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orange_lilyIt turns out Yugo's brothers in Shiragiku do have an idea of where Keisuke - the Phantom of Christmas Future, Yugo finds it difficult to remind himself of that - is.
The shateigashira, though, a man in his late thirties with a cropped beard and a body covered in tattoos, doesn't want to talk, though.
"But why should we tell you?" He snorts, lighting up a cigarette and offering one to Yugo. Yugo doesn't acknowledge it either way. "You've been, what, working as a florist? We'll come tell you if we want a floral arrangement for the bar."
The other men look visibly uncomfortable. Yugo gives the other man a bright smile.
"Dude. That's harsh, bro. That's super harsh," he says. "We're family, bro. My father took you in, accepted your oaths, gave you this nice bar of yours. All I want is a couple of possible addresses from one of my adorable baby brothers and I'll totally let you get on with business."
He rubs his chin. It's a reminder that he should probably shave soon. "I mean, I came to you 'cause I respect everything you've done here, but Dad'll know where to find Keisuke too, I guess. Dude, that is going to be so awkward, he's going to want to know where I've been, what I've been doin', why I'm lookin' for Keisuke and why one of his business partners has gone missing."
The shateigashira sucks in a breath for a moment. The next ten minutes are full of jibes, meant to keep him from losing face, but he still gives Yugo the addresses.
---
Yugo finds Keisuke at the second address on the list, a department store rooftop near the docks that he'd used for 'meetings' when he was a human. He has Sanada strapped to some kind of machine that looks like a giant metal snowflake hooked up to servers and pylons and a mass of pipes.
"Dude, Keisuke," he calls, raising one hand as he enters. "Wanna make this easy and let him go now? I could totally go for that, I'm not feelin' great."
Keisuke gives him a surprised look, turning towards him. Yugo grimaces a little. He's never faced a Phantom who looked like someone he knew before. He touches the disk on his wrist awkwardly, wondering if it would have been possible to make more than one.
"Machine's still gatherin' power," Keisuke says. "Turns out Sanada's a hardier one than I thought. Who would've guessed, scrawny old guy like him. Guess all that money keeps him from falling into despair too quick, huh?"
"Guess so," Yugo says. "Krampus with you?"
"He'll be here when the machine is due to activate. Soon, bro, very soon. The machine'll use him and me and Sanada's Phantom to create snow over Shiragiku, and everyone the snow touches with a Phantom inside them? They're all going to start breaking free, dude. Like a little Sabbath ritual," Keisuke says.
"Dude, you have to know I won't let you do that," Yugo says, and reaches for the disk, moving to rotate it.
Red plumage bursting out of gold armour. The river steaming. Screaming at the sky.
The memory rises up out of the quagmire of thoughts, and Yugo freezes, fingers on the disk. If he transforms, maybe whatever happened to him before will happen again.
"Oh, right. Kramp told me. You lost it before, didn't you? Phoenix took control. Kramp said you went out-and-out Phantom for a bit there," Keisuke says. "But sure, you do your Rider thing. It totally won't go wrong."
Yugo scowls, trying to rotate the disk around. His fingers refuse to move. Keisuke looks highly amused by this.
He also has no compunctions about transforming, as his eyes flash green just before he transforms into a lanky, cloaked figure. He moves towards Yugo with surprising speed, the back of one hand hitting him with enough force to send him sprawling.
Yugo sucks in a sharp breath, pulling the Explosion Ring from his belt and sliding it on. He's about to scan it when he stops, because what if that isn't safe either?
He's dragged off the ground by the Phantom, given another backhand that sends him flying.
Yugo grits his teeth, and forces himself to scan the ring, taking aim at one of the pylons connected to the machine.
"Explosion, please," the disk chirps.
A spike of terror works its way up through Yugo's chest as he feels a pain behind his eyes, wingbeats in his ribcage, and hears Phoenix's screaming like it's own his thoughts. The bruise where Krampus stabbed him feels suddenly livid with sickly heat, and for a second Yugo wonders if he's going to black out.
Will Phoenix take control if I do?
A sphere of light and air flies out of Yugo's hand towards the pylon. He sees the Phantom raise a hand, and the air spiral into darkness, absorbing the sphere. It opens again a moment later to return it towards Yugo, forcing him to dive out of the way.
"This is just sad, bro," the Phantom says. "You're a Greater Phantom, the Lord of Fire, and you're sprawled on a rooftop too afraid to do anything. Why is this always how it goes with you guys? Dragon's enslaved, Chimera's a traitor, who knows where Ogre is. You used to be the best of us."
Yugo feels Phoenix's rage bubbling up again. He forces it back, clamping his hand around the disk on his wrist. He just needs a few minutes of transformation, that's all. He wills himself to turn the disk, but he can't bring himself to move his hand.
The Phantom twists his hand again, and Yugo feels another portal open, this time beneath him. He has just enough time to yell before he tumbles into it.
---
"Is it ready, then?" Krampus asks, brushing a hand over Sanada's jacket some hours later. There are purple cracks starting to form over the man's face, slowly but surely.
"It's ready," the Phantom of Christmas Future says.
The shateigashira, though, a man in his late thirties with a cropped beard and a body covered in tattoos, doesn't want to talk, though.
"But why should we tell you?" He snorts, lighting up a cigarette and offering one to Yugo. Yugo doesn't acknowledge it either way. "You've been, what, working as a florist? We'll come tell you if we want a floral arrangement for the bar."
The other men look visibly uncomfortable. Yugo gives the other man a bright smile.
"Dude. That's harsh, bro. That's super harsh," he says. "We're family, bro. My father took you in, accepted your oaths, gave you this nice bar of yours. All I want is a couple of possible addresses from one of my adorable baby brothers and I'll totally let you get on with business."
He rubs his chin. It's a reminder that he should probably shave soon. "I mean, I came to you 'cause I respect everything you've done here, but Dad'll know where to find Keisuke too, I guess. Dude, that is going to be so awkward, he's going to want to know where I've been, what I've been doin', why I'm lookin' for Keisuke and why one of his business partners has gone missing."
The shateigashira sucks in a breath for a moment. The next ten minutes are full of jibes, meant to keep him from losing face, but he still gives Yugo the addresses.
Yugo finds Keisuke at the second address on the list, a department store rooftop near the docks that he'd used for 'meetings' when he was a human. He has Sanada strapped to some kind of machine that looks like a giant metal snowflake hooked up to servers and pylons and a mass of pipes.
"Dude, Keisuke," he calls, raising one hand as he enters. "Wanna make this easy and let him go now? I could totally go for that, I'm not feelin' great."
Keisuke gives him a surprised look, turning towards him. Yugo grimaces a little. He's never faced a Phantom who looked like someone he knew before. He touches the disk on his wrist awkwardly, wondering if it would have been possible to make more than one.
"Machine's still gatherin' power," Keisuke says. "Turns out Sanada's a hardier one than I thought. Who would've guessed, scrawny old guy like him. Guess all that money keeps him from falling into despair too quick, huh?"
"Guess so," Yugo says. "Krampus with you?"
"He'll be here when the machine is due to activate. Soon, bro, very soon. The machine'll use him and me and Sanada's Phantom to create snow over Shiragiku, and everyone the snow touches with a Phantom inside them? They're all going to start breaking free, dude. Like a little Sabbath ritual," Keisuke says.
"Dude, you have to know I won't let you do that," Yugo says, and reaches for the disk, moving to rotate it.
Red plumage bursting out of gold armour. The river steaming. Screaming at the sky.
The memory rises up out of the quagmire of thoughts, and Yugo freezes, fingers on the disk. If he transforms, maybe whatever happened to him before will happen again.
"Oh, right. Kramp told me. You lost it before, didn't you? Phoenix took control. Kramp said you went out-and-out Phantom for a bit there," Keisuke says. "But sure, you do your Rider thing. It totally won't go wrong."
Yugo scowls, trying to rotate the disk around. His fingers refuse to move. Keisuke looks highly amused by this.
He also has no compunctions about transforming, as his eyes flash green just before he transforms into a lanky, cloaked figure. He moves towards Yugo with surprising speed, the back of one hand hitting him with enough force to send him sprawling.
Yugo sucks in a sharp breath, pulling the Explosion Ring from his belt and sliding it on. He's about to scan it when he stops, because what if that isn't safe either?
He's dragged off the ground by the Phantom, given another backhand that sends him flying.
Yugo grits his teeth, and forces himself to scan the ring, taking aim at one of the pylons connected to the machine.
"Explosion, please," the disk chirps.
A spike of terror works its way up through Yugo's chest as he feels a pain behind his eyes, wingbeats in his ribcage, and hears Phoenix's screaming like it's own his thoughts. The bruise where Krampus stabbed him feels suddenly livid with sickly heat, and for a second Yugo wonders if he's going to black out.
Will Phoenix take control if I do?
A sphere of light and air flies out of Yugo's hand towards the pylon. He sees the Phantom raise a hand, and the air spiral into darkness, absorbing the sphere. It opens again a moment later to return it towards Yugo, forcing him to dive out of the way.
"This is just sad, bro," the Phantom says. "You're a Greater Phantom, the Lord of Fire, and you're sprawled on a rooftop too afraid to do anything. Why is this always how it goes with you guys? Dragon's enslaved, Chimera's a traitor, who knows where Ogre is. You used to be the best of us."
Yugo feels Phoenix's rage bubbling up again. He forces it back, clamping his hand around the disk on his wrist. He just needs a few minutes of transformation, that's all. He wills himself to turn the disk, but he can't bring himself to move his hand.
The Phantom twists his hand again, and Yugo feels another portal open, this time beneath him. He has just enough time to yell before he tumbles into it.
"Is it ready, then?" Krampus asks, brushing a hand over Sanada's jacket some hours later. There are purple cracks starting to form over the man's face, slowly but surely.
"It's ready," the Phantom of Christmas Future says.
