Kaze keeps Nick and Christine Faded through touch--one hand on Christine and her leg locked with Nick's--as she interposes herself between Christine and Hitomi.
Then, reaching out her hand, she touches him to heal one of those nasty, artistic, black scars on his hand.
But she has only had the Healer power for a moment. It turns out the Healer has to actually touch the patient, not just pass a Faded hand through him.
"Hitomi, you are destined to lose. You are not at one with the source of Magic as my father was. You do not know what he knows." A slight but distinct emphasis on the present tense of the last word.
Hitomi hisses a sharp indrawn breath.
"The Chairman -- he lives?"
Christine and Nick, seeing that Hitomi is within arm's reach of them, hurry from his grasp. This also means they break contact with Kaze, and become solid.
Nick pours on the magic, with Christine boosting him. The Torch cries out with effort, then bends backward at the waist, his flames curling into rigidly frozen shapes around him, encasing him in a mound of frozen fire.
Hitomi tries to grab Kaze by the shoulder.
"Where is he? What is he working toward? Tell me!"
But of course, even a Fade can't grab a Fade.
If no one's going to shoot Richter, he might as well get up. He takes a gun off the wounded Reader and aims between Hitomi's shoulder blades. He may never get a better shot ...
Wait, I missed something. When did Richter get untied?
ReplyDeleteIn my mental picture, Richter was secured to the work table by steel bands, but not otherwise tied up. Sky Traveled him out from under the steel bands, so his limbs are free.
ReplyDeleteI may not have made that clear -- I hope I didn't state that Richter was tied up, as that was not my intention.
Kaze narrows her eyes and smiles:.
ReplyDelete"Where the red mountain
Covers the last golden army
There my father dwells"
" Sky Traveled him out from under the steel bands, so his limbs are free."
ReplyDeleteOh. I was not aware that that action was successful.
Well, the Power of Haiku has floored Hitomi, so he's gonna stand there with his mouth slightly open.
ReplyDeleteThis causes Richter to be able to take the shot. Richter's exhausted and hurt, so most of his bullets miss. One, however, clocks Hitomi right in the head.
Hitomi goes over backwards, but doesn't reach the floor before he Travels.