fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck

Oh, gross. That is - 

It is really fucking wrong that a little part of her is happy this asshole finds her attractive. She feels unclean.

She really, really doesn't want to find out about this dude's "playroom."

His oldest friend, and his newest, both about to be taken and violated because he's too fucking weak to stop this bastard.

No. No, he can't let that happen.

He starts pushing himself up.

Damn. Ryuji's really got nerves of steel.

He turns to Ryuji in surprise. "Oh? You still haven't learned? You can't stop what's happening here, boy. These girls are going to my playroom, and then you're going to be executed after you watch them get dragged off."

He spits at Kamoshida's feet. "You bastard!"

Kamoshida scowls.

A clear voice speaks in Ryuji's head. 

Are you a slave to this petty king?

Ryuji scowls and pushes himself to his feet, staggering and clutching his head in pain. "Aaaaggghh— No! I won't be a slave!"

I hear the cannons roar in your heart, but can you turn them on those who dream themselves your master?

He stumbles, groaning and screaming, energy thrumming through the room. He falls to his knees. Not even Kamoshida breaking his leg had hurt this bad. He roars with the pain.

You have fought without cannon or blade, down to your bare fists and ragged voice, time and again. The time has come to take up proper arms. Ryuji Sakamoto! Will you cast down the tyrants that would see you hang?

"Y-Yes! I'll—" he breaks as the pain overwhelms him again "—I'll fight 'em all! D-Down with the Bastard King!"

We have an accord! Fly the black flag high, and may tyrants ever tremble at your might!

Ryuji stills, suddenly. The convulsions and screams stop.

He hauls himself, groaning, to his feet. A skull-shaped mask of iron now covers the top half of his face.

He speaks, his voice sounding oddly doubled, as though someone else was speaking alongside him.

"I am thou. Thou art I."

He wraps his hands around the edges of the mask and starts to pull.

He cries out in pain, again, as he starts to tear it free.

Blood spurts from the edges as he pulls, then showers forth as it rips off his face.

The guards surrounding him and the girls are knocked away by a powerful gust, and blue flames swirl about his form, obscuring him from view.

Holy shit.

This is fine.

Then he steps forward from the fire.

He's wearing tight-fitting leather, with metal plates guarding his sides and shoulders, and wielding a lead pipe. Brass knuckles cover the tops of his yellow gloves, and the iron skull mask adorns his face.

He levels the pipe at the now-fallen king.

"You can fuck right off back to hell, Kamoshida, because I'm never gonna let you take my friends."

"Wha—"

Kamoshida scrambles backward, then stands back up.

"Seize him!"

"Fat fucking chance."

The knights scramble back to their feet and swarm forward toward Ryuji, swords raised.

He swings his pipe, batting aside swords, and slams one guard in the side of the head. It soars backward and slumps to the ground, melting into shadow and disappearing. Another drops its sword as Ryuji knocks it out with an uppercut, the blade clattering off to one side as the armored guard melts away. Three more are swatted into a wall with a sweeping swing of the pipe.

Akira scrambles after the sword on the floor while Ryuji has the guards occupied.

And he certainly does occupy them. Two try to flank him, but he meets each with a hard swing of his pipe, dispersing them into shadows that melt to the floor.