?” Henry paused. “You are right in assuming they were not dangerous, however- they would have run.” “You know that?” “I know that. And cowards like them, if they do not face their punishment by the law… I have to do it myself.” It was quiet for a moment, then Malcolm spoke up again. Hesitant. Afraid. “Uhm- you looked absolutely nightmarish with that lamp.” Even worse than the troops he had walked into fire and brimstone with. And now all he could think of- “… do I look like you… with that lamp…?” For a second Henry stared at him blankly- Then he started laughing. A bit embarrassed the taller guy stepped back. “I- I’m sorry if I offended you or-“ “Oh- oh no- oh Malcolm, you sweet, naïve man-“ Calming down, he wiped a tear away. “… Corporal… Malcolm… you really never pay attention while using the lantern, do you? Well then, let me tell you one thing about yourself.” Leaning over, he signed Mal to lean in too. “… Malcolm… … when using the lamp… … you are NOT the one smiling.” At that he tipped his subordinate onto the nose and turned. As Malcolm watched. Tracing the devil’s steps. Following another lightbringer. He supposed… that was what he was made for. To stay in Lucifier’s steps. But for what purpose he couldn’t yet tell. To join him? To suffer at his hands? To stop him? Hopefully he would find out soon.